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Do Most Audio Enthusiasts Dislike Country Music?

nelsress said:
Musichal, I was surprised to see your list of favorite genres and NOT see blues. Hard to imagine really liking both country (particularly old style country) and jazz but not the blues, or was that just an oversight.
Fun thread either way, thanks for starting it.
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Wondered if anyone would notice. I love blues, but I just throw it in with rock or sometimes soul or even country depending upon the style of blues. For instance, the Winters Bros, SRV, and even old Delta Blues eg Elmore James I simply put with rock. Artists like Bobby Blue Bland and Z Z Hill I put with soul. Bonnie Raitt in country. Why do I do this? Just to try to keep my genres to a minimum - mostly it's with my rock, so much of which was heavily influenced by the blues anyway.
 
musichal said:
One criticism often expressed regarding country which I've heard from friends and family disparages the content of the songs as ignorant, or sappy, or cliche-ridden trash, etc. However, one can easily make exactly the same criticisms for rock/pop and be just as much on the mark ("I don't need no education"), yet you rarely hear "I hate rock" with this offered as the reason. Whenever someone tells me they "hate country" - which is commonly how it's expressed - I always ask "Why?" The answer most commonly given is this complaint of the content, and though I don't pursue the subject further with anyone, I do find it to be a cliche itself. Often they will also state the very tired old cliche-ish joke "what do you get if you play country music backwards?" "You get your truck back, you get your dog back, you get your woman back..." I smile politely along with their guffaws. Besides, on behalf of dogs everywhere I'll merely point out how loyal they are, and the country songs which reflect this dog attribute are much more pervasive than any dog-left-me selections of which I'm aware. Furthermore, on behalf of women everywhere I'll merely point out that hey, you're on your own with this one, babe - you should have stuck around with the dog.
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I've heard this response too. Personally, the twangy vocal style is what I don't care for. It just doesn't appeal to me. As for lyrical content, there are SOME (as in very few that I've heard) country singers that seem to include racists content. Otherwise, a lot of country songs I've heard are just about life. They sing about the life they know as do rock, jazz, tejano, etc. singers. I don't see how country lyrics are anymore indicative of ignorance than those of any other genre. For that matter, we're all ignorant of what we don't know. How is a person who grew up in a rural town and only lived in that enviroment going to write songs about inner city life? Or should we expect NWA to rap about life on a farm? I think those who accuse country lyrics of being ignorant are ignorant themselves and unreasonable. Don't you?
 
I believe all genres have two kinds of music, good and commercial crap. Even then different people are going to place specific selections on one list or the other. Music that continues to pull me in over the long haul is what I consider good.:music:
 
We had a country station here in the 80's that was permanent set on my car radio. Really liked the songs they played. And another played very obscure stuff from early times, and that was also great. The country staion is all traffic reports all day now. The other station is world music only now. Only time I catch country music now it seems to me it isn't really country music at all, in the old way. It's all irritating and polished commercial sounding and has no soul.
 
Personally, I cannot stand country music, as it relates to the radio format. The good country music falls under the "Americana" radio format these days.
 
Battra92 said:
My brother, whom I consider more of a music lover than me, has literally hundreds if not thousands of country records. He was a bit annoyed when my wife and I told the DJ that there was absolutely no country music allowed at our wedding reception. Of course, we also said no hiphop and no gimmick songs so it's not just modern country that's not allowed here.

The problem is this: modern Country as a genre is filled with sappy love songs or ridiculous whiny crap (e.g. Taylor Swift) and an almost masturbatory gratification of being low class, ignorant and uncultured (e.g. Redneck Woman, the entire discography of Toby Keith etc.) I'm not saying that a song has to explain Heisenberg's uncertainty principle but there has to be more to sing about than shopping at Walmart. :-/

Now classic country is a different story. There is such a wealth of music out there from Southern Blues (Jimmie Rodgers) to Western (or cowboy) country to Western Swing (Bob Wills) to music that really can't even be confined to one genre (Johnny Cash.)
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:thmbsp: Absolutely verbatim, ditto, I concur, nail on the head, etc., etc., etc. I was a pro mobile DJ in Kentucky 20 years ago and forced to play Friends In Low Places, Achy Breaky Heart, Boot Scootin' Boogie & Chatahoochie every farkin' weekend. I despised country before that so the early 90's damn near drove me to the brink. My wife's family listen to nothing but country, the saving grace is they aren't into music - it's just on for sonic wallpaper so my wife has simply switched to the soft rock station to avoid me 'hulking' all over the place.

