by | April 8, 2015 · 8:00 am

Older Artists Releasing New Albums

While doing my album analysis essay on Willie Nelson’s most recent album, Band of Brothers, released in 2014, I noticed a phenomenon in country music of older country stars releasing albums later in life that perform extremely well on the charts. Band of Brothers was one such example: it was released in 2014, and was his 67th studio album. It was also only his third album to ever crack the Billboard Top 10, debuting at #5, and #1 on country charts, his best debut performance in 28 years. So why was this album so popular? One reason is that it contains mostly Nelson-penned songs, something his other recent albums haven’t contained, so this could appeal to his loyal fans. Another reason is young people: people who may have not heard his music before are hearing it now on these later albums, and liking it and buying it, making Nelson reach a whole new fan base.

Dolly Parton's Blue SmokeAnother example is Dolly Parton, and the release of Blue Smoke, her 42nd studio album, in 2014. This album performed amazingly for a Dolly solo album. It was her first top 10 solo album ever, had the best first week sales of all of her solo projects, and it was her highest Best Country Albums debut, debuting at #2. The album got critical review too, with critics raving that she just gets better with age. Unlike Nelson’s Band of Brothers, Blue Smoke is a traditional Dolly Parton album, with both upbeat songs and ballads, dealing with love and heartache. So why did it perform so well? Part of the reason is that lately in Parton’s albums, she has kept the whole album focused on one sound, and in this one she mixes genres, like she used to. She puts a lot of heart and soul into the album, and many critics agree that it is her best album in years, with nothing really new coming from Parton, but the songs being solid and just nice to listen to, which is probably why it performed so well on the charts and got such great reviews.

Johnny Cash's American VFinally, Johnny Cash is much different than these two. Towards the end of his life, he began releasing a series of albums called American III, IV, and V, that included covers of popular 20th century rock songs. He sang them in a very stripped down style, and though old and sick, his voice still sounds great and as deep and soulful as ever. He recorded these albums because he knew he was dying, and wanted to record some more before he was gone, giving the world a few last great albums. Indeed, American V was a posthumous release, released 3 years after his death, and it reached #1 on the Top Albums and Top Country albums. This could have been a reason for its popularity, as well as the covers of songs that people know and love. His version of Nine Inch Nails’s “Hurt” won a MTV Music Video Award for Best Cinematography, which made the album appeal to a younger generation that watches MTV. He also won a Grammy for Best Country Male Vocal Performance for another song on the album “Give My Love to Rose.” All of these factors contribute to why his album was so popular, because winning awards and charting high all add visibility to Johnny Cash, who people my age might not have known about if not for these immensely popular albums.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vt1Pwfnh5pc

There is a string of older artists releasing new albums in later life, and them charting very well. We don’t really know why, but doing so has proven a very smart career move for these three that I have talked about. They all enjoyed great album sales, and a lot of increased publicity, and interest by young people who might not have listened to their music otherwise, deeming it music their parents listened to. Releasing these albums keeps them fresh and relevant to everyone, new fans and old.

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Filed under Classic Country, Country Symbols, Countrypolitan, Outlaw, Reviews, USA

by | April 6, 2015 · 9:45 pm

Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015

In class, I mentioned that the Country Music Hall of Fame would be announcing its 2015 inductees soon. Turns out, the announcement arrived at the end of March. I thought y’all might want to learn a little more about the new members.

Most years, the Hall of Fame honors people in three categories: (1) a “veteran” artist who has been around for 45+ years, (2) a “modern” artist who has been around for 25+ years, and (3) either a songwriter, musician, or someone else involved in the music business. As usual, I am getting my information from Trigger over at Saving Country Music, who shares additional information about who has been honored in the past and how the decisions are made.

This year’s “veteran” inductee is the Browns, a family trio that had a number of crossover hits in the 1950s and early 1960s. Their best known song is probably “The Three Bells,” which was adapted from a French song (“Les Trois Cloches”) and was a #1 hit on the country and pop charts and — most surprisingly for a country song — a top 10 R&B hit as well. The group’s success coincided with the heyday of the Nashville Sound, which explains the crossover appeal and lush orchestration — and also probably the reason it has taken the group so long to be canonized. If you watch the video, you’ll understand why people criticize the Nashville Sound for not sounding authentically country.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcENEHz5U00

After the group disbanded in the 1960s, the male singer, Jim Ed Brown, enjoyed some success as a solo artist. His best known song is “Pop A Top,” which Alan Jackson covered in 1999. Jim Ed has continued to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, and in January of this year he made waves for releasing his first studio album in 40 years (called In Style Again). That same month he underwent a series of treatments for cancer, and it could be a combination of the new album and frail health that led the Hall of Fame to choose to recognize the Browns with its highest honor after ignoring the group for so long.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpW8t1mAP_c

The “modern” inductee is the Oak Ridge Boys, whose Christmas music I am familiar with but who otherwise are pretty unknown to me. Trigger points out the irony that the Oak Ridge Boys actually formed in the 1940s, which makes their induction as a “modern” act kind of suspect. Anyway, they got their start as a gospel quartet before enjoying a series of country hits — including many #1s — in the 1970s and 1980s. One of their best known hits is 1981’s “Elvira,” which hit #1 country and #5 pop.

The musician being inducted is the late Grady Martin, who played guitar on Marty Robbins’s “El Paso,” Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” and handfuls of other Rockabilly, Nashville Sound, and Classic Country recordings.

