joyboyo53

just like I said, maybe a little more of a stretch to say greatest in music history, but definitely not out of the question. i cant understand how someone would call that cookie cutter. that line is completely loaded, it contains more emotion and paints a more real picture than most artist do with their entire career. a van gouh in word form, if you will.

jackhammer

Johnny Cash is one of the finest poets of the last 50 years.

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Lilli

If you think Johnny Cash is a poet, what about Kris Kristofferson, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson? All of these are country but all have had songs recorded in the pop field and non-vountry lovers can't deny that they love the pop versions. Pick up some greatest hits cds of some of the traditional country artists and listen to the lyrics... I suggest starting with something like "16 Biggest Hits" (if you go to sonymusicstore you'll see a very large selection of artists under this title). You'll get a super sampling of some fabulous songs. Alan Jackson is another new one this month I bought.

Now I have to say a large portion of what I hear on the radio is not my taste and actually annoys me enough to turn it off but I'm lucky enough to live in Nashville so I can actually go see spectacular "country" live in small club settings. It's not unusual to hear the artists jump up and perform their hits unannounced but the songwriters singing their own version are pretty amazing.

So if you don't like country, don't blame it on the genre, blame it on radio for playing the same thing over and over.

Music Man

If you like Classic Country, Alternative Country, Western Music, Classic Bluegrass and Newgrass---you'll LOVE Heartland Public Radio:

Heartland Public Radio's Schedule for HPR1: Classic Country

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"Paranoid is just like an anchor. It really secures everything about the metal movement in one record. It's all there: the riffs, the vocal performance of Ozzy, the song titles, what the lyrics are about. It's just a classic defining moment."

--Rob Halford of Judas Priest

Lilli

You are correct. Just listened to a little bit and it was very cool!

Mr_headshot

Time for my $3.50.
I grew up on country, luckily I've recovered. There really is some EXCELLENT music associated with country. Hank Williams was one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Country has gone downhill over the last 20 years because of marketing. Nashville even turned its back on Johnny Cash until he kicked them in the teeth with his American recordings (which are some of the greatest moments in American music ever, seriously). Like with any genre there's good and bad. Most popular country isn't really very country at all IMO. Most of it is simply pre packaged "cookie cutter" same thing over and over again with no real creative or emotional value what-so-ever.
You want real talent in country music?
Chet Atkins
Junior Brown
Hank Williams
Patsy Cline
Kris Kristofferson
VINCE GILL

Just to name a few.

I play country music in a band, it's incredibly boring.

sleepy jack

Hank Williams and Kris Kristofferson<3

But yeah i've said it before and i've said it again, the stuff on country radio is more like southern pop than anything else.

Van Gogh*, cmon.

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Lilli

Are you saying you are playing in a country band but what you play is boring? If so, is that because you are playing places that only want to hear crap? If so, STOP THAT immediately You are just spreading the apathy playing bull. Sneak in some "fabulous country" and convert them!

At the risk of offending someone I shouldn't trash someone else's music choices but I've learned to appreciate good music and primarily from a lyrical viewpoint. I've been known to sing along to disco, pretend I know the words to rap songs, turn up metal on the radio once in a while and can't help it but since I'm from the south I grew up on southern rock. I don't listen to country "radio" too much but I buy country after listening to it online or just risking a purchase from a reputable review. And at the risk of sounding a little schizo, I think if you got in my truck right now the radio would be set on a Christian or Classical station.

But again, since I live in Music City I am blessed to be privvy to some really amazing stuff in the country genre...old and new.

Mr_headshot

I say it's boring because it's not about the "music" it's about the words. I, being a guitar player/ drummer, don't really have a large part. Some songs we play are fun, "Drivin' my Life Away" "Walk Softly on This Heart of Mine", but most country GOOD OR BAD is boring from a musical standpoint. G,D,C,D.
Much of music is made up of those 3 chords but with country you simply strum those chords instead of playing patterns and such over them.
That's all I was saying

Vjay

There is also the fact that a lot of artists get pigeon holed as country because the Suits at the big labels can't quite fit them into other Genres, which is why we have the differant types of country these days i.e pop country (shania twain), rock country (lynyrd skynyrd), blues country (allman brothers band), western (merle haggard) etc.
Ok in their Hayday who would have classed CCR as country? yet today John Fogerty is classed as country. Lacy J dalton had her roots in Folk, she did the transition and was labelled as a country singer. However if you listen to her " last wild place " cd, IMO that would fit comfortable into a number of genres and still hold it's own.

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