Category Archives: Song Analysis

by | March 3, 2015 · 8:00 am

“He Stopped Loving Her Today”: A Comparison

As I scrolled through Facebook the other day and just as my roommate was talking about auditioning for The Voice, I came across a video from NBC’s The Voice. I used to watch The Voice when it first aired, but due to a lack of time I stopped watching it. Anyway, sometimes a video will pop up on my newsfeed, and when that happens I check it out. They have to be a pretty good singer, right? Well, Cody Wickline certainly was. Cody sang the great George Jones classic “He Stopped Loving Her Today”, most likely trying to appeal to Blake. Donning a black cowboy hat and an acoustic guitar, it didn’t take long for one of the judges, Adam Levine, to turn around. However, eventually all judges turned their chairs after realizing how much talent Wickline has. Even though Christina, Pharell, and Adam made their plea for Wickline to join their team, he ultimately chose to stick with country and be a part of Team Blake.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhoYhMk7VSg

After listening to Cody Wickline’s version of the hit song, I had to listen to the original. You can’t help but notice how similar Wickline’s sound is to the original. Wickline has a slightly smoother sound, in my opinion which could be just the audio quality, but there is something to be said about George Jones’s ability to have so many number one hits without the use of autotune technology. In both versions, you can definitely feel the emotion behind the lyrics; there is a sense that Wickline has a connection to the original song either through experience or just by listening to it as a kid. It is such a simple song that really focuses on the voice and lyrics rather than having heavy instrumentals. That is part of the reason this song was a good choice for Wickline to perform in the blind auditions. Country is a strength for Wickline, so it will be interesting to watch as the season progresses if and how he will adapt to various songs in different genres.

Just to bring in one more artist to compare, I also listened to Alan Jackson perform the song at the Grand Ole Opry in May 2013 to memorialize George Jones seeing as he had recently passed away. Alan Jackson definitely sticks to the classic sound and simple performance style of the song and performs it beautifully. Listening to all three versions, I came to the conclusion that unless you are just a bad singer you can’t really mess up this song. Its simple instrumentals, deep lyrics, and popularity in the country music genre makes it a great song to give tribute to the classic country subgenre and George Jones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbjpbqowX3Y

What is your favorite version of “He Stopped Living Her Today”? Do you watch The Voice? Do you think Cody Wickline will make it far in the show? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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Filed under Classic Country, Movies and TV, Reviews, Song Analysis

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by | February 23, 2015 · 10:00 am

I’m Not Gonna Miss You

Gowns, tuxedos, the red carpet, and little golden men. Put them all together and what do you get? The 87th annual Academy Awards. This is the biggest night in Hollywood. You might be wondering “Yeah okay the Oscars are about movies…how does country music come into play?” Well, my friend, I have two words: Glen Campbell.

Campbell’s song “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” was nominated for Best Original Song. The song, written by Campbell as well as Julian Raymond, was featured at the end of his documentary Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me. They took home a Grammy for the song just a few weeks ago.

147391In 2011, the country-pop icon announced he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. He is now 78 and suffering through the late stages of the disease. The song was written as a love letter to his family. It details how he won’t understand the pain they feel when his memory is lost to the disease. Raymond commented on the situation saying that Campbell unfortunately could not comprehend what the Oscar nomination meant because of this condition.

Due to his health circumstances, Campbell was unable to travel to the Academy Awards to perform his song. His family personally asked fellow country music artist Tim McGraw to perform the song in his place. McGraw and wife Faith Hill attended the awards last night, as well as Campbell’s wife and daughter.

B-fVwW5CAAA0avDSeated on a stool set on center stage, McGraw gave a performance that definitely tugged at some heartstrings. With nothing to distract from solely listening to the lyrics, Campbell’s song was absorbed by those who heard it. Anyone who has or knows someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia can feel the heartbreak of the song. It is the person(s) the song is directed towards rather than the person singing the lyrics who is the one suffering emotional pain.

His song did not take home the Oscar, but I know his family took home something from the performance. It was a very heartfelt tribute to a great artist. I listened to Campbell himself perform the song and it is hauntingly beautiful. McGraw executed the performance with grace.

The music video for his song shows clips of Campbell through the years. With and without the disease, his love for his family shows through. “You’re the last person I will love/You’re the last face I will recall/And best of all, I’m not gonna miss you.”

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Filed under Awards, Countrypolitan, Live Music, Song Analysis

by | February 17, 2015 · 10:34 am

Announcing Country Music’s Newest Subgenre: “Metro-Politan” Country

Over at Saving Country Music, Trigger has written a new post condemning the trend in adding dance beats to country music. Citing the success of Sam Hunt’s Montevallo, which is currently holding the #1 position on Billboard’s Country Albums chart, he claims that a new subgenre of country music is sprouting its “unfortunate tentacles.” He calls this emerging subgenre “Metro-Politan Country” and predicts that it will become more prevalent in the next couple of years before dying the way that Bro Country seems to be dying now.

Since we’ve been talking so much about country’s subgenres and the troubles with analyzing them while they’re popular, I thought y’all might enjoy taking a look at this new article. Also, I’ll be happy to give you class credit if you decide to leave Trigger a comment. You might respond directly to his post or to any of the other comments that have already been written. Just leave me a comment here letting me know that you’ve done this.

If you’re interested in Sam Hunt, you should check out a review of the Montevallo album that one of my students wrote last semester.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2LQc-R6Uxw

Lastly, I thought I would point out that Hunt’s not the first person to integrate dance beats into country music. The technique extends at least as far back as the Countrypolitan moment of the 70s/80s, including Dolly Parton’s take on “House of the Rising Sun” (1980) and “Potential New Boyfriend” (1983).