Of course, as soon as the inductees were announced, discontented fans took to social media to say who really “should” have been recognized instead of these three. Since it’s pretty hard to get into the Country Music Hall of Fame, there are a number of people who have been eligible for a while who still aren’t in, and every year there are younger stars who are newly eligible.

Some eligible performers who haven’t yet been invited to join include the Maddox Brothers and Rose, Ralph Stanley, Hank Williams, Jr., Charlie Daniels, June Carter Cash, Lynn Anderson, Tanya Tucker, David Allen Coe, Johnny Paycheck, Ricky Skaggs, Rosanne Cash, Dwight Yoakum, Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, Brooks and Dunn, Tim McGraw, Toby Keith, and Kenny Chesney.

What do you think about the new inductees? Are you familiar with any of them? Who do you hope makes it in, in the next couple of years? I would love to know!

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Filed under Awards, Classic Country, Countrypolitan, Nashville Sound, News

by | · 8:00 am

Nashville: A Taste of the Country Music World

Country music has always existed in their own world, separated from the publicity and paparazzi of Hollywood or New York City. The hub of country music resides in Nashville, Tennessee, home of the Bluebird café and the Grand Ole Opry. Two years ago, I didn’t know much about Nashville or the country music world to be honest. And then, the show Nashville premiered on ABC. Last week, after a month or so hiatus the show returns for new episodes, and I am still as hooked as when I watched the first episode.

I will admit I first tuned into Nashville because of its star, Connie Britton (and her beautiful hair). I am a massive fan of Friday Night Lights and would watch pretty much anything that has Tami Taylor in it. But after the first episode I was drawn in by the world of Nashville and country music.

raynaAs a casual listener of country I was naïve to places like the bluebird and other Nashville country music sites that have launched the careers of many greats. But I love that the show films in Nashville so I wasn’t looking at sound stages and recreations of these legendary places, but the actual sites.

The music of Nashville was also a draw to me. Not all of it…unfortunately some of the singers are better actors than they are singers. But I was surprised by how good of a singer many of them were. And I found myself loving the more folk-y songs that the show produced. The show, while fictional, actually mirrors the music industry in a lot of ways especially in regards to the struggle for album sales and the dichotomy of the country music industry. There is not one specific sound of country today in my opinion, but rather a few popularized sounds and singers must struggle to find their place and success within those areas.

The show also deals with the pitfalls that surround Nashville including the different type of expectations that surround country music stars in comparison to other famous singers. Country music is known for appealing to a more conservative audience and more simplistic roots than rap or pop music. One of the shows main characters, Juliette, constantly is at odds with fans and parents of her fans for this very reason. She is a great country artist, but does not line up ideologically with her fan base. She has learned the hard way though, that with no fan base, she has no career.

Nashville is probably not winning any Emmys anytime soon, but because of it’s interesting take on the city of Nashville and country music, I am sure I will keep tuning in!

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Filed under Movies and TV

by | April 4, 2015 · 8:00 am

Too Lesbian for Country Radio?

As I checked Facebook for the millionth time today, I saw two topics that really interested me. The first was that The Walking Dead now has a spinoff show called Fear the Walking Dead set to premiere sometime in the summer, while The Walking Dead is in between seasons. The second topic of interest was about the Little Big Town song “Girl Crush”.

People in Idaho, and I imagine elsewhere, were demanding “Girl Crush” not be played on the radio, because “the lyrics promote the gay agenda”. As I read the article, I couldn’t help but think of the close-mindedness of my fellow country music listeners. And the second thought in my head? Were these people even listening to the lyrics? I can understand if people were using their selective hearing and thought it was about a lesbian romance. However, if you actually listen to the song you should be able to tell that it is about a jealous woman who wishes, essentially, that she was the woman her ex now loves. “I want to drown myself in a bottle of her perfume” is not because the narrator of the song wants to be with said woman, but because the ex likes this woman and perhaps if the narrator smelled like this woman the ex might like her more. That’s why the lyrics, “yeah ‘cuz maybe then you’d want me just as much” make sense. If the song were about lesbians, that line would not make sense.  I, myself, enjoy the way Charlie Worsham words his opinion on the situation:

girl crushExcuse me if this sounds rant-y, but it is 2015. Why do people have to complain every time they hear something they do not like? Why are people so easy to offend? Let’s look at more components to this little ordeal. The song was written by three women Lori McKenna, Liz Rose and Hillary Lindsey. I can’t think of any other song out right now that has this much girl power backing it. Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild said this back in December, “there are not many women on the radio and not many ballads with that kind of lyrical content. I’m excited.” Is this song facing backlash just because it is “about pushing the gay agenda” or is it just too “sexy” for some people.

The song is currently ranked 17th on the Country Billboard charts. I would think it would be ranked lower had it actually been about lesbian lovers just due to how conservative the country music audience tends to be, but who knows. On the reverse of this argument, I do understand why the radio stations are complying with these demands for the song to not be played. The radio needs to have listeners to make money. If one song keeps the audience from listening, you can bet that the radio will stop playing it. I just think if we keep complying with people to get offended like this, when they really shouldn’t be, it will be harder for people to accept one another and be more open minded. If you think this song is about lesbians and it angers you, I just hope you will  listen to the song again with an open heart and open ears. And if this song was about a lesbian romance, how is that bad?

What do you think about “Girl Crush”? Why do you think this song is receiving so much hate? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

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Filed under New Country, News, Song Analysis

by | April 3, 2015 · 8:00 am

Drive Down Memory Lane

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.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMNw_-yUm_0

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.

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

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.

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Filed under Lists, Reflection, Texas, Uncategorized