What is it about new Country?

Joe Drivdahl · From: Montana, USA

Whenever I listen to most of this new stuff, I think, "Man, is that what country has become?"

It seems like almost everyone who remembers 'real' country feels the same way but interestingly enough, we can't even agree on what 'real' country is or was. Who knows? Even that seems to be up for grabs.

Well then lets ask this question: What is it specifically that is missing from today's country music?

I believe that there are several items:

1. Before videos, music wasn't quite so 'visual'... Video really did kill the radio star

2. Singers and pickers in the old days came up the hard way. They paid their dues in the clubs and honed their talents. Being selected into the big time required that you were good because the big time was competitive.

3. Singers and players put their hearts and souls into the songs they played. They put "feeling" into their parts.

4. The best players got the best gigs. Why is this no longer true in music?

If we select the next Nashville superstar by who looks best on a gameshow, then I want to see the NFL start choosing their professional players the same way. Who cares where you played college ball or how good you are, you just have to succeed on our gameshow and then you will be the next Dallas Cowboy Quarterback!!! (crowd noise)

<i>Then I awake and look around me, at the four gray walls that surround me. And I realize that I was only dreaming...</i>

What do y'all think?

Joe
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Ray McCarthy · From: New Hampshire, USA

Hey, Joe; It's true about the videos and the perfect manaquin-like models doing the singing and all those antics on stage these days. They all look and sound pretty much the same to me. I often turn "Opry Live" off mid-song. It's a shame. I doubt that a woman who looked like Loretta Lynn could make it in country music today!

But there's something about much of the music itself today that sounds like it's coming out of some music row mass-producing machine--songs that won't be remembered six months later, but seem to become "hits" anyway. Not all of it though. There's still some good music out there, so let's enjoy what we can!

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

There used to be a distinct difference between country music and rock or the easy listening stuff.Country music had a pleasant sound with understandable lyrics.A few country entertainers of today come close but they are few and far between.And now we have what I call country rap coming from Big and Rich and the likes.To me,just a bunch of noise.Don't even listen to the radio anymore.Thank God for the old recordings out there.I'm much more prone to purchase a CD that is not a nationally known artist such as Miss Leslie or Dottie Jack.Those people are making good music.I guess the change in music is a reflection of our changing society.
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James Morehead · From: Prague, Oklahoma, USA - R.I.P.

Hey Joe, Here's a twist for ya, check out Miss Leslie and Ricky Davis's "Between the Whiskey and the Wine" album. It's brand new country because it's all new original material, but it is all traditional "60's" style country music, all original. Of course, it's too country for Nashville. Some great country music still happens, out of the great state of Texas. Cool

Country music exterminaters have not penetrated Texas yet.

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

Also check out another Texan,Hank Stone from San Antonio.He has a couple of albums and Randy Reinhardt plays steel.Great music.
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Charley Wilder · From: Dover, New Hampshire, USA

My take on it is that over the years "Nashville Country" it has become a gigantic money machine. It has gotten bigger and bigger. The bigger it gets the more that is at stake. In order to keep the money flowing no one wants to rock the boat. In short, the FORMULA! As the formula becomes more firmly entrenched the more Nashville wants to keep it this way. It's natural. Hence the hunks wear hats, the chicks have to look sexy and sing a lot of pseudo Country Pop Rock whatever.
All this as I say, is perfectly natural. What I object to is the cynicism involved. "If it sells it's Country". I can't define real Country but I know it when I hear it. And I hear damn little of it coming out of Nashville!

Stuart Legg · Posted 30 Jul 2008 6:49 am

I suspicion that a lot of the dislike for new country is due to the fact that it is almost impossible to take the average country band and duplicate the music. Most have to practice for hours and for others no amount of practice will help. Who wants to work that hard preparing for a train wreck?

Ray Montee · From: Portland, Oregon (deceased)

Some of you folks in this post are starting to sound like olde Ray Montee.......and surely you'll remember what happened to him for a similar post???

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

Let's get that blood boilin'again.It's not going to change what Nashville does but it feels good.
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If I hear it,I'm gonna try to steel it

Dennis Lee · From: Forest Grove, Oregon, USA

With rare exception, everyone sounds like everyone else......talentless. As for me, I don't even listen to the radio anymore. New "country"? isn't making any money off of me. If I buy anything, it's material (cd's) of the greats from yesteryear. I think it's a contest to see just how far you can promote "crap" entertainers. Isn't it funny how the pedal steel doesn't even sound good or appealing in this so called "new country" music. Sorry, but that's my editorial and I'm sticking with it.

