If This Don't Frost Your

Michael Breid · From: Eureka Springs, Arkansas, USA

Larry, I know exactly what you are talking about. It's all bucks now. No talent needed. Especially the DJ's. We have a station that calls itself a "classic country" station here in Arkansas, and for awhile they were playing classic country. Then, they started moving in the rock-country artists(?) and pushing out the "real" country artists. When I asked the manager/owner about it I was told basically, "Look, I'm in this business to make money, and if the old country sells, fine, but the new country is what's making the bucks nowadays, so it's my station, and I'll play what I want to make the money". I give him credit for at least being honest and not trying to hum and haw his way out of it with a thousand excuses like a lot of station managers/owners do. But that's what it's all about good people....$$$$. You grease my hand and make me rich, and I'll do anything you say. Didn't there used to be some kind of a law about "bribing" radio or TV stations to play certain songs? Hmmmmmmmmm. Payola rears its ugly head again. Big money is going to have its way regardless. But they can't take away our personal collections of music we like to hear, or can they? They are already trying to spy on us. What's next? Knocking on our doors in the middle of the night and burning our Hank Williams and Patsy Cline records because some fool politician said they might be a threat to America? Probably sounds crazy to the younger generation, but I lived through the McCarthy era, so it wouldn't surprise me if it comes to this.

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

well Michael, I hear what you are saying but the only thing I can actually state for certain is that Hank Sr and Patsy were not trying to actually kill us..but there are plenty of folks out there right now that are..

I don't think the politicians are gonna want your Hank or Patsy records anytime soon...

If you don't like what the radio station is playing write a letter,if they are advertising Classic Country in promo's and they are NOT playing Classic Country write a letter to the FCC.

[This message was edited by Tony Prior on 02 January 2006 at 06:45 AM.]

Ray Uhl · From: Riverside, Missouri, USA

I agree totally with Tony's reply. I do agree with you concerning the music. It galls me that the name "Country" is being used to promote anything the radio executives desire. These promoters care for absolutely nothing but the almighty buck. The true art of "Traditional Country" is gone. I'm enjoying playing what I can, BUT, that doesn't mean I support the new wave. Think, I'll move to Texas...seems to be some good country music still being played down there.

:0

albert johnson · From: tallahassee,florida usa

Michael,Take my advice get XM Radio and go to channel 13 "Hanks Place"great country and western swing all the time never closes.That's what I did I got sick and tired of having to listen to that JUNK that Nashville mistakling calls country music but I guess that they just don't know any better. Albert

Larry King · From: Watts, Oklahoma, USA

Ray....I'd suggest Blanco, San Marcos, San Antonio,Floresville, or BANDERA

Charlie McDonald · From: out of the blue

What a great list of places, Larry.
But I don't know where a body would have to move to find something good on commercial radio.
If you make it to Bandera, say hi to Kinky for me.

Jack Ritter · From: Enid, Oklahoma, USA

talk about frost--this chaps mine!!

the "country" music awards show has turned into the same situation. i tuned in the last show they recently had and it is about as far from being country music as it can get---as far as i am concerned.
darn little steel and fiddles--after about 3 songs i quit watching.
as far as the awards--i couldn't name any song the entertainer of the year does if i had to. this nash-trash is stuff that you can't even 2 step to. the 2 bands i play with still plays traditional country and the good old stuff that makes country music and you can still dance to it!!!

just thought i would tell y'all how i feel about the situation.

happy new year and let's keep it country !!

jack ritter
enid,okla
steelinjack@aol.com

John Davis · From: Cambridge, U.K.

Hey! Great idea!! Lets all move to Texas reckon Bobby Bowman would put us all up??

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

Its purposeful cultural genocide purpatrated by the highest level of management of CMT, the CMA, and others who control what we listen to. Hate of country people and the music they listen to. Someone needs to start a new organization like The Country Music Guild for real country music. What bothers me is that people like George Strait and Garth Brooks and others who have made millions sit in silence over this and count their money.

[This message was edited by Kevin Hatton on 02 January 2006 at 10:51 AM.]

Dave Grafe · From: Hudson River Valley NY

First and formost, in the USA at least, the broadcast paradigm is such that it depends on commercial advertising fo finance operations and the people who buy that commmercial time depend on the programming to deliver their desired audience, which is to say the audience that will spend money when prompted.

A while back somebody figured out that the folks who listen to "real" country and western music are the ones who keep their old cars and trucks until they rust out, who don't buy stuff they don't see a need for - who don't buy disposable diapers because they can save a lot of money (and BTW give their infants a much healtier and comfortable experience) simply by doing the laundry, who stay home and cook dinner instead of heading on down to Applebee's every night, etc.

