Concerts Rock the Tiny Kingdom of Skullbonia:

Touring rock bands are listing a new stop on their itineraries, along with more typical ports of call… Skullbone, a conservative mile-square hamlet in western Tennessee that derives its peculiar name from a long-ago form of bare-knuckle fighting in which punches were delivered only to the head, has suddenly started drawing major acts like Lynyrd Skynyrd, George Jones, Eddie Money and the Charlie Daniels Band to what concert promoters are calling the strangest amphitheater in the country.

Asked whether it was safe for black people to attend concerts at Skullbone, one vendor of concert souvenirs, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “I’d advise against it. It’s not a good idea. They’re liable to get beat up. Last year there were two blacks in the alcohol-free area, and when the sun went down, people started saying things like, `Those two trees there look mighty sturdy to me.’ They got out of there pretty quick.”