I love the wedding reception story. I told the DJ at our reception he was welcome to play as much country (outside of father/daughter dance) as he wanted, but that I would deduct $100 for each country song I heard. Happy to say I enjoyed a country-free reception.

Country fans insist that non-country fans just don't get it - country is about the stories and if we'd just listen to some country, we'd grow to like it. My standard response is - OK, let's say you hate brussel sprouts. I"m gonna cook up a big batch using my grandmothers recipe (which I love). You've just never had brussel sprouts made the way my grandma does them - if you would just eat this salad bowl full, you'll grow to love them!

That said, I have to acknowledge that country music is performed by some of the most talented musicians in the world. Nashville studio musicians are incredible and the touring bands for country artists are damn near as tight & capable. I lived in a very small rural TN town for a time and every Friday evening through the summer, they'd park a haywagon in the middle of the town square, run power to it and it was an instant concert. 90-year old guys who could barely walk would show up in bib overalls & bare feet carrying their fiddles. Once they got up on that wagon, look out - their fingers were flying faster than you could say moonshine. I'd say Tennessee probably has more musical talent per capita than any other state in the union - Nashville & Memphis should be on every music lover's bucket list regardless of your musical tastes & interests.

musichal said:
country rap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3IxEsjRWM8

I think you're more likely to laugh than throw up.
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Mowgli said:
That song is on my CR cd :yes:
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Hey, you guys forgot Geezinslaws' "Help, I'm White & I Can't Get Down":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NR8no4Fp5Y&feature=player_detailpage#t=19s

Also, "Rap Country" genesis - the Rappin' Duke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfUSIerJ-8c&feature=player_detailpage
 
A successful rapper is a modern poet with huge skills in upset in our sensibities.

Biggie Smalls was such a person.
 
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I remember a lot of the crossover country back in the 60's and 70's that I liked. Then I really didn't listen to it until about the early 90's......and liked the country from the late 70's, 80's and early 90's.....Then I don't know what happened to it.....The stuff now days all sounds the same.
 
Well, in 40+ years in the radio biz I've spent a surprising amount of time spinnin' country. Didn't seek out jobs at CW stations...just ended up working at a number of them because a job's a job...and if you're a pro you should be able to execute nearly any format and sound like you've been doing it your entire career. So...through the process of employment osmosis I've grown to enjoy country. Don't spin it at home...but enjoy playing it at work. Cannot stand Taylor Swift....doesn't she realize she's singing about a half tone flat all the time?? Current fave artists include Eric Church (I actually BOUGHT his "Chief" CD!), Little Big Town, Jason Aldean, Thompson Square & a bunch of others.

One thing that I've always enjoyed about country is that the genre is the last bastion of the novelty song. I'm at work doing my usual Sunday morning airshift, and in the next hour I've scheduled "Pound Sign" by Kevin Fowler and "She Cranks My Tractor" by Dustin Lynch:)
 
finnbow said:
Previous threads have left me with the impression that there is a lot of love for the good old country music (e.g., Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Marty Robbins, Merle Haggard ....) but very little love for contemporary Nashville country/pop. That's certainly the case for me. FWIW, "Americana" is perhaps my favorite genre of late, along with a renewed interest in British folk (Fairport Convention, Pentangle, Steeleye Span).

As for rap, it doesn't seem to have much of a following here. Personally, I can't stand it.
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^^^ THIS ^^^

The oldest - and I mean oldest - country music is interesting to me. I'm talking even older than that mentioned above, although that is fine as well. Take it all the way back to when the WLS Barn Dance and Grand Ol' Opry was getting started, and yeah, love it.

I like Country music all the way up to and including Chet Atkins and his Nashville Sound, which transformed country in a way that many hated (lush orchestras, taming the steel guitar, good recording techniques, etc).

After that, not so much, with some exceptions for certain artists who in my mind, broke away from the pack and were outstanding writers or singers, in any genre.

I also like some 'country' stars who were not accepted by C&W in general, like John Denver. Say what you want, the man had a great talent for songwriting and a good voice; and he was a nice guy too.

