Country music

[pat]

James is known around his school as a "music mogul," which I guess is an improvement over "music freak," which is what he used to be called. His tastes are eclectic; although they are pretty much rock centered, that covers a lot of ground, and so does he. Tori Amos to Marilyn Manson and Metallica, Alice in Chains to Sublime, some classic rock such as The Who, tons of bands I've never heard of, fair smattering of hip-hop and rap, goth, everything Frank Zappa ever recorded, as well as the complete libraries of a number of bands, including Nirvana and Primus. He has a B.B. King CD that a friend of ours gave him which he really likes. He likes John Zorn. He has enough music to run a radio station.

He has little classical -- he doesn't really like it, from what I can tell. And little or no country. He thinks most country music "is crap." He cringes whenever he hears most stuff which emanates from Nashville these days. (Upon hearing that Shania Twain was Canadian, he said it lowered his opinion of Canada. ("And they have so much going for them! The Canadian Rockies! Hockey! Fries with gravy!")) I tend to agree with him. However, he decided listening to Mary Chapin Carpenter's "I Feel Lucky," that some of it wasn't that bad. (He does appreciate "Folsom Prison Blues.")

He also thinks Kathy Mattea's "Clown in Your Rodeo" is a pretty good breakup song. (Don't read anything into this: we were discussing Barenaked Ladies "One Week," which led to a discussion of songs which reflected real emotions and situations (e.g., having a fight but being unwilling to make up for several days), which led to a discussion of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" and hence to breakup songs.)

So I'm trying to make a CD for him of "not so bad" country music which he hasn't heard yet. So far, I'm thinking...

"I Walk the Line" and "Hurt", Johnny Cash
"Foggy Mountain Breakdown" Earl Scruggs
"Portland, Oregon" by Loretta Lynn
"Lonesome Standard Time" or "Listen to the Radio" by Kathy Mattea
"I Take My Chances" Mary Chapin Carpenter
something by Allison Krauss and Union Station
something by Emmy Lou Harris ... maybe with Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt off the "Trio" album
I may try Dwight Yoakam again -- "Guitars, Cadillacs" was met with polite disinterest (which is a large step up from the response to a lot of my music) -- maybe "Streets of Bakersfield" (Buck Owens, yay!) or I could wimp out and do Yoakam's cover of "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," which was really a country song even if was done by Queen.

Comments

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Dixie Chicks, I like. Also k.d. lang.

Country music does, it must be admitted, suffer from Sturgeon's Law in spades.

[tenacious-snail.livejournal.com]

does Lucinda Williams count as country?

I also seem to recall James liking some Dixie Chicks (or at least having a preference for once CD over another).

[deedeebythebay.livejournal.com]

Might consider blue grass and blue grass cross overs. Alison Krauss is one of Abbie's favorites (mine too).

[wcg.livejournal.com]

I wish I had a digital version of Asshole From El Paso by Chuck Wagon and the Wheels. If he appreciates comedy, he'd love it. It includes such timeless classics as "How Can I Love You If You Won't Lay Down?" and "Red Hot Women And Ice Cold Beer." There are also any number of Ray Stevens songs that he might like. Stevens is a surprisingly good musician, for all that he's a kook.

You've definitely got some good stuff there.

Hmmm... how about El Paso by Marty Robbins?

[phinnia.livejournal.com]

My favorite mock-country song (let me know if you can't find it, because I have it - it's not strictly country, more a country sendup, but it's fabulous) is 'Joy' by Harry Nilsson. Unfortunately most of the country I listen to tends toward country-rock (Eagles, Blue Rodeo, that kind of thing.)
Don't hate Canada, James! We have fries with gravy ... and CHEESE! And much better music than Shania.
... *ponders* I could always make him up a Canadian mix CD, in the interests of saving face for my mother country?

[geekchick]

I'm including lots of alt.country, as that's what I happen to prefer.

• Uncle Tupelo and/or Son Volt and/or Wilco. Son Volt's "Trace" is a fantastic album, "Windfall", "Drown" and "Tear-Stained Eye" are favorite tracks.
  
• James McMurtry: I particularly like "Childish Things" and "Restless"; he (and you) might also enjoy "We Can't Make It Here". (@#$%! What with the vet visit on Sunday I forgot about the show at IOTA. Disappointed.)
  
• Steve Earle: something off "The Revolution Starts...Now" perhaps, or if you want to fire up the Wayback Machine, "Copperhead Road".
  
