On the origins of a specie

However unbelievable it may seem, country music was not always there. The Greeeks had to go without country, Medieval scholars, Mozart and Bach as well. That's why they are not on the TV. The birth of country, the moment since when nothing is the same, will be now investigated.
Country emerged right after the World War II. Out of numerous bad things that developed since than (e.g. my grandma's fish soup) country is a glorious exception. The post- War period caused a lot turbulence in the social and moral stratification - migration from rural areas to cities became a steady trend while the religious worldview regressed. Needless to say, sensitive individuals showed all of that in their music.
For one thing, the instrumental element in country music comes from the country music, that is the one played in the country. The other part of the mixture are the themes of lyrics which reflect the new dissapointments of city life (see the post from some time ago). Altogether we come up with a kind of popular, modern music with a certain sentiment - a music that looks back.
From where does it look back? From Nashville! What does it see? It sees four major persons who are to give basis and shape to the new music:
Bill Monroe - a guy who invented bluegrass music as a transition from the old rural tunes (associated with backwardness and embarrasment) to the possibly wide- spread genre.
Hank Williams - the founder of the Williams family and a person who put oppositions together. Man/ woman conflict? Clash them! Money vs. labor? Clash them! Desire vs. manners? Clash them! Black vs. white? Clash them!!!! All of the clashes had a down-to-earth, everyday basis, thanks to which it escaped the theoretical vagueness and naivety.
Patsy Cline- the lady of the radio era, with her country was in the air. She also introduced characteristic "Nashville style" background vocals and instrumentation.
Elvis Presley - the King took all the best from the black music and combined with top white music. Since then we got specific, black- inspired country imagery. And who, if not him, is the rockabilly person?
Ok, so that was lesson number 1. Class dismissed.