Joe Drivdahl · From: Montana, USA

Hey guys,

Thanks for the replies. I have not heard of the Texas singers mentioned in this thread, but I am going to look them up on the Internet and perhaps order some of their CDs.

I saw a video on CMT of a Taylor Swift concert where she's standing under water that is cascading from some sort of irrigation device of some kind getting soaking wet... What is that? To me, water and electrical instruments just don't mix too well.

I don't remember which of you said it, but it went something like

Jerry Dragon · From: Gate City Va.

I have played rock and roll for most of my life so you
can take the following with that in mind. When I hear "new country" I hear R+R with a twang, that is most of it anyways.

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

Joe,the Dottie Jack CD is called Texan In A Stetson and has some great steel by Ralph Mooney and Lynn Owsley as well as Randy Reinhardt.What a voice on this gal.
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If I hear it,I'm gonna try to steel it

Ben Jones · From: Seattle, Washington, USA

take a really bad pop song...somehow make the lyrics even worse than they already were. Shocked

the more puns, cliches and hackneyed faux yokel expressions you can cram in there the better.

now suck every ounce of life out of the already midi driven instrumentation. add ripped jeans , a wife beater, bent straw cowboy hat and a japanese dude with a mohawk playing a purple metal flake sparkle electric violin stick thingy.

play twenty times an hour on FM 106.7 "the bear", "the mountain", "The eagle" etc etc

now THATS country!

seriously ...people think rap music is bad...it pales in comparison to this stuff.
worst music EVER. I'd rather hear ten hours of "yodeling the clasics"

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

Yup,the radio has nothing to offer unless you need to induce vomiting.Try CD Baby for the country music you will never find coming out of Nashville.There are some awesome artists on small labels making great music and keeping traditional steel alive.
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If I hear it,I'm gonna try to steel it

Charley Wilder · From: Dover, New Hampshire, USA

[quote="Ray Montee"]Some of you folks in this post are starting to sound like olde Ray Montee.......and surely you'll remember what happened to him for a similar post???[/quote

Ray, at my age I've sure bled before and survived. Very Happy

There's good Country around. You just have to look for it. That's one of the great things these forums do. People you learn to trust tip you off, man!
The Blues goes through this . "Is Blues Dead"? Where is the next SRV, etc? Like good country, it's there, it's not on the charts, you just have to look harder.

Walter Stettner · From: Vienna, Austria

Joe,

Whenever I am asked questions regarding the difference between today’s music and the music business 30 or 40 years ago, I always ask some questions myself:

Which new song, written and recorded in the last five years or so, is likely to become a classic like the Hank Williams songs or songs written by Merle Haggard, Harlan Howard, Willie Nelson, Cindy Walker and so many other writers? I personally can’t think of any, the same being true for pop music in general. None of today’s songs will be remembered in 30, 40 or 50 years from now.

The other question is if artists like Willie Nelson, Hank Snow, Dolly Parton, Lefty Frizzell, Ernest Tubb, Bill Anderson, etc., those with a distinctive voice and style, would get a start in today’s music business? My answer is NO, because they don’t fit in the musical pattern that is so overused today. Everybody is searching for the perfect voice (and a lot of today’s artists have great voices, the only thing they are missing is personality) that would appeal to as many potential buyers as possible.

Kind Regards, Walter
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Dennis Lee · From: Forest Grove, Oregon, USA

I like the posts coming out of this thread. I have purchased some things off CD Baby, and would agree. I like Ben Jones (a Rittenberry player) and his great take on modern "country"? music. I'm getting good information, validation of my opinion, and good laughs from this thread.

Richard Marko · From: Dallas, Texas

Now adays it seems like it is the manager, record labels etc... are riding this band wagon of the new craze is to be a cute, sexy, young look that sells to the younger audience instead of the true ability to sing.
That is all fine but the last I've heard that fill the bill are Faith Hill, Martina Mc Bride, Jo Dee Messina and a few limited others but not the in-experienced following :

Carrie Underwood is a screamer NOT A SINGER
yet in the two or three year career gets accepted into the Grand Ole Opry ?? !! HOW??!! WHY??!!
Cute ? Sexy ?
We can blame American Idol for this one !!!

Taylor Swift, where the heck did she come from ?? !!!
Her pitch is all over, can't stay in tune with her own material ?? !! No experience !!
I have to quickly switch my TV and radio channels when she comes on because it disgusts me soooo much.

Dierks Bently was just on the Grand Ole Opry and was terrible doing his own material.
Voice cracking, couldn't hit the high notes that are on his recordings and pitch was bad ?? !!
Yet he was on the Grand Ole Opry !!! How ?? Why !!!
I loved his music and to see and hear this was totally a downer !!!

