Country Music History

Country music originated in the 1920s in Tennessee. The genre was influenced by folk music from the Appalachian Mountains and revolved around themes of love, faith,

Southern music known today as country music became popular in the 1920’s. This was music that was based on folk music of cowboys in the southeast (Collins English Dictionary, 2003). In most of the early music the artist played stringed instruments like fiddles, guitars, banjos and some were even playing harmonicas. When this type of music started some people called it

Then in the 1950s the Nashville sound movement then made country music take a turn towards storytelling. In this movement they combined big band jazz with storytelling. It had a lush orchestra followed with a smooth soft voice like the founders Eddy Arnold and Jim Reeves. Also in the mid 1950s musicians started to add some features of rock and roll like amped guitars and such into their

Charlie Pride did it in 1971. Darius Rucker did it in 2009. That’s it. Two black men, spanning thirty-eight years, are the only black artists to win a Country Music Association Award. With country music rooted in bluegrass and rhythm and blues, why aren’t there more black country music stars? When considering the roots of country music, and how closely related country is to blues, bluegrass and honky tonk music, an examination of what happened to all the black musicians seems warranted, no? This paper examines the dearth of black artists in country music and the careers of one of the few black artists who has had commercial success in this genre of music.

Hank kept his interest in music throughout his whole childhood and began performing in Montgomery, Alabamas main radio station WSFA radio. He remained there from 1937 to 1942. While he was performing on the radio station a street singer and a good friend of Hank Williams Rufus “Tee Tot” Payne an African American influenced his sound and helping him with his guitar playing skills. Once Hank picked up the style that Rufus was doing he made it famous and this is the first time that the honky tonk type of style of music was created. While Hank was performing on the radio station he attracted some kids that lived nearby that knew how to play some other instruments. They called themselves the Drifting’ Cowboys, while Hank was singing and playing guitar in this band his singing voice was as strong as an artists today because since he did have any amplification he had to sing above all of the instruments and this is where he mastered his singing and yodeling without losing control of

"Hillbilly music,” “the high, lonesome sound,” and “old-time string band music” have all been used to describe bluegrass, though none of these terms is quite right.

From its birth in northern Mexico and southern United States in the early 1920s, country music has continuously brought controversy to the music industry. During the 1950s country music was mostly conservative in regards to politics. Other topics of country music include love, middle to lower-class life, and living in the south (Country Music). The country music of the ‘50s centered around “Rockability” which was the combination of Rock-n-Roll music with Hill-Billy music (Honky Tonk). There were traits of nearly every music genre present in the country music of the 1950s.

The strum of the guitar, the bang of the drums, and the roar of the crowd. That is what country music legend Troyal Garth Brooks, or Garth Brooks, as most call him, has worked toward all his life. Garth has had some disappointments on his road to country music stardom, but he has worked through them and has prevailed. His prowess in country music certainly did not come from luck, but from faith and perseverance.

Even though Miko didn’t get to do four years at the Musicians Institute, she got quite an education in rock-n roll. One night they would be opening for Nick Lowe at the Hollywood Palladium and then the next for the Ramones. It was this constant back and forth into new musical languages and territories that gave them the opportunity to build a diverse fan base. They shared bills with Social Distortion, Roseanne Cash, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Chris Isaak. The spaces were equally diverse. Spaces were Cathay Du Grand one night and The Palomino the next.

George Harvey Strait was born and bred in the Texas cowboy tradition. He came into the world on May 18, 1952 in Poteet, Texas (“Strait Facts”) and was raised in nearby Pearsall, TX on his family's working cattle ranch, a legacy in the family for over 100 years. His childhood was spent working with his father and brother on their farm, and he carried on the ranching tradition by studying agriculture at Texas State University (Dickinson). In 1971, he married his wife, Norma, and shortly after enlisted in the United States Army.

Tim McGraw is one of the most famous american country artist, he attended Northeast Louisiana State University, but dropped out of school to pursue his love for music. He began playing in small clubs and restaurants hoping he’d get luck and eventually did. McGraw started small signing with Music City in 1989, he performed gigs in Printers Alley Club for over a year and eventually signed With Corb Records; hitting the road with his band. Throughout his career McGraw has reached the Billboard charts, was in the #1 Country hits list, received numerous amount of grammys, and awards for single of the year. He has changed country music with his emotion in each song and stories that are told; still to this day he is known being talented, humble and

I grew up in Nashville, Tennessee. It is the heart and soul of country music. There is so many activities to partake in and sites to see! The Country Music Hall of Fame is one of the most popular attractions. There you may find artifacts and information on all of countries biggest stars. Another famous attraction is the Ryman Auditorium! This famous venue is known to be the place where bluegrass was born. Many famous performs have played here including Johnny and June Carter. Many reviews often say there is not a bad seat in this auditorium.

When looking at country music from the early 20th century, to what it is today there has been some change but most of the concepts have stayed the same. Much of the country from the early times had music about religion, or hardships that were being faced. This is the same as in the present, there are many songs about turning to religion to find hope. There are also the instruments that are used, the bajo, and other stereotypical country instruments are still used to today. This sound that they have, and that these instruments make are what really categorize the music as country. The sound of country has been modified but the underlying sounds have stayed the same, and the messages that are being sung about have been consistent throughout time. This shows that country is very much like its older counterpart with a few modern changes that are made.

The American Folk Music Revival in the 1960s sparked an interest and fascinated many music loving people around the world. The American Folk Music Revival is just like the title of its name–it is a compilation of folk music. There were two different groups during the American Folk Music Revival in the 1960s: the singer and songwriters who wrote their own lyrics to the melodies of traditional music, and the singer and songwriters who stuck to the traditional songs and their styles, popularizing Appalachia music, Cajun music, and other traditional styles (Ruehl 1). Many songwriters such as Harry Belafonte, popularized the folk music genre and made themselves known to everyone nationwide. The songs that they wrote

The history of American music begins with a fundamental process of exchange through all different social lines, where diverse cultures meet, and mix. Music has and always will be defined as sounds that are arranged in a particular pattern that are played to be meaningful and pleasurable. The chronology of music began in the Medieval period, when chanting was introduced into the Church. Music has then moved its way through many stages: renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic and leading up to 20th century American music. American 20th century music is made up of a diverse number of styles that are reflected by cultural traditions and the era’s of the past. Immigrants from Spain, France, England, Germany and Ireland all contributed and brought their own unique styles to the forefront, hence creating American music. African Americans created influential musical traditions that include rhythm and improvisation that were later combined with European traditions and other indigenous music.