Country Music

rainjack · December 9, 2008, 10:04pm

[quote]VanderLaan wrote:
rainjack wrote:
Best vocalist based purely on ability to sing? Patsy Cline, Dolly, and - God help me - Reba. Not the new actress Reba, but the old rodeo Reba. Man, she could sing.

Really? Reba? Man that woman’s singing makes me cringe. She is way too “yodelly” for me (if that makes sense).

Now Patsy Cline has got it going on. That voice is one in a million.[/quote]

Her older stuff isn’t nearly as yodelly to me as her newer stuff is.

I used to really like listening to her back in the 80’s. I always thought her and Strait should team up for a duet. But now she’s all “I am an actress”, and I have no use for her any more.

phil_leotardo · December 9, 2008, 10:35pm

[quote]rainjack wrote:

Loretta Lynn would not even make my top 500 list of Female vocalists. She was far better at writing than she ever was at singing.

I hate Tammy Wynette. Always have. Always will.

Best vocalist based purely on ability to sing? Patsy Cline, Dolly, and - God help me - Reba. Not the new actress Reba, but the old rodeo Reba. Man, she could sing.
[/quote]

Wow… You don’t like Loretta Lynn or Tammy Wynette and you’re into country? Tastes are subjective I guess, but I dug up this list here:

This list does have Patsy #1 and Dolly#2, but both Loretta and Tammy both crack their top 10. BTW, you do know that Patsy and Lynn used to tour together and that Patsy used think that she was quite a talent don’t you?

Ty_Carlson · December 9, 2008, 11:29pm

David Allen Coe is definitely a badass. The amount of songs that he has written over the years is mind boggling. For a short while around 2000 he was in a country metal band with three of the guys from Pantera. It’s pretty tough to beat “You Never Even Called me by my Name”.

rainjack · December 9, 2008, 11:39pm

[quote]phil_leotardo wrote:
Wow… You don’t like Loretta Lynn or Tammy Wynette and you’re into country? Tastes are subjective I guess, but I dug up this list here:

This list does have Patsy #1 and Dolly#2, but both Loretta and Tammy both crack their top 10. BTW, you do know that Patsy and Lynn used to tour together and that Patsy used think that she was quite a talent don’t you?
[/quote]

I like Loretta Lynn, but I don’t like her sound. I wouldn’t buy a cd just to listen to her voice. Like I said - I think she was a far better writer than she was a singer. Yes, I knew her and CLine toured together.

As for Wynette - I just never liked her. Her duets with Jones were okay - some were pretty damn good - but I just never liked her. She was a good songwriter, though. It’s a matter of taste - not a comment on her contribution to the genre.

Just for shits and giggles, I am not a huge fan of Haggard, either.

I am not into country. I grew up with it. As much as I want to rid myself of being considered country, it is more a part of me than I am of it.

My dad has every Jonhhy Cash album he made in the 50’s and 60’s. I have singles Cash cut on the Sun Records. He has pretty much all of Waylon’s stuff. Hell - Jennings was a DJ in my hometown, and was supposed to be playing bass for Buddy Holly when Holly died.

My dad was classmates with Buddy Holly.

Anyhow - I appreciate the fact that you are getting turned on to real Country, and not the shit they are pushing in Nashville. But, I was immersed in country - old country - from the time I was born until I left home.

wfifer · December 10, 2008, 12:29am

Is country ever musically interesting or would that just defeat the purpose?

I’ve heard some good alt-country (e.g. The Sadies, Woven Hand), but I’m guessing that stuff wouldn’t fly here. Progressive bluegrass is cool too. Don’t get me wrong, I’m aware of some great songwriters in traditional country, but they seem to be few and far between.

rainjack · December 10, 2008, 12:55am

[quote]wfifer wrote:
Is country ever musically interesting or would that just defeat the purpose?

I’ve heard some good alt-country (e.g. The Sadies, Woven Hand), but I’m guessing that stuff wouldn’t fly here. Progressive bluegrass is cool too. Don’t get me wrong, I’m aware of some great songwriters in traditional country, but they seem to be few and far between. [/quote]

Great country song writing was quite common back in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. After Nashville turned into candy-coated crap, it’s more of a rarity anymore.

My favorite writers right now are not that new, but Robert Earle Keane, and his old college roommate - Lyle Lovett are probably my favorites.

Musically, country is too constrained to be very innovative. Too much beat, and you are pop. Too bluesy and you are the blues. I think that is why country is more known for it’s lyrics than musical stylings.

Bluegrass is about the only portal through which one can really explore musically.

alt-country is more a re-fusion of rock and country (used to be really close cousins)and that will never really be muh more than a niche genre, IMO.

If you are looking for some cool sounding experiments in bluegrass, check out New Grass Revival - they are no longer together, but man were they good.

Also, check out Nickel Creek. They are just kids, but they can play the crap out of their instruments. They cover Collective Soul’s “Shine” with Dolly doing the vocals. No drums. Cool as shit.

Get the "O Brother, Where Art Thou"sound track and fall in love with Union Station if you are into traditional bluegrass on steroids.

sluicy · December 10, 2008, 1:10am

[quote]rainjack wrote:

I never understood why country musicians think they sound better clean and sober. There’s never been a true country hero that wasn’t stoned or drunk through the best days of their career. [/quote]

I laughed at this, it’s true for many of the artists I like, country or not. My best friend used to make fun of my “heroin music” fixation (not country).

I love Emmylou Harris and the Judds. Granted, Emmylou’s more folksy than country. To me they sort of blend together. I’d include the Cowboy Junkies too, but they’re only really country on occasion. However, I think classic country tends to overlap and be folksy as well, as opposed to modern country, which overlaps with pop.

Drizzt · December 9, 2008, 9:03pm

Brad Paisley and Keith Urban rule my life.

silverblood · December 10, 2008, 3:53am

real country
Roy Acuff

Jimmie Rodgers

Roy Clark this isn’t a country song but

John Hiatt can do a little country

can’t do Country Women without K.T. Oslin. great writer and singer

wfifer · December 10, 2008, 4:18am

[quote]rainjack wrote:
wfifer wrote:
Is country ever musically interesting or would that just defeat the purpose?