Outlaw Country

So I've been seeing a lot of commentary online about how contemporary Nashville country is not very much like country music has been historically. I didn't know how seriously to take it because I don't listen to the radio and don't watch TV. 

Yesterday, however, rain forced me into a bar in what was styled as a "Barn & Grill," which bar turned out to be marble and which was playing contemporary country on its audio system. Good gracious. That is the worst stuff I have heard in ages.

Guess the Dallas Moore band was right.

10 comments:

sykes.1 said...

A long time ago CW stopped being real, and became fake. The fake/real boundary is somewhere in the vicinity of Johnny Cash/Wllly Nelson and Kenny Rodgers. Rodgers is fake. Gil Black is in-your-face fake. I give Faith Hill a pass because she once ad great legs.

Grim said...

Yeah that’s right. Sex sells, and country music is about very non-sexy things. Broken hearts, lost love, outlawry, hard times.

Anonymous said...

Taylor Swift Named Songwriter-Artist of the Decade by NSAI

She accepted the designation from the Nashville Songwriters Association International’s honor at the historic Ryman Auditorium

https://pitchfork.com/news/taylor-swift-named-songwriter-artist-of-the-decade-by-nsai-read-her-speech/

Christopher B said...

Pre-Garth Brooks vs Post-Garth Brooks

Grim said...

Taylor Swift? Heh. The bot doesn’t get what we do here.

Grim said...

If you draw the line at Kenny Rodgers, which is aggressive, you’re probably about right. Aggressive is good.

Anonymous said...

Real country and some western - still rough on the edges. "Modern country" - too smooth and pretty.

It's a bit like what happened with church music in 2020. As soon as the congregation where I sing could get back together, we sang only the old hymns, the ones about death, trouble, trials, and so on. No one wanted recent, sweet songs. I'm seeing more and more new choir music that goes back to the old, old message - this life is HARD, but G-d is stronger.

LittleRed1

Anonymous said...

I DO get what you do here. I visit every morning. Was trying to point out where Nashville is today.

"It don't mean a thang if it ain't got that twang."

Grim said...

If you’re not a bot and you do understand, even anonymous comments have to be signed. House rules. Pick a pseudonym.

Anonymous said...

Right, of course, sorry about that. Been coming here a long time, I appreciate what you do.

CharlesH