Quotable Country – 05/10/09 Edition
Click the bullet after each quote to visit the original source.
You want to sing along with them, even if I can’t figure out that he’s singing ‘whatever it is,’ with the way he sings. It’s like, ‘What is he saying?’ Goodddly, badddado – I have no clue what you’re singing?’ But it sounds so good that I’m just joining in. And then I realize it’s really good lyrics as well. ●
- – Keith Urban has apparently been listening to Zac Brown Band’s “Whatever It Is” with his ears full of cotton.
Jason Aldean Has Rockin’ “Country” Success ●
- – I was hoping the quotation marks were intended as a snide comment on Aldean’s alleged countryness, but it turns out they’re just referencing one of his song titles. Boo.
I realize this is not the best song for summer barbecues and tailgating parties and such. It’s a thinker – and a bit of a downer. But so are a lot of solid country songs. And in this genre, there’s room for them all. ●
- – Alison Bonaguro likes her first downcast song (Miranda’s “Dead Flowers”). Hypothetical soccer moms nationwide are appalled and currently seeking new leadership.
I need to use the gift I was given in other ways than just telling people what they want to hear. For me to feel comfortable riding around in a bus that costs more than most people’s houses, I need to do that s**t. ●
- – Steve Earle feels a moral imperative to preach his political message.
Nevertheless, Dungan wanted to sign him and was pleased to learn that Rucker had about 150 country songs that he had already written. But they were mostly traditional country ballads and swing shuffles. Problem was, as a country songwriter, Rucker was too country for today’s country music industry. So, all those patiently crafted songs would have to remain in Darius’s drawer-at least for the time being.
In preparation for his first country album, Rucker started writing new songs, and his co-writers were mostly veteran Nashville tunesmiths. ●
- – This is still the most tragic aspect of Rucker’s country success to me. When do we get to hear those songs in the drawer? Since his compromise is paying off so handsomely, probably never. I wonder if they’re any good.
I think every artist has the right to come to town and sing whatever their idea of what country music is. Play it all on the radio together and let the fans decide that which they like the best. The only thing I’ve said about it is, don’t try to stop me from getting my music out there to those people. If you’ll play everything else, you have to play this stuff, too. . . . I don’t stand in anybody else’s way of accomplishing their dreams, and I don’t like people standing in my way, either. That seems like a hostile thing to do. ●
- – Jamey Johnson and I just want a level playing field.
While these songs’ lyrics tend to celebrate the special and idiosyncratic nature of the rural South, the music itself is often as distinctive as the Applebee’s restaurant out by the interstate that runs next to so many ’small towns.’ ●
- – Peter Cooper comments on the ’songs about being country’ trend in a very interesting article from the Washington Post’s J. Freedom du Lac. Recommended reading… and it’ll help you make sense (or not) of the next three quotes.
It’s become a staple of the format. There always seems to be at least one on the radio. The one thing we really have to be careful of — and we’re really bad at this in country music — is that it can become very cliche. ●
- – Eric Church comments on the trend in the same article. Kudos to him for at least being aware of the cliche. I’m pretty sure Jason Aldean sees himself as a trailblazer.
Yes, [the lyrics of "Chicken Fried"] might make the hipsters du Lac knows turn up their nose, but to most Americans, they are laudible sentiments, even if the musical genre is not your cup of tea. ●
- – Watchdog group for liberal media bias rather mysteriously takes issue with du Lac’s article. And I only say ‘mysteriously’ because I don’t get it. If someone can explain what they think they’re talking about to me…
He won’t write those critiques about rap, of course. “J. Freedom Du Lac” doesn’t care about “divisiveness” or “exclusionary practices” or “narrowcasting” or any of that. He doesn’t care if blacks, mexicans or asians do exactly the same thing. He is against predominately white people engaging in something they enjoy listening to. “J. Freedom Du Lac” is an anti-white, it’s as simple as that. ●
- – Ever get the “feeling” that you read a completely different “article” than a commenter? Also, frequent use of “air quotes” is a winning argumentative strategy.
Q: What about Jamey Johnson and his old-school, outlaw country sound?
A: I played with Jamey a while back at one of his first shows, before he got his record deal. He’s a piece of work. He’s the real deal. There’s nothing fake about him. You marry Waylon to Hank and throw in a little extra weird stuff, and you’ll have Jamey. He’s definitely one of a kind. ●
- – What’s this extra weird stuff? Does anyone else get the feeling that Duane Propes (bass player for Little Texas) saw Jamey bite a head off of a dove or something backstage? Also, apparently Little Texas still exists.
Well, I am against that whole thing. I just don’t want my hero’s name over that pile of sh-t. I love Hank Williams’ music. Why would I want his name over the “new” Grand Ole Opry? It just doesn’t make any sense to me. They are too commercialized. ●
- – You’d think Wayne Hancock would be on the Reinstate Hank bandwagon, but you’d be wrong. It’s not that Hank deserves the Opry; it’s that the Opry doesn’t deserve him. Interesting take on the issue.