I also like music that has some country roots in it, such as alt.country or 'Americana' or 'Roots Rock' or whatever it's called now. Lots of country influence, along with rock and folk and other bits and pieces.

It's all good as far as I'm concerned. Some I like better than others, but I don't hate any of it. Except maybe the Dixie Chicks.
 
LeeVing said:
The only country I can listen to would be Cash and early Hoyt Axton when he was more folk.

I just can't relate to the lyrics, same goes with rap. The musical instruments don't do it for me either.
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I think that's perfectly reasonable, and by the way, Hoyt Axton was an incredible songwriter, so good choice there.

I often do not relate to the lyrics of a lot of country music. Same for rap. Why should I? They're not singing to me; they're singing (or rapping) to someone else, to their struggle, not mine. Doesn't make them better or worse; just makes their lives different than mine.

Think about it. Rush lyrics? Tom Petty? Tell me that's not aimed right at a certain demographic (one that I *do* identify with). I may have lived in little tiny towns in the middle of Illinois growing up, but I have more time in shopping malls than tractor seats; or gang-banger drive-by shootings.

We tend to like the music we can identify with, right? Nothing wrong with that. The type of country music and rap music I find least enjoyable talks about values and interests and backgrounds I do not have and did not experience. No harm, no foul, just not me.
 
Well, categorizing music is a slippery slope anyway.

I love Johnny Ca$h, but to me that guy's not "country", he's rock and roll whatever that means. You can't even categorize a lot of "rock" bands after awhile. Bands don't feel the categorization as much as the listeners do.

It's more about the artists, than the genre. I find great performances in every music that once hated. I resisted "rap" in the 80's, but there were some kick ass "rap" groups to listen to too..

I'm not into what I've heard on the modern "Country" format radio. It sounds like a caricature of itself. Maybe there'll some breakthrough act that shakes up things in the "Country" market?

I mean Justin Bieber is marketed as a "Rock", "Pop", and <gulp> "Rap" act. Yeah, maybe for the tweens?
Just sayin' there's a lot of crap out there.
 
The funny thing for me is that being less than fond of country puts me in the majority which is rare to be sure. Most Akers seem to prefer tubes or vintage SS over modern SS, Records over CDs, using tone controls & EQs over purism and other preferences opposite of mine. Being in the majority feels weird! :screwy:
 
SA-708 said:
Bristol ought to be on that itinerary too: http://www.bristolrhythm.com/about-us/

We also have the only academic program in Country & Bluegrass music here in northeast Tennessee: http://www.etsu.edu/das/bluegrass/default.aspx
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Yep. Did manage to visit the Country Music Hall of Fame while I was in Bristol and was inspired to add some Carter Family LP's to my collection. Can't say I have a whole bunch of dulcimer stuff outside of that, but it's there and I appreciate its place in American music. My family is from Eastern KY and I have Carters in my family tree. Ironically, I didn't make the connection between the music & my roots until fairly recently - U.S. 23 ain't called the "Country Music Highway" for nothing.

If you're in Bristol, you may have recognized I was referring to Friday evenings in Kingsport...
 
Unless I missed it earlier, one modern guy worth a listen (imo) is Jamey Johnson. I picked up his last two, "The Guitar Song" (Mercury) 2010 and "Living For a Song; A Tribute to Hank Cochran" (Mercury) 2012. He's the only one I've found recently carrying the torch for classic country music. A good artist.
 
Though I'm no fan of contemporary Nashville country pop, I thoroughly enjoyed the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville. IMHO, it puts the Rock and Roll HOF in Cleveland to shame and I generally prefer rock & roll to country.
 
Country & Rap-My Two Cents

Not a big fan of Hip-Hop but some of the older,anger filled Rap music from Da Lench Mob,Ice Cube,NWA,and Dr.Dre has a place in my collection. As far as country I too lean toward Hank Williams,Miss Patsy Cline,Jimmie Rodgers,Johnny Cash,and Merle Haggard. Skynyrd's Ronnie Van Zant was a big Merle Haggard fan,and Southern Rock has strong Country Music influences.
The surviving Van Zant Brothers had 2 successful albums in the Country Genre,"Get Right with the Man" and "My Kind of Country". "Get Right..." is an especially good album.
Some other music I like on the fringes of Country are JJ Cale and Elvin Bishop. I also dug the soundtrack to "O Brother Where Art Thou?"...
 
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