Delta Dawn

[nagantguy]

What do you think the meaning of the song Delta Dawn is? Me and my young beautiful pregnant girl ice have been debating on it from few days. Always loved the song and lots of people have had a hit with it including Tanya Tucker and Bett Midler . Our baby moves a lot when ever we are play the song so it’s been played a lot lately. Anyhow I have an idea but what do you all think it might mean?

[Rick Hodges]

The song is about the songwriters mother, or so he says. Beautiful song, sad story.

"Actually Alex Harvey wrote the song to honor his mother. She was not quite accepted by her husbands family.She had a problem with English and made fun of.
She had a rough life which ended in suicide."

http://www.chickensoup.com/book-story/23552/13-delta-dawn

[gwpercle]

Sometimes it's better to just enjoy a song for what it is.
The real life story behind Delta Dawn was heartbreaking and sad , tragic for both of them.
I had a gut feeling the song was about something with an unhappy ending but no idea it was this unhappy .
Can you imagine telling your mom she can't go and coming home to find her dead ....then having to live with that !

[trapper9260]

I always like that song but know it was a sad one and my mom love it also, the one by Helen Reddy. Thank you for the story behind it no matter how sad it is.I still did not change my mind on it and also remind me of my mom that had sang it when it would play.It was one of 3 of hers she like, She had past away in 2002 due to health problems. I was with her when she died and 2 of my sisters.

[trapper9260]

Here is the one by Helen Reddy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afsp7MU-nTI

[DIRT Farmer]

Loved the song but when sitting in the dark drinking cheap whisky because of the things from where you had been, the delta was different

[MT Gianni]

Borderline mental illness brought on by the self imposed trauma of a relationship that didn't work out.

[lefty o]

Here is the one by Helen Reddy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afsp7MU-nTI

im a tanya tucker fan, but helen does it better.

[DocSavage]

Ditto MT Gianni.

[farmerjim]

I got to hear Helen Reddy sing it about 12 years ago at a concert here in St. Francisville. It sure has a haunting sound.

[Stan_TN]

Buy that was quite a song when I was young. It was on the Radio all the time. Sad story though

[jonp]

Borderline mental illness brought on by the self imposed trauma of a relationship that didn't work out.

Pretty much. "taking you to his mansion in the sky" should be pretty self evident.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

In the early 1970s I was visiting my sister who lived in Missouri. Her husband had bought a farm in Kentucky and she drove me over one day to help her feed some cattle. When we were done with feeding she said she wanted to show me something. We drove down a country lane and as we approached a farmhouse I saw a women standing by the mail box. I assumed she was waiting for the mail delivery but when we stopped she walked to our car, I had the car window down, the women bent over and said one word, " Preacher". I could tell by then that something was wrong with her. My sister drove away and told me the story. When this middle aged women was 19 a new preacher came to their church and the girl fell madly in love with him. Her fascination got so bad the young preacher was forced to leave. The girls mind snapped and never returned to normal. Everyday after breakfast she would go stand by the mailbox waiting for preacher to return or send her a letter. I was depressed and asked my sister why she took me there. She apologized. I asked what the girls family did in the winter and she told me they dressed the women in warm clothes. Since that happened I have seen other similar incidents. Very depressing. I could tell you of another incident in Long Beach, California but I am tired of typing.

[Stan_TN]

This is quite an interesting thread. Glad I got a note in earlier

[MT Gianni]

In the early 1970s I was visiting my sister who lived in Missouri. Her husband had bought a farm in Kentucky and she drove me over one day to help her feed some cattle. When we were done with feeding she said she wanted to show me something. We drove down a country lane and as we approached a farmhouse I saw a women standing by the mail box. I assumed she was waiting for the mail delivery but when we stopped she walked to our car, I had the car window down, the women bent over and said one word, " Preacher". I could tell by then that something was wrong with her. My sister drove away and told me the story. When this middle aged women was 19 a new preacher came to their church and the girl fell madly in love with him. Her fascination got so bad the young preacher was forced to leave. The girls mind snapped and never returned to normal. Everyday after breakfast she would go stand by the mailbox waiting for preacher to return or send her a letter. I was depressed and asked my sister why she took me there. She apologized. I asked what the girls family did in the winter and she told me they dressed the women in warm clothes. Since that happened I have seen other similar incidents. Very depressing. I could tell you of another incident in Long Beach, California but I am tired of typing.

Some of that thinking comes from an era or setting where a young woman believed she had only one shot at a marriage.

[fatelk]

Mental illness is heartbreaking, especially in a young person like that. I have a relative going through something of a similar nature, and it's heartbreaking and exhausting to try to deal with.