How is Toby Keith so popular.
He writes good songs but he also can not sing if you listen very closely.
I noticed on some of his recordings the splicing together of his tracks, why is this accepted ?? !!
What is even crazier - I go out to listen to the local talent and if they do a Toby Keith song that they actually play that splice part of the song -
UNBELIEVABLE, I WAS FLOORED WHEN I HEARD THIS !!!

What happened to the true talent instead of the look and backing being dominant ?? !!
No wonder true musicians (such as steel players !)don't bother with Nashville anymore.
True musicians / singers can't make it because of the age, look, sexiness etc ... criteria !

It is a crying shame anymore !
"Someone Murdered Country down on Music Row" Oh Well

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

A twenty four year old singer the other day said to me "The music being played today on the radio is pretty bad".

Lonnie Zsigray · From: Saint Louis,Mich., USA

Carrie who? Taylor who? Dierks who? Toby who? Rolling Eyes

It is the young audience (wallet)that they are aiming for and the old saying of if you can't play good then play loud still goes.Even if Roseanne Barr could sing she still wouldn't make it cause who wants to see her in Daisy Dukes.It is a shame that they're Opry candidates simply because they look good in practically no clothes.
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If I hear it,I'm gonna try to steel it

David Doggett · Posted 30 Jul 2008 10:59 am

Can't really disagree that rock'n'roll has finally taken over country, just like everybody feared when Elvis hit. It just took a lot longer than anyone thought it would. On the other hand, today's rock musicians certainly don't consider the Nashville rock-country to be standard rock. They see it as definitely countrified.

I have to disagree that Loretta Lynn wouldn't have the looks to make it today. If you look back when they started, most female country singers started out young and very cute - Loretta, Tammy, Kitty, June, etc. Women have always had to be both cute and talented. The same is still true. If you think the fresh young ones today are all looks and no talent, you should hear the wannabes that don't make it on looks alone. The ones that do make do have some kind of talent for what they are trying to do. Us old codgers might not appreciate what they are trying to do, but the young people to some extent recognize talent and reject the gross lack of it, such as Ashley Simpson. But it's pop entertainment, not serious music - so don't expect serious talent.

I think the blues analogy is pretty good to a point. The old Mississippi and Chicago blues of the '40s and '50s was replaced by R&B and then by rap and hip-hop. But the old blues is still out there. The old guys still tour and do concerts and festivals. And there are young guys still breaking into it - same with jazz. But it's no longer on the main radio stations or in the big venues. It plays to a niche audience on the fringes.

The idea that traditional country will ever regain the airways and big venues is probably as doomed as expecting that of blues or bebop. If there is really still an audience out there for the old country, somebody should be figuring out a way to reach it in small concert venues, clubs, and festivals. But the blues analogy breaks down here. The blues audience is a mixture of aging blacks, aging white baby boomers, and young whites and fewer young blacks. Will the aging old-style country fans come out to support it in small venues and festivals? Can any young people be enticed as fans and musicians to take up the tradition?

Twayn Williams · From: Portland, OR

The golden age of music will always be what you liked and was moderately to very popular when you were 15-25 and everything since then that deviates will always be crap.

Get over it Mr. Green

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Charles Davidson · From: Phenix City Alabama, USA

I KNOW what REAL country music is TODAY,THE GREAT DALE WATSON,[of course this is just my opinion]I think he has the best voice out there today,writes great songs,A great guitar player,You will hear MORE great steel playing on just ONE of his CD's than you will hear on ALL the top twenty [so-called] country artist combined,If what he and Ricky Davis does together is not REAL country,then nothing is.Maybe if he wrote some stupid song like[bo-donk-a-donk]whatever the hell that is,stopped playing his clean tele,got a marshall amp,a distorted Les Paul,fired Rick Davis,got a keyboard player instead,hired three pretty little bimbos that sang off key,wore a dirty tank top,and ripped jeans[that looked like he found them in a dumpster,a fake plastic cowboy hat,and sang a half-tone flat[don't think he could do that if he tried]get involved with Brittney or Paris,and into the Hollywierd night life,He would become a REAL country artist by todays standard's.DYKBC.
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Clyde Mattocks · From: Kinston, North Carolina, USA

What Joe described in his original post about NFL
quarterbacks being chosen on the basis of their sex appeal WILL come to pass eventually. Even now, I
expect if two candidates with equal talent were
being considered, the better looking one would get the nod because of his marketability on big time TV.

You can see it in things like NASCAR, where the
camera is always on the hunks. (Okay, I know what
I'm stepping into to rile up a NASCAR fan),but it
isn't just country music thats being sex appeal driven.
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