• Rodney Crowell: possibly something from his latest "The Outsider"
  
• Ryan Adams & The Cardinals: something off of "Cold Roses", like "Let It Ride" or "If I Am a Stranger" perhaps. "Jacksonville City Nights" I didn't like nearly as much, but you can stream it from his web site to give it a try.
  
• To go along with that, try some Whiskeytown: "16 Days", "Don't Wanna Know Why" (check out other stuff on "Pneumonia" too)
  
• Lucinda Williams: "Can't Let Go", "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road". I also like "Jackson" a lot. "Passionate Kisses"? "Righteously" is good, but you'll probably want to listen to the whole thing before putting it on a CD for James.
  
• Drive-By Truckers: "Carl Perkins' Cadillac" (Avoid "Tornadoes", as it certainly didn't inspire in me the sort of reaction I think was intended -- I doubt they meant for it to cause hysterical laughter. Oh, it's bad.)
  
  You could also take a quick scan over the X Country playlist from XM for some tracks to check out, and the iTunes Essentials' Alt.Country playlist.

[calebbullen.livejournal.com]

He might appreciate the musical wizardry of Hayseed Dixie who do classic rock covers ala bluegrass. There's also a whole series of "pickin' on" albums of similar bluegrass versions of non bluegrass music.

Kinky Friedman has some great novelty songs that are country but accessible.

29 minutes to go by Cash or Silverstein might do it.

Mojo Nixon might go over well.

Willie Nelson's Whiskey River or I gotta Get Drunk might be rock-esque enough

But the real one is Steve Goodman's 'you never even call me by my name' Go for the live version off of 'no big surprise' as opposed to the album or David Allen Coe or John Prine versions. The live version has the best final verse.

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

How about Nanci Griffith?
"Across the Great Divide" and "It's a Hard Life Wherever You Go" are two of my favorites.

[curiousangel.livejournal.com]

For good breakup songs, Travis Tritt's "Here's A Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares)" might be a good one.

I second the recommendation of k.d. lang and Alison Krauss. You might also try "The Bug" by Mary Chapin Carpenter. If he decides that instrumentals can work for him, get him the Charlie Daniels Band doing "Orange Blossom Special" -- I have a fond memory of finding a TV show closing with that song on a ferry to the Orkney Islands; what a nice breath of home. :)

I'll just start tossing out some ideas, with no consistent theme besides "I like 'em, and consider them at least vaguely country".

Alabama, "Mountain Music"
Hank Williams, Jr., "Family Tradition"
Indigo Girls, "Watershed"
Indigo Girls, "Southland In The Springtime"
Indigo Girls, "Get Out The Map"

(iTunes tells me that the Indigo Girls did a cover of "Mrs. Robinson" on the "Desperate Housewives" soundtrack, which also has Liz Phair covering "Mother's Little Helper". Alas, they're only available on the album.)

Soggy Bottom Boys, "Man of Constant Sorrow"
Chris LeDoux, "Little Long Haired Outlaw"
Chris LeDoux and Garth Brooks, "Whatcha Gonna Do With A Cowboy?"
Clint Black, "No Time To Kill"
Clint Black, "Galaxy Song" (yes, that's the Monty Python song, and it's just as funny as you'd expect)
Eagles, "Seven Bridges Road"
Eagles, "Desperado"
Dixie Chicks, "Goodbye Earl"
Dixie Chicks, "Landslide"
Alan Jackson & Jimmy Buffett, "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere"
Jimmy Buffett, "Margaritaville"
Charlie Daniels, "Devil Went Down To Georgia"
Charlie Daniels, "Legend of Wooley Swamp"
Charlie Daniels, "Uneasy Rider"
Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Tuesday's Gone" (I know iTunes calls it rock -- they're on crack. It's country.)
Patsy Cline, "Walking After Midnight"
Patsy Cline, "Crazy"
Patsy Cline... oh, hell, just get him anything by Patsy, it's all good.
Waylon and Willie, "Mommas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys"
Willie Nelson, "Blue Eyes Cryin' In The Rain"
Willie Nelson, "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys"
George Strait, "All My Exes Live In Texas"
Ray Charles, "Georgia On My Mind"

I'm sure I'll think of others eventually. I notice that very little of this is recent when I look at it, and I'm OK with that. I'm not conversant with the alt.country scene, but I've been very taken with much of what I've heard from it, and I'll bow to the recommendations of others.