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Country Music Songs, Lyrics And Song Titles
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Published: March 22, 2007
Country music songs have been an integral and lasting aspect of American Culture throughout the twentieth century. Country music songs have continually delighted listeners with their tales of working-class heroes and lovers' quarrels. What makes country music songs such a driving force in the American cultural landscape has been its ability to both modify and reflect the feelings and emotions of the time period in which it exits.
Country music songs originated in the hills of the Appalachian Mountains of Eastern America around the end of the 19th century.
Country music songs featured instruments that were common in working class homes such as the fiddle and the banjo. These instruments were much more rhythmic than melodic because most performers played without a backing band. In the early days of country music songs, two different styles began to emerge. The mountain style, which relied heavily on the banjo, and the fiddle and the plains style, which utilized the acoustic and electric guitar and incorporated racial tunes.
The first country music song to become a national hit was Vernon Dalhart's “The Wreck of Old ‘97.” Even though Dalhart's single garnered national attention as early as 1923, it wasn't until 1927 that country music songs would become a recognized force in American Culture. On 1 August 1927, Ralph Peer, a record producer, set up a recording studio in Bristol, Tenn., and put out a want ad in the hope of discovering new talent. After dozens of artists appeared, Peer was able to record 76 country music songs by 19 different bands.
The Bristol Sessions, as they were to later nicknamed, are considered to be the coming out party of country music. Two of the most influential country music starts were discovered in this one event.: The Carter Family and Jimmie Rogers. Both would go on to write and record some of the most well-known country music songs to date.
Country music songs have often been both celebrated and ridiculed for their lyrics. Lyrics of country music songs tend to focus on a very limited range of motifs—mainly love and life in rural areas. It should be no surprise that country music lyrics have recurring themes. The music comes from predominantly rural areas and many country singers were heavily influenced by the blues, which not surprisingly, has a large repertoire of broken-hearted love songs. Country music songs often voice the language and routine of small town America and have been a voice for those overlooked by pop culture throughout the twentieth century.
Country music songs are celebrated for their ability to provide a voice for the downtrodden sects of American society. Many country music songs focus on individuals who were never offered the fruits of the American Dream. Woody Guthrie, a famous singer from Oklahoma, composed a chronicle of the Great Depression and its effect on the working class farmers of the mid-west in the Dust Bowl Ballads. Guthrie's lyrics voiced the frustrations of being poor in America and provided a valid social resistance to the oppression of working-class individuals.
Other popular country music song titles that have acted as flagpoles of social resistance, such as: "Brother can you spare a dime?," " We Shall Overcome." and "This Land is your Land." Country music song titles and lyrics provided artists with a means to spread the message of social resistance in a way that middle and upper America could swallow. The influence of country music songs can be found in the social movements of the 1960's, fueled by the soundtrack of Bob Dylan (an avid Woody Guthrie fan) and other folk singers.
Country music songs are an integral aspect of American culture. Country music has been appropriated by many other cultural mediums and continue to be important representations for those sections of the American public ignored by pop-culture. County music songs have a distinctly American attitude and swagger, both of which have endeared them to listeners throughout the generations.
Sources:
Country Music Planet's History of Country Music. Country Music Planet. 2004. 18 Mar. 2007. http://www.countrymusicplanet.com/history.htm.
Scaruffi, Piero. “A Brief History of Country Music.” History of Popular Music. 2007. Piero Scaruffi. 18 Mar. 2007. http://www.scaruffi.com/history/country.html.
Roughstock's History of Country Music. Roughstock. 1993-2006. Analogue Communication, Inc.18 March 2007. http://www.roughstock.com/history.html.
Country music songs originated in the hills of the Appalachian Mountains of Eastern America around the end of the 19th century.
Related Articles
The first country music song to become a national hit was Vernon Dalhart's “The Wreck of Old ‘97.” Even though Dalhart's single garnered national attention as early as 1923, it wasn't until 1927 that country music songs would become a recognized force in American Culture. On 1 August 1927, Ralph Peer, a record producer, set up a recording studio in Bristol, Tenn., and put out a want ad in the hope of discovering new talent. After dozens of artists appeared, Peer was able to record 76 country music songs by 19 different bands.
The Bristol Sessions, as they were to later nicknamed, are considered to be the coming out party of country music. Two of the most influential country music starts were discovered in this one event.: The Carter Family and Jimmie Rogers. Both would go on to write and record some of the most well-known country music songs to date.
Country music songs have often been both celebrated and ridiculed for their lyrics. Lyrics of country music songs tend to focus on a very limited range of motifs—mainly love and life in rural areas. It should be no surprise that country music lyrics have recurring themes. The music comes from predominantly rural areas and many country singers were heavily influenced by the blues, which not surprisingly, has a large repertoire of broken-hearted love songs. Country music songs often voice the language and routine of small town America and have been a voice for those overlooked by pop culture throughout the twentieth century.
Country music songs are celebrated for their ability to provide a voice for the downtrodden sects of American society. Many country music songs focus on individuals who were never offered the fruits of the American Dream. Woody Guthrie, a famous singer from Oklahoma, composed a chronicle of the Great Depression and its effect on the working class farmers of the mid-west in the Dust Bowl Ballads. Guthrie's lyrics voiced the frustrations of being poor in America and provided a valid social resistance to the oppression of working-class individuals.
Other popular country music song titles that have acted as flagpoles of social resistance, such as: "Brother can you spare a dime?," " We Shall Overcome." and "This Land is your Land." Country music song titles and lyrics provided artists with a means to spread the message of social resistance in a way that middle and upper America could swallow. The influence of country music songs can be found in the social movements of the 1960's, fueled by the soundtrack of Bob Dylan (an avid Woody Guthrie fan) and other folk singers.
Country music songs are an integral aspect of American culture. Country music has been appropriated by many other cultural mediums and continue to be important representations for those sections of the American public ignored by pop-culture. County music songs have a distinctly American attitude and swagger, both of which have endeared them to listeners throughout the generations.
Sources:
Country Music Planet's History of Country Music. Country Music Planet. 2004. 18 Mar. 2007. http://www.countrymusicplanet.com/history.htm.
Scaruffi, Piero. “A Brief History of Country Music.” History of Popular Music. 2007. Piero Scaruffi. 18 Mar. 2007. http://www.scaruffi.com/history/country.html.
Roughstock's History of Country Music. Roughstock. 1993-2006. Analogue Communication, Inc.18 March 2007. http://www.roughstock.com/history.html.
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