The fact is that everybody knows what country music is about. Well, that’s not a fact. That’s an assumption. Anyways, we are convinced that sooner or later the uncomfortable question, which unsets philosophers of music since Plato, has to be posed. And why not now! So… is an average pedestrian aware of the real cultural, philosophical, moral, life-saving copious content of country music? What are the themes of lyrics? What are the hidden messages, the innumerable subtleties of Texas tunes ?
The truth is that country music is not very sophisticated (but how close to the everyday existence... yes, think about Sartre now). Song writers get their inspiration mainly from everyday life the themes being family, kids, love, loneliness, unhappiness, misery, poverty, drinking, cheating, sin, self-destruction… The list seems to have no end (country and Chuck Norris approach infinity). The song can be really about anything… but the atmosphere is mainly gloomy.
Not to shock you with too much of hermeneutics, we’ll list the most recurrent subjects. According to Seven Great Themes of Country Music (a compendium of knowledge about what real cowboys listen to, and a barometer of your feeling towards it) most common subjects of lyrics are:
1. Deeply Tragic Incidents
· Roy Acuff The Wreck On The Highway
· Emmylou Harris Mary Danced with Soldiers (dancing is not the worst thing that happened to her)
2. The Piercing Sting Of Regret
· Waylon Jennings Let's Turn Back The Years
· The Notting Hillbillies Feel Like Going Home (sometimes I really, really do)
· Emmylou Harris & Ralph Stanley I Never Will Marry
· Patsy Cline Why Can't He Be You
3. Heart-Wrenching Loneliness
· Loretta Lynn Miss Being Mrs (with a little bit of naughtiness)
· Patsy Cline She's Got You
· Ted Hawkins The Good And The Bad
4. The Soul-Crushing Angst of Unrequited Love
· George Jones He Stopped Loving Her Today (a song for a good memory)
· George Jones She Thinks I Still Care
· Patsy Cline I Fall To Pieces
5. The Demon Drink Has Been My Ruin
· Johnny Cash Sunday Morning Coming Down (so much of a personal story behind it)
· Ted Hawkins There Stands The Glass
6. I Love You, Yet You Cause Me Great Suffering
· Hank Williams You Win Again (winner takes much, but not all)
· Hank Williams Your Cheatin' Heart
· Hank Williams Cold, Cold Heart
· Hank Williams Take These Chains From My Heart
7. I Am The Cause Of My Own Pain
· Johnny Cash Hurt
· Hank Williams Crazy Heart
We seriously recommend Johny Cash's Hurt and Ted Hawkins's The Good and The Bad.
Cash is so sad, so completely aware of his failure and blaim that it really is taugh to listen to the song. But it's amazing. Plus the guitar!
On the other hand, Hawkins had an incredicble voice (he was an African American). You'll be probably surprised with such a voice in such a repertoire (blues but not-blues).
No comments:
Post a Comment