Forgotten Movie Songs #10: "A Friend" from W.W. AND THE DIXIE DANCEKINGS

I haven't seen John G. Avildsen's W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings since it played on cable back in the early 1980s. Before that, it made an impression on me as a fun, very Southern-flavored musical romp. I watched it first at the Southeast Expressway Drive-In in Atlanta, GA, in 1975, probably on a double bill with another Burt Reynolds movie (my recollection is the second feature was Reynolds' moonshine action movie White Lightning).

Since it's been so long since I've seen the film, I can't confidently comment too deeply on why I love it so. But I can tell you I DO love it. The movie swirls together superstar Reynolds and neewcomer Jerry Reed, stirs in the cute Conny Van Dyke and taciturn country music mainstay Don Williams (in his only feature film appearance), adding here-and-there dashes of character actors James Hampton and Rick Hurst as the remaining Dancekings, then kicks it all up a notch with two superb Southern-fried villains in Ned Beatty (as the colorfully-named Country Bull) and Art Carney (playing the nasty Deacon John Wesley Gore, right after his 1974 Oscar win as the lead in Paul Mazursky's Harry and Tonto). With all of this, the film HAS to be worth checking out again, or for the first time.

Unfortunately, W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings isn't available to see, because it hasn't been released to DVD, but it's certainly a time capsule that deserves to be reopened. One of its major assets are the songs by Jerry Reed, a country star making his screen debut and who, in 1977, entered icon territory as Reynolds' truck-driving buddy Cledus in Smokey and the Bandit). In W.W., Reed plays the leader of a country bar band who's taken to the top via the deviant management of true believer Reynolds, who endearingly rocks and chuckles his way throughout the entire film. W.W. and The Dixie Dancekings was a major hit in the South (especially at the drive-ins) and was the film that preceded director Avildsen's Oscar win for another little movie called Rocky.

The song "A Friend" echoes throughout the entire film, and becomes an anthem for the goodtime feelings contained within the film. It's still a rousing, even moving song. The music and lyrics are written by Jerry Reed (who also provides the chunky guitar work) and the vocals are shared, suitably, by Reed, Van Dyke, and Williams. My apologies for the poor video quality:



Now this ol' life ain't somethin'
That you live on by yourself
There always comes a time you need a friend
Sometimes this world can get so heavy
And the road can get so long
That you need someone to lend a helping hand

Well, I learned life the hard way
I took all my knocks and lumps
But when I look back down the road at where I been
I can see that all the things I done
In this ol' life have been more fun
Cause I shared them with someone who was a friend

You've got to care 'bout one another
Be a friend and be a brother
Cause you're always gonna need someone
That you can lean on
Got to help each other out
That's what this life is all about
'Cause there ain't no way that you can make
This journey alone

Well, I guess it's time for lookin'
'Cause I been there and back
Yes, I seen life 'bout every which way you can
But as far as I'm concerned
The greatest thing that a man could learn
Is when you're down it's great to turn to a friend

Well, I guess it's time for lookin'
'Cause I been there and back
Yes, I seen life 'bout every which way you can
But as far as I'm concerned
The greatest thing that a man could learn
Is when you're down it's great to turn to a friend
Turn to a friend.