Country Music Openness

They share a truly inspirational relationship. “They just welcomed a beautiful, little boy to their family in March, and Carrie is beaming with pride over her little bundle of joy!” All of this goes to show that not only is Carrie Underwood an insanely talented singer and performer, she is an even better person,

“God put us here on the carnival ride, we close our eyes never knowing, where it will take us” (Wheel of the World quoted In “Biography”). These were the words of Wheel of the World which inspired Carrie Underwood to write her latest album. Although at only 13 years old, she recorded her first album (“Carrie Underwood Biography”). Carrie also participated in several different celebrations around the US to prepare herself to audition for American Idol in 2004 (“Biography”). By winning this contest, she continued to stay humble through her fame. Her contributions through country music demonstrated by the career of Carrie Underwood proved beyond a doubt the Country Music Hall of Fame should induct this singer. She has shown the value through her major works, charities and influences, and professional morals.

When songwriters begin to pen the lyrics of a song, I believe their ultimate goal is to transcend time in hopes of reaching listeners for generations to come. J.R. Cash, professionally known as Johnny Cash, wrote a song that did just that. “Ragged Old Flag” is a patriotic song that speaks to every generation. Written in 1974, “Ragged Old Flag” was meant to tell the story of our country. Johnny Cash recorded “Ragged Old Flag” live at the House of Cash. Cash wanted the song to be recorded live because it was raw, untouched, and unapologetically real. The basis of this analysis is to show how patriotism spans generations, but also why a song such as, “Ragged Old Flag” is an important part of patriotism in the United States of America.

For generations, singers and songwriters of country music have been working to evoke emotions in listeners by performing and writing songs that the listeners will be able to relate to. Country music traditionally reveals stories of life, love, death, and values, all of which can be seen in the works of great singers and songwriters like George Strait, Alabama, Brooks & Dunn, and Alan Jackson. One artist in particular, Garth Brooks, forever left his stamp on country music and on the hearts of his millions of listeners with his hit songs, “The Beaches of Cheyenne”, “Callin’ Baton Rouge”, and “The River”. “The Beaches of Cheyenne” has a storyline containing themes of life, death, love, and regret. The themes of this song branch out much

George Strait, the king of country music, opened the largest concert in North American history by singing a tribute to our fundamental view of love. The song introduces this story of a young girl, who radically changes a young boy’s world by her love. The opening verse introduces

Country music has proven as a powerful medium to express the views of the contemporary culture. As a result, the lyrical value of such songs provides listeners an insight to the changing climate of social and political ideologies. During the 1960’s defined gender roles dictated social lifestyles and were mimicked in music. In recent years, a resurgence of idealistic, stereotypical gender-specific roles have cropped up in country songs, creating a subgenre labelled “bro-country.” Jody Rosen of the New York Times first coined the term “bro-country” in order to describe songs that use lyrical tools glorifying prevailing, hegemonic gender roles present in culture. Songs such as Tim McGraw’s “How I’ll Always Be,” Luke Bryan’s “Huntin’, Fishin’, Lovin’, Every Day,” Sam Hunt’s “Make you Miss Me,” and Dierks Bently’s “Different for Girls” use the lyrical discourse, under the lens of “bro-country”, to highlight dominant, male gender-specific roles, while simultaneously reinforcing prominent, often negative, views of women.

Through new technology including the ability to record music, the emergence of Tin Pan Alley, and the immigration boom, America soon developed a new sinful musical culture. 19th Century American Pop music, although tame in today’s standards, was considered to be morally corrupting and created a new naughtier America. In the transition from classical romantic ballads to the syncopated, “blackness” was pop like Ragtime music took quite a large evolution. From the dance halls for the working class, cabaret for the middle class, and high class refined dancing, the explosion of Ragtime music effected all types of Americans. Due to the immigration boom and the introduction of mobility and leisure time, class lines began to blur, causing the middle and working class to bump elbows more often than ever before. Often times, such incidences would occur in entertainment venues like Coney Island or even run of the mill vaudeville shows. Modern music was can be identified by its’ lascivious subject matter, which reflected the evolving ideals of Americans. One song that illustrated this is “I Love My Wife; But Oh, You Kid!”, which spoke of a man’s desire to cheat on his wife, highlighting the new sexually aware younger population. Although it’s tone and composition were similar to earlier, classic, love songs the subject matter and morals

Charlie Pride jokingly referred to this as the “pigmentation situation” (The Root). Musicologists such as Richard Peterson and Paul Di Maggio have theorized that country music is the embodiment of southern white pride. They have added post war northern migration enabled regional country music to be exported to other areas of the United States, especially centers of industrial production: “The argument is that white southerners streamed to northern and West Coast war-plants, while those in the armed forces carried the music around the world, and nonsoutherners stationed in the South were exposed to commercial country music for the first time. Furthermore, the warborn affluence made it economically feasible to merchandise commercial country music nationally for the first time” (Peterson, Di Maggio, 500). Kelefa Sanneh wrote in his 2005 New York Times article, "Country Music? Whose Country” that, “Country music has a historical and mythical connection to rural Southern white culture, even though today’s performers and fans are often neither