I have traveled back in time a bit with my album analysis essay. When I was deciding what album to write about I decided to ask my dad what artist I should choose. My dad was the first person to introduce me to country music and I am very thankful for this. I ended up choosing Toby Keith’s Greatest Hits Volume One. My dad had a cassette of this in his blue pickup truck. I can vividly remember my tiny self sitting in the passenger seat as he drove me out to the small town of Nixon, Texas to visit family. Down the dirt roads we went singing along to “Should’ve Been A Cowboy.” In memory of the country music that influenced my childhood, I present a few of the songs I loved to sing along to back then.
First, sticking with the intro, is “Should’ve Been A Cowboy” by Toby Keith. I just remember him singing about “Miss Kitty” which I automatically thought at the time was about my Pre-K teacher who went by the same name. I loved this song, and still do.
Another one of my favorites was “All My Exes Live In Texas.” Sure I didn’t have any “exes” like George Strait, but it was a catchy song. I loved songs about the state where I lived and since King George was from my beloved Texas, I appreciated it even more.
My dad took me to my first rodeo when I was six years old. The performers were Brooks and Dunn. I loved every minute of that night. I remember my dad and I dancing around the house to their music. He’s the one who taught me how to two step. The song that he and I dance to at every family event is “Neon Moon.” It is not necessarily anything about the message, but for some reason this has stuck as our dance song.
One of the greats, Garth Brooks, also played an important role in my upbringing. “Friends in Low Places” was a favorite. I was fun to sing with my whole heart to. I loved performing when I was little. You can bet this was one of the songs in my lineup.
This final song was and still is one of my absolute favorites. Tim McGraw’s “Don’t Take the Girl” is a sad song, but nonetheless one I never tire of hearing. McGraw is one of my favorite artists and I think it is because of this beautiful song.
You have now experienced a little bit of my childhood. I hope you enjoy listening to these songs as much as I do. Thanks to my dad for bringing me up as a country girl living in the city.
I grew up listening to the same music as you, and to this day I still think the country music of the 90’s is my favorite. I think I know all the words to every song you listed above, and I love it when they come on my Spotify playlist. I wish the country music of today sounded the same as “new country”. I know we have talked about it in class, but in my opinion today’s country music is moving too far away from what I consider authentic, and I just wish we had more artists that sounded like Brooks and Dunn or Garth Brooks. Regardless of where country music ends up, I thoroughly enjoy the songs you included above and hope country music moves back in that direction.
I don’t think I could have put together a better list myself. If I picked up the phone and called my father right now he would tell me the exact same thing. These “New Country” music artists are hands down my favorite. I agree with Justin, that today’s country music doesn’t sound authentic. Today’s country is too commercial and pop. These songs and artists are timeless and I really hope that country music goes back to this style. The only one of these artists who seems to have change with the genres and remain at the top of the country music charts is Tim McGraw. I agree that my favorite song of his, even to this day, is “Don’t take the Girl.”
You pretty much picked out all the same artists that I listened to with my dad when I was growing up. This is an excellent playlist. I agree with both Justin and Shannon that these “New Country” artists are definitely my favorite, and I think that today’s country music is moving farther and farther away from this sound and just doesn’t sound like good, authentic country music. Which is a shame, because when I think of country music, I think about the artists you listed, and I wish that today’s country music scene had more artists that had the same sound as the “New Country” classics.
It’s funny because like the three people above me, my dad also blared all of these songs from our radio, whether it was going to and from church every Sunday or driving out to the lake for the day. I think the reasons why he listened to these songs, particularly around my brothers and I, went beyond just liking the music. All of these artists generally sing about wholesome things or lessons we should learn. It kind of killed two birds with one stone, he engrained country in our lives from a young age and taught us a good lesson while doing it. Country music will always be something that I can bond over with my father and I’ll never forget all the times we listened to “Living on Love” by Alan Jackson. To me, that song may as well have been written by my dad. This was an awesome playlist and each of these songs play as the background to my childhood memories.
I think it’s pretty awesome that you all grew up with similar experiences regarding both country music and your family. I, on the other hand, didn’t start listening to country music until the seventh or eighth grade. Because my dad is not a big fan of country music, I cannot say that I share the same experience. When I think back on the time I spent driving around with my dad I remember listening to songs by AC/DC, the Eagles, Pink Floyd, Journey, and the Who. Despite the type of music that I was brought up on, I would have to agree that these are very popular songs that I would consider some of my favorite.