As many of you know, Austin, Texas is known as “The Capital of Live Music.” When I first moved to Austin I had heard about all the great local events with live music, but I never expected it to be a weekly thing. Growing up just thirty minutes away from Houston, if I wanted live music I had to drive there, and most of the time it was only really famous artists. I love any type of live music, but my favorite, is Texas Country. Texas country, unlike Nashville country, is true to its roots. To me, Texas country brings back the original country music sound. Now I am not saying I do not like the “new country,” otherwise known as country-pop, but something about Texas country brings back the homey feel.
For example, I go to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo every year, which they bring in big performers at the end of every rodeo. I have seen a numerous amount of country artists perform there such as Brad Paisley, Lady Antebellum, Zak Brown Band and even Clay Walker. However, every year in my hometown, we hold the Pasadena Rodeo in September. Not only do they have rodeo fairground events, they also bring in smaller, upcoming country artists, which are usually the “Texas country” bands. Texas country music has always been one of my favorite types on music. From Josh Abbott Band to Cody Johnson, I have always stuck with the little “Texas” bands.
This past weekend, I went to the Nutty Brown Café to see Randy Rogers Band play. Listening to country music, hearing the fiddle play, while in a crowd filled with cowboy boots, I really felt like a true Texan. Along with going to the Nutty Brown Café, I have gone to many festivals and fairs where Texas country bands performed. A few of those are The Strawberry Festival and The Gator Festival. Sounds redneck right? I love getting to wear my boots and listen to some true country music.
Although Texas country bands don’t always make it big, they are considered big to us Texas country lovin’ fans. They may not make it big nationally but here, they seem to be pop-stars. My sister recently moved to California, and says that not many people have heard of bands like Josh Abbott, Randy Rodgers, and Kyle Park. If you look at their tour dates, it seems as if they stay in southern states like Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, and of course, Texas.
If you listen to “Murder On Music Row,” which I suggest you do, the sound ties back into the meaning of the song by keeping the true country sound. With the twang in their voices, the fiddle in the background, and the acoustic guitars, Strait and Jackson relay a message to the country music industry, striving to keep the traditional country music alive. As two true country artists, they saw what country music was turning into and what it was soon to become. Strait and Jackson may be seen as the saviors of traditional country music in the era of its changes.
