Big Blog #1: American Roots
For my big blog topic I decided to go with the genre early country. I know anything before I was born could be considered early country, but I’m talking about 1960’s and 1970’s country music. The reason I picked this time period is because personally I consider the greatest country artists of all time played in this era. There is John Denver, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and Johnny Cash. All the artist I listed are a huge part of my childhood because this is all I listened to growing up. Also I love going to Nashville Tennessee to listen to country music and the time period I chose is the Nashville sound era. Early country is my favorite genre because I have many memories attached to it, so I wanted to dig deeper into the history behind it.
History:
Country music originated with blues and church music in the Southern and Southwestern United States during the early 1920’s. Country was a mix of folk music from British Isles, church music, and African American blues. The music was made with string instruments like banjos, guitars, fiddles, and harmonicas. The earliest forms of country music can be found in recordings by Appalachian fiddle players. Artist Jimmie Rodgers and The Carter Family are considered the moment that country music was born in 1927. Country and western music was what this genre was called but later just country music was popular and an established term in the 1940’s. People also called this genre “Hillbilly music” but that name was replaced over time. Country music can be split up into generations based on how it has evolved over time. The 1960’s and 1970’s country music is considered the third and fourth generation of country music. Country music became popular and reached its peak in the 1940’s-1970’s.
The pioneers of country music:
This list below the artist who are considered the pioneers of the country music industry.
-Waylon Jennings
-Emmylou Harris
-George Jones
-Townes Van Zandt
-Merle Haggard
-Steve Earle
-Loretta Lynn
-Johnny Cash
-Willie Nelson
-Hank Williams
1960’s:
In the early 1960’s Nashville sound became popular and turned country music into a fortune in Nashville Tennessee. This brought attention to country music to a diverse audience and it caused this genre of music to flourish. Artist such as Loretta Lynn and and Merle Haggard emerged from this time period and became influential artist that were the face of country music. Dolly Parton also peaked in the 1960’s. This era in country music was huge for female country artist. Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton were influential artist that paved the way for female country singers. Loretta Lynn earned her first number 1 during this time period. These ladies were the most popular in the 1960’s and are seen as one of the faces of the country music male dominated industry. Johnny Cash was also huge in the 60’s because he continued to tear up the country music charts one song at a time.
Popular songs in the 1960’s:
-“Don’t Come Home a’Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind)” by Loretta Lynn
-“Mama Tried” by Merle Haggard
-“Ring of Fire” by Johnny Cash
1970’s:
In the 1970’s outlaw country was derived from the traditional Western. Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings Willie Nelson, Hank Willams Jr., and were extremely popular during the outlaw music era. Nelson and Jennings were on an album together called “Wanted! The Outlaws” Country pop also became popular in the 70’s with artist such as John Denver and Dolly Parton. Dolly was extremely successful in both the country and pop industry during the 1970’s with her song “Here You Come Again” that topped the country singles chart and also reached number 3 on the pop singles chart. This shined a light on country pop and other artist began topping both charts in the early 1980’s.
Popular songs in the 1970’s
-“Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys” By Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings
-“I Will Always Love You” by Dolly Parton
-“Thank God I’m a Country Boy” by John Denver
-“Coal Miners Daughter” by Loretta Lynn
I felt like since I’m writing about my favorite genre of music I thought I should include some of my favorite early country songs. So here are some good songs that you should check out and add to your country playlist…
-“All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled Down)” by Hank Williams Jr.
-"The Devil Went Down To Georgia” by The Charlie Daniels Band
-“I’m The Only Hell (Mama Ever Raised)” by Johnny Paycheck
“Islands In the Stream” by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rodgers
-“Family Tradition” by Hank Williams Jr.
-“Good Hearted Woman” by Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson
There is a lot of country music that can be considered early country to our generation, but to me the 1960’s-1970’s are probably the earliest that are most prominent in my life. Over the course of time country music has changed and evolved to what is now, and that can be heard when you listen to the different generations of country. I think it is really interesting how this genre of music is derived from three different kinds of music from folk music, church music, all the way to the blues. There are so many legendary artist that peaked in the 60’s and 70’s, and some of those artist are my favorite country singers. I love all types and genres of music, but I may be biased by saying early country is by far the best. Then again I do have a lot of memories attached to this type of music, so listening to it always makes me happy because it takes me back to my childhood. Overall, early country in the 1960’s and 1970’s have left a mark in the country music industry and is still listened to globally today.
Works Cited:
“Country Music.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Mar. 2022, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_music#Country-soul_crossover.
Dooley, Sean. “Tracing Country Music History from Jimmie Rodgers to Garth Brooks.” LiveAbout, LiveAbout, 23 May 2019, https://www.liveabout.com/the-history-of-country-music-934030.
Iahn, Buddy. “Reba, Dolly Parton & Loretta Lynn Featured on 'Iconic Women of Country' Soundtrack.” The Music Universe, 26 May 2021, https://themusicuniverse.com/reba-dolly-parton-loretta-lynn-featured-iconic-women-country-soundtrack/.Rkonc.
“Top 10 Country Songs of the 1960s.” The Boot, 27 July 2018, https://theboot.com/top-country-songs-1960s/.
I grew up listening to a lot of the music you have listed here. Country music has changed so much, but you can still hear the influence from the 60s and 70s.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog, and learning about/listening to early country. I was actually surprised at how many of the artists and songs I recognized, since I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a huge country music fan. I also loved that you shared some of your own favorite early country songs!
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ReplyDeleteI love that you choose that specific group of country music. I also enjoy listening to music in Nashville. It was interesting to see the kind of instruments used and how it is connected to other types. Great work!
I enjoyed reading your blog. I found it very interesting that country music partially originated from the blues. I don’t know much about country music but it was fun to read and hear a few names I recognized like Johnny Cash.
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