Prefer email? Nothing wrong with that!
I was pleasantly surprised that Alison Bonarugo likes “Dead Flowers”.
The thing about the article is the distinction between a good hometown-pride song was never made. While “Small Town U.S.A.” is lame and cliched, “Famous In A Small Town” has a clever and interesting lyric. The article never really took a position on those kinds of songs, it just talked about how many of them are, which is just fact. I would have liked to see the writer take more of a position than that, which is why I agree with the Peter Cooper comment posted above. Very few of these songs end up being good and fresh- most are boring and pandering.
GAC aired a special on Darius Rucker that also talked about his “too country” behavior when he first started making the rounds in Nashville. I stopped watching when they got to the part about stifling his creative influences for the sake of watered-down materialistic Music Row. The country top 40 is probably the worst it’s ever been, and his new single (“Alright”) is my least favorite out of anything on the radio. They all oughta know better.
That Washington Post article was great. I was telling a friend at lunch today that the problem isn’t the theme or “form,” it’s those practicing said theme. As rural communities fade away, it’s just going to become more of a prominent topic—often defensive or dim-witted in concept and content, unfortunately.
uh, CM the article attributes the quote about “Whatever It Is” to Keith Urban, not Darius Rucker.
Which makes it funnier to me…
You mean Darius Rucker and Keith Urban are different people? Oh man.
Weird mistake. Thanks for catching it.
I meant the thought of Keith Urban complaining about people “speaking American” is funnier, in an offensive sort of way.
Zac Brown does have wierd diction.
Yay Peter Cooper!
I think the Rucker thing is tragic too. I want to hear those real country songs, because I’m not impressed with what I’ve heard from him so far, but I feel he’s got the potential. Ticks me off.
Darius has plenty of money from his days as Hootie, so he should just do an indie side project and record the best of his older traditional songs the way he chooses with no thought of radio airplay. I mean if Brad Paisley can release “Play” and not trash his Top 40 career, Darius and his label should have nothing to worry about!
Gosh, I have something in common with the self-proclaimed “borderline marxist” Steve Earle! I too feel a moral imperative to preach my political message, except I do it to counterbalance leftist twits like ole Steve-o in oder to keep a level playing field. I’ve been working on writing a parody of a Jamey Johnson song to be titled “Mowing Down Obama”. (Okay, I’ll try to control myself…)
Yeah, C.M…I’m with you. I really don’t get what the conservative blogger is talking about. To read Freedom du loc’s article and come up with the deduction that he’s “anti-white” is bordering on delusional. Like Chris mentioned, I don’t think the author took any position on the prevalance of “down home” songs, other than the fact that there are a lot of them on country radio right now. Furthermore, he kind of keeps the article balanced, including the quotes of Rodney Atkins, Justin Moore, and the DC radio programmer to defend the current trend alongside the more critical comments of Cooper and Church. I think Freedom du loc is really just describing the current landscape of country radio, and trying to find out why the “hometown pride” song is such a common trope in the genre right now. I”m just not sure how someone can take an “anti-white” message out of that.
As for the contents of the article, I think the most revealing thing to me was in Rodney Atkins’ comments regarding how “These are My People” was written. By trying to emphasize the fact that both songwriters were born in cities in an attempt to make the song seem more “universal,” I think Atkins is revealing the problem with country radio today. While many of these “down-home songs” appear at the surface to be personal to the singers, a song like “These are My People” has no emotional connection to anything. Instead, it’s merely a calculated, impersonal attempt to reach as many people as possible. While I’m fine with a decent, catchy pop-country song now and then, I wish more country artists and songwriters would at least try to write and record music that goes deeper than talking about ” a bad mamajama down in Alabama” or “being a country man/boy/woman/thing/etc.” Like one of the previous commentators said, not all “small town” songs are bad. It’s the job of the artist to put some thought and emotion into the song to make it personal and to ensure quality work. Unfortunately, there just isn’t a lot of that on country radio right now, and it’s a shame.
(Sorry about the long-windedness, guys…I guess I got a little carried away there.)
Thanks for being long-winded, Mike. I think you and Chris are right about du Lac’s piece seeming pretty detached. Most of it is exposition and quotes… not like there’s even much time for his alleged anti-whiteness to come through. If anything, I’d say that it doesn’t go as far as I would have wished.
I don’t exactly disagree with the NewsBusters blogger’s response; I just have trouble detecting any semblance of logic in it. I don’t even understand the point he thinks he’s making. (In fairness, the worst part was the anti-white bit, which came from a commenter rather than the author.)
I had the same response to that Rodney Atkins quote. He’s trying to make a point about the universality of the song type, but what’s more striking to me is how he’s revealing the extent to which the writers were willing to write into a stereotypical and superficial vision of the rural south.
Alison Bonaguro picked up the same two articles (Washington Post and NewsBusters) for the CMT Blog, but you heard it here first. I’m not above celebrating small victories.