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Filed under Bro Country, Countrypolitan, Dancing, Song Analysis

by | February 14, 2015 · 8:00 am

We’re All Just Drunk Americans

When I first heard that Toby Keith had come out with a new1254539-toby-keith-617-409 song in 2014 titled “Drunk Americans”, I felt a little bit offended. Not ALL Americans are drunks. I thought he was placing a negative stereotype on the land of the free and home of the brave. I thought to myself that songs like this one are the reason that country music hasn’t always been the world’s favorite genre (even though it is my favorite). But as the song began to play and Toby began to sing, I immediately changed my view on the song. I almost felt a little bad for giving Toby such a hard time.

The song begins with this simple yet profound set of lines, “We ain’t East / we ain’t West. We ain’t left / we ain’t right. We ain’t black / we ain’t white.” I instantly decided that this was a pretty cool song. The overall message Toby was trying to get across is that it doesn’t matter whom you are or where you come from, we are all just drunk Americans.   Every single line in the song is intended to be comical and provoke an easy going state of mind, however, this brilliant song has an underlying message that anyone from around the world can relate to. Instead of this country song focusing on a specific group of people or a specific lifestyle, it focuses on a moral lesson that holds our country together. Toby says that it doesn’t matter what color you are, how much money you have, what you look like, or where you come from. When you’re in the bar, you’re a friend. However, I consider the bar to resemble America, and getting drunk to be translated to living out the American dream.

Personally, I had a really strong connection to Toby’s masterpiece the first time I listened to it, and even now I still enjoy the message. Each line makes a profound statement, but nothing can beat the end of the song. “In these neon lights / We’re all stars we’re all stripes / And we’re all drunk Americans”. I don’t know about everyone else, but that ending really makes me LOVE my country and the people who make this country so great. This song, as well as many other country songs such as “Bleed Red” by Ronnie Dunn, really instills a strong sense of American pride in everyone who listens. Country music is not exclusive to a certain group of people or a certain state. Country music shows us how to be a proud American, and sometimes even a drunk American.

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Filed under Song Analysis, USA

by | February 13, 2015 · 8:00 am

My Ultimate Miranda Lambert Playlist

With Miranda Lambert’s huge success of winning the Best Country Album Award at the Grammys for her album Platinum, I began reminiscing on some of her old albums and decided to compile a playlist of my all time favorite Miranda Lambert songs, although there’s no way I can fit ALL of my favorites I’ll do my best!

“Gunpowder & Lead” has to be one of my absolute favorites. Growing up Lambert’s family took in abused women and children. She wrote this song for those women, describing how she herself would handle an abusive relationship. Although it covers a dark topic the song is a kickass girl power jam.

“Mama’s Broken Heart” was actually given to Lambert by Kacey Musgraves, one of the original writers along with Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally. It’s about a girl who gets her heart broken and starts acting out because of it. When people in the town notice the girl’s behavior her mom is informed and tries to put her in line. I love this song because it perfectly describes the crazy emotions that go through your head when you get your heart broken.  I actually got to see Brandy Clark perform this when she opened for Jennifer Nettles this past summer!

“Only Prettier” is one of Lambert’s snarkiest songs, written about two groups of girls that cannot get along and think the absolute worst of one another. The song is about Lambert’s group of friends saying the only difference between the two groups is that hers is prettier.

“I Wanna Die” describes the singer’s relationship with a guy who she knows is a complete jerk, but wants him anyways. This song is super relatable for just about any girl on the planet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_UPbe8XgGE

Now we transition to a group of deeper, more meaningful songs. The song “Over You” was actually written by Lambert and Blake Shelton about Shelton’s old brother, who was killed in a car accident when he was a teenager. Lambert added the song to her album Four the Record to honor Shelton and his brother’s memory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D2-oD06SWo

“The House That Built Me” holds the biggest personal connection for me. Written about a young woman going back to the house she grew up in to visit and try to find a small piece of the person she used to be. When this song first started playing on the radio my mom always told me it reminded her of me because she knew I was going to grow up and leave home (Virginia) someday.

I’ve always loved “Famous in a Small Town.” My dad grew up in a small town and whenever we go back to Alabama to visit I’m constantly reminded of this song. Everyone knows everything about everyone else. This past summer I went to the mall with my dad and my aunt and they saw at least 2 people they knew in EVERY. SINGLE. STORE. It was the longest shopping day I’ve ever had, needless to say this song is not an over exaggeration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMXG1-YKn1c

One of Miranda Lambert’s newer songs, “Automatic,” is another great track. I love it because it’s one of those songs that brings you back to your roots. It reminds us all of simpler times before we had internet to do everything and before we started living in this “instant” society. I think it’s a great reminder that we need to work for the good things in life.

Kerosene is by far my favorite Miranda Lambert album, and as many of you may know it was her first album. All of the songs on the album are very simple, such as “I Can’t Be Bothered,” “New Strings,” “Kerosene,” “Me and Charlie Talking,” and “Bring Me Down.” These songs make me think of the battle between the Texas Country and Nashville Country subgenres that we’ve been discussing in class. This album is very much Texas Country and each song has a very raw sound.

Miranda Lambert has been very successful with 5 hit albums, countless music awards, and years of sold out tours. She is a strong woman with admirable morals and amazing talent. Her country music style changes with each album and I can’t wait to see what she does next. What are some of your favorite Miranda Lambert songs? Leave them in the comments below!

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Filed under Awards, Music Videos, Reflection, Song Analysis, Women