We are now into our second generation of American citizens who grew up in a media-centric society, i.e. if it's on TV it's "reality," everything else is incidental "entertainment" and not to be taken seriously. For these folks it's all about spending money to buy their own personal "cool," the ones who think the Eagles were a country band, the ones who buy Garth "the anti-Hank" Brooks' product by the millions because they saw a cool video on CMT.

I remember a three-day country music fest we put on in Portland some years back, for which I had prepared hours of classic C&W tapes to play beteween acts. The sponsoring radio station was horrified and quickly made it clear that they didn't want that "old" country music played because they were sure it would destry the market that they had so carefully cultivated, they gave us their own tapes to play (Shania, Garth and other big-guitar Gnashville product) and checked up on us hourly to make sure that we were.

The refreshing side to this is that a number of younger folk are doing what many of us did in our youth - digging up the material of real substance that is buried in our nation's history and celebrating it (no doubt partly in rebellion against the pablum delivered by the corporate programmers) but it will always remain a marginal phenomena and we will only hear it on subscription services or the few remaining maverick broadcast stations.

Kenny Burford · From: Independence, Missouri USA

I am afraid traditional country music is gone from radio forever and even worse in another 20 years there won't be a venue left that will pay a band to play it. When the majority of country musician's attest that their biggest musical influences were the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, or some other R&R group it is not hard to see the end of traditional country music from where we are currently standing.

Michael Breid · From: Eureka Springs, Arkansas, USA

Kenny I don't see it taking that long before they completely "crowd out" traditional country music from the airwaves. They've done a pretty good job so far. It's hard to find Haggard or Jones on the radio anymore. Even someone as new as Alan Jackson is having trouble being heard. I think one reason is that Alan is a clean cut, clean shaven,(mustache accepted)next door looking kind of a guy,and that don't cut it with the "grunge image" the big $$$$ people are trying to convey. I wonder how much more attractive Keith Urban would be if he'd knock off that five day stubble, and comb his hair? Whatever happened to the clean cut image? Did Willie have a hand in destroying this? I still respect the people with the rhinestone suits. At least they dress like "stars" and not like some druggy who just crawled out of a gutter. "Grungecountry". If you want to be grunge, fine......just don't put country music in the same category.

David Higginbotham · From: Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA

Larry King wrote:

Sam White R.I.P. · From: Coventry, RI 02816

Hey Guys we have a lot of Traditional Country music still going on up here in the NorthEast and it will be around for a long time. We have two Country music Associations and Our Steel guitar association and we all do a lot of traditional Country music. Is there any other kind of Country music?? If there is I never heard of it and don't want to hear that you know what.
Sam White

Bob Martin · From: Madison Tn

As sad as it makes me to say this Country music is just a flash in the pan as far as the history of music goes. There are still a few people left that were on the cutting edge of early country music so I'm just going to take a guess and say that classic country music as we all know it is less that 50 years old.

Now before I get corrected I'm talking about country music that we all talk about like Country Shuffles, 2/4 2 stepping and so on. I'm not referring to the very first country music of AP Carter and Jimmy Rodgers and many other Fathers and Mothers of the classic country music we talk about and love.

I would suspect that if you could ask AP or Jimmy what they thought of the country music scene in the 50's and 60's they would say something along the same lines of what we are saying in this thread.

Can you imagine What all of the electric guitars and steels sounded like to our forefathers with them all turned up as loud as the vocals and not to even mention those loud drums and my goodness what were they thinking on Marty Robbins Don't Worry About Me what kind of instrument was making that obnoxious sound hee hee?

All I'm trying to do is agree with each and everyone of you guys but hopefully reminding you of all the transitions before the one we are complaining about.

Real original Country music was 1 or 2 guitars and a fiddle or 2 and maybe even a banjo or dobro or harmonica with no amplification. Can you imagine what they all thought of electric instruments?

I too am saddened by the current state of country music so I guess we'll just have to hang on to our memories and old records because it will be the only thing left of our brand of country music someday and that someday is coming very soon :-)

Bob

Kenny Burford · From: Independence, Missouri USA

Bob, I would have to agree with you 100% the writing is on the wall for the type of country music I like to listen to and play. Also, the appearance of most of today's performers in all genres of music hing on street trash.

Dave Grafe · From: Hudson River Valley NY

Interesting and notable points made by all here, sounds remarkably similar to what contemporary folks said about the music of Beethoven, Wagner, Bartok, Bach, Mahler and many other "classical" artists when they first appeared on the scene.

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