Do you remember those rumors about Adam Ant living in the area?
I first heard them years ago and mostly dismissed them because it was just too weird thinking about the guy who sang Ant music for ant people and Dirk wearing white socks living around here, but he did in fact live in Dayton, Tenn., for a number of years with then-wife Lorraine Goddard. The two were married in Dayton, and their daughter, Lily, was born there. They lived there and in London -- think about that for a minute -- during their relationship.
Ant is back in the music game, with a new band called The Good, The Mad and the Lovely Posse, and they have released a new song and video called "Cool Zombie," which addresses his time in Dayton. He told a Wall Street Journal reporter that he spent much of the time there dealing with being dumped by his record label and his bipolar disorder. He wrote "Stand and Deliver -- The Autobiography" about it in 2007.
The new album is called "Adam Ant Is the Blueblack Hussar in Marrying the Gunner's Daughter." The song has kind of a Jack White, swampy sound to it. Ant is a little heavier but looks good, and he is still wearing the over-the-top costumes that made people like Prince and Michael Jackson fans.
The opening lyrics of "Cool Zombie" are:
For a time I lived in Tennessee
A pretty hillbilly
A cool zombie
The people there were real friendly
Flattop cats and dungarees
54 pickup, eggs over easy
A zombie
The last two verses read:
I bought an A-framed house that suited me
On top of the vale in Tennessee
The place that made world history
The Monkey Trial of 23
A cool zombie
The kind of place a lost soul could hide
Hadn't changed since Bonnie and Clyde
This goes out to Ronnie B
The sailor man on his Harley
Showed me how good life could be
A live tour of God's country
The good folk there were good to me
They never ever twigged
I was a cool zombie Adam Ant.
• If you haven't seen the latest featurette on "42," the movie partially filmed at Engel Stadium, you can find it at Chatta noogaNow.com.
Contact staff writer Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.
Barry Courter is staff reporter and columnist for the Times Free Press. He started his journalism career at the Chattanooga News-Free Press in 1987. He covers primarily entertainment and events for ChattanoogaNow, as well as feature stories for the Life section. Born in Lafayette, Ind., Barry has lived in Chattanooga since 1968. He graduated from Notre Dame High School and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in broadcast journalism. He previously was ...
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