Category Archives: Country Subgenres

by | January 31, 2015 · 8:00 am

The Great Alan Jackson

As any Houstonian would understand, I got super excited a few weeks ago when the Houston Rodeo performer lineup was announced and I found that many of my favorite artists were coming either again or for the first time. I was especially excited to see that Alan Jackson was performing yet again, as he is one of my all time favorite country music artists.

I had the chance to see Alan Jackson at the rodeo about three years ago and it was one of the most memorable performances I have seen there. Before this show, I had never really listened to him or heard many of his songs, but I was excited to see him nonetheless. Little did I know that he would soon become one of my favorite country singers, next to George Strait of course. Some of my favorite country songs today are ones he sung that night. I immediately fell in love with them while watching him strum his guitar under the bright lights. Whether you are in the mood for an upbeat tune or a heartfelt ballad, Alan Jackson masters it all.

Here are few of my favorite Alan Jackson songs that I have grown to love ever since seeing him in concert.

“Livin’ On Love”

I love this song because of the simple and positive message behind it. The main idea behind what Alan Jackson is singing is that all you need in the world is love. It doesn’t matter what else is going on in your life, good or bad. He implies that there isn’t meaning to your life without love in it. All that matters is that you have someone to love whether it is a family member, friend, or significant other.

“Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2NXDJ4FabE

This song is a patriotic reflection of the events of 9/11. Every time I listen to this song I get overwhelming chills. He sings about all of the different places you might have been or things you might have been doing when you found out about the horrific tragedy. I love this song not only because I think it is an amazing tribute to 9/11, but also because he sings the song in a way that is touching and emotional, yet it doesn’t consume you with sadness.

“Where I Come From”

Alan Jackson touches on his down home roots in this upbeat catchy song. He reflects on where he is from and who he is as a person because of it. I particularly like how this song relates to anyone who has been far away from home and feels out of place. I’m sure we have all experienced the uncomfortable feeling of being somewhere foreign where no one knows you or who you are, but Alan Jackson embraces this situation in his song.

“Remember When”

“Remember When” is my all time favorite Alan Jackson song as well as one of my favorite country songs in general. I’m really not sure what struck me about it when I first heard it; I just knew that it touched me. I love the beautiful instrumentation throughout the entire song as well as the underlying themes of love, life, sorrow, and happiness. Every single lyric resonated some sort of feeling inside me. If you like sentimental ballads, you will enjoy this song as much as I do.

3 Comments

Filed under Live Music, New Country, Reflection

by | January 30, 2015 · 8:00 am

Tequila Cowboy

Over break I went to visit one of my best friends who happens to live in South Florida. Even though technically Florida is considered the South, we were in one of the least southern places, Miami. One night we were out shopping and looking around when we stumbled upon this restaurant called Tequila Cowboy. Obviously from living in Texas, tex-mex is one of our favorite foods so we thought that we would try it out. We walked into to the restaurant and it was one of the most stereotypical “country” places I have ever been to. There was a man and a guitar singing at the entrance, the décor was rustic with cowboy boots and trucks as decorations, and the waiters and waitresses were dressed to a tee in theme. However, the best part about the restaurant was that they had an electric bull and a karaoke bar attached. They were playing older country music over the speaker system, although it seemed like me and my friends were the only ones that knew the songs.

We ordered our margaritas (because who doesn’t get tequila at Tequila Cowboy) and started looking over the menu. The first thing noticed is that almost everything on the menu contains some form of barbeque. Whether it was pulled pork tacos to barbeque chicken enchiladas. They took the two main staples of Texas cuisine and tried to combine them. Don’t get me wrong, I know pulled pork tacos are a very normal dish but on their menu it seemed like they were trying too hard.

After dinner, we went to the next room to the karaoke bar. We were the only ones in there, when a man walks up to us and asks us if we “want to ride his bull”. We explained to him that we live in Texas and have ridden or have the opportunity to ride a bull on almost any night a week. Finally, the place started to fill up, meaning two more people walked in. The karaoke begins by the “dj” singing a George Strait song. Next up is the two other people in the bar, who happen to be this old man and a woman clearly half his age, watching them sing a love song had to be one of the most uncomfortable experiences out there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?x-yt-ts=1422411861&v=0e_HtjZS8SQ&feature=player_detailpage&x-yt-cl=84924572

We were up next and chose to sing “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks. We weren’t serious about our singing or anything we just got up there to have fun, which we did, but no one knew the song. More people began to trickle in at this point and we had a street audience since the stage was at a window. Yet there wasn’t an ounce of recognition of the song on anyone’s faces. We got up there, sang, got down, and left.

We had a blast in this cheesy stereotypical country restaurant. Granted the food wasn’t very good, their margaritas sucked, and no one knew the music. But I was with my two best friends and we had a great time.

2 Comments

Filed under Dancing, Honky Tonk, Live Music, Reflection, Texas, USA

by | January 29, 2015 · 8:00 pm

Tailgates, Beer, Women, and the Bro-Country Takeover

While I love it just as much as the next person when there is “nowhere to go, nowhere to be,” and while I found myself in this situation more times than not over the winter break, I never once chose to roll into town and “ take another lap around.” These lyrics, from Cole Swindell and Florida Georgia Line respectively, seem to summarize the recent level of song writing that has taken over the country music world. Although many country music fans have voiced their negative opinions about this new “bro-country” style, and how originality and creativity has all but slipped away from the genre, do they have any substantial argument for their case? An article that I saw repeatedly posted to my Facebook newsfeed while not having my “bed backed up to the water” over the break might have the answer to this question (Parmalee).

FGLrealI will be the first to admit that I have been known to drive around on a nice day with the windows down listening to the bro-country anthems that sing of this very thing. And while in this post I voice my negative opinions towards this new style of country, I cannot deny that the tunes being put on the radio recently are catchy and easy to sing along to. However, what I can defend, with the help of savingcountrymusic.com, is that when these songs come on the radio, I can never tell who they are. Whether it is Florida Georgia Line, Blake Shelton, or Luke Bryan, they are all singing about warm summer days, hitting on women, and back country roads.

The similarities within this new style do not stop with just the words but continue even further with the music that accompanies the lyrics. A DJ known as Sir Mashalot, and an accompanying article by savingcountrymusic.com, shows the truth behind these comparisons. By combining the top hits of six different artists of today’s bro-country movement, Sir Mashalot was able to show the scary resemblances that exist. You can listen for yourself, but combined together, the six songs flow together almost as well as any other bro-country song.

As I have mentioned before, I believe this new style of country music has its appropriate time and place. However, I worry where the future of country music as a whole is headed. What happened to the country music songs that carried with them real life lessons? What happened to the clever lines that the listener can only help but tip their hat and grin to? I fear that classic, meaningful lines like “Daddies don’t love their children every now and then. It’s a love without end, amen” and “to the world, you may just be another girl, but to me, baby, you are the world” are quickly being replaced with butchery of the English language like “keeping it real like chill like only have a drink or two” and “A little something bumping, thump, thumping on the wheel ride” (Strait, Paisley, Shelton, Florida Georgia Line). I can only hope that creativity and originality can resurface within the country music genre.

Parmalee

2 Comments

Filed under Bro Country, Uncategorized

by | · 12:00 pm

The Demise of Country Music

I stopped listening to country music on the radio a few years ago, right as “bro country” was beginning to become mainstream. I wouldn’t be able to tell you any of the new songs or new artists, but every time I happen to come across a country radio station it always seems to be the same thing: dudes like Florida Georgia Line bro-ing it up and singing songs about their trucks or how country they are. I know that doesn’t describe all country music on the radio these days, but it’s apparent that bro country is what the industry thinks will sell the best. Maybe it’s just my West Texas roots, but to me that isn’t even close to what country music is supposed to be.

Yesterday as I was scrolling through Facebook, through the dozens of stories and articles being “shared” by my friends, I saw one video that really caught my eye and seemed to prove my belief today’s country music. If you haven’t already seen the video I encourage you to watch. It’s kind of eye-opening about the state of country music today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlNgYDotMoE

Pretty crazy, right? That seems like pretty solid proof that Nashville is just pumping out the same song with different words, and people are buying it. That video reminded me of a different video that came out at the end of 2013 with the same concept, but it was a review of more than just six songs:

Whether you like that type of music or not you have to say that video is pretty funny. To me, it is kind of depressing to see country music deteriorate to this state. I guess if that’s what the people want then so be it. I just think that bro country is meaningless and repetitive, and these videos seem to back me.

They say there’s a George Strait song for everything, and the topic of bro country is no exception. In 2001, a full decade before bro country burst onto the scene, George Strait released a song called “Stars on the Water” as part of his The Road Less Traveled album. The song is most likely the first use of auto-tune in a country song, except it is Strait’s way of mocking “stars” who use voice enhancers and other things of that nature. “Stars on the Water” makes George Strait seem almost psychic, giving a subtle dig at the future artists who dominate the world of country music today.

Strait also collaborated with Alan Jackson on “Murder on Music Row”, in which they claim “someone killed country music” in the chase for “the almighty dollar and lust for worldwide fame”. The lyrics to this song perfectly describe bro country music, and they are probably right when they sing “Ol’ Hank wouldn’t have a chance on today’s radio”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ny3K9irFC5k

5 Comments

Filed under Bro Country, Classic Country, Country Pop, New Country, Uncategorized

by | December 3, 2014 · 1:10 pm

Dancing on the Grave of Country Music

Florida_Georgia_Line_Nicholas_ZaludNever before had someone expressed my feelings better than I could myself, but Jaime-Paul Falcon did just this in his review of the Florida Georgia Line and Jason Aldean concert at the Gexa Energy Pavilion in Dallas on October 25th. I do not like bro-country because it is not real country. If I showed you a picture of two guys dressed in jeans with chains hanging from their belts and cut-off shirts (that had their own band’s logo on it..) that show their tattoo-covered arms, I doubt you would guess that they are considered to be country artists. I doubt this because country artists are typically considered to be classy, all American boys/girls. Bro-country artists include rap in their songs, which makes no sense to me, wear outfits like the ones I just described, and have no real musical talent (in my opinion). I know I sound harsh, but I just can’t help how much I dislike bro country.

jason-aldeanAnd neither can Jaime-Paul Falcon. He explained my feelings about bro-country better than I ever could. He stated that he would “gladly endure [ebola] so long as I never again have to suffer the experience of sitting seven rows back from the stage while Florida-George Line and Jason Aldean gleefully danced on the grave of one of the most purely American forms of art”. Harsh, but true. So many country artists in the past (George Strait, Conway Twitty, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn – the list goes on and on) have made great songs that had meaningful lyrics, beautiful instrumentation, and are genuinely good quality songs and bands like Florida Georgia Line and Jason Aldean are most likely making some of these artists roll over in their graves.

These great artists didn’t make songs about drinking booze and picking up girls in their jacked up pickup trucks – they sang about love, heartbreak, and the country lives they actually lived. Tyler Hubbard and Scott Stapp of Florida Georgia Line and Jason Aldean did not grow up on farms or live the lives they describe in their songs. And neither did their audience. As Falcon described it, “I swear it’s like the people who love these songs don’t realize that none of them are actually farmers”. Jason Aldean and Florida Georgia Line also constantly sing about partying and drinking beer and getting girls. That’s not what I want to listen to – I want to hear about love and living the best life possible.

I definitely recommend reading this review for any country fan, especially those who do not think bro-country is real country music. It is humorous, witty, and in my opinion, true. Bro-country is not country music. I’ll admit, I often catch myself bobbing my head to songs like “When She Says Baby” and I know every word to “Cruise”, but I do not think these are good quality songs or are real country.

2 Comments

Filed under Bro Country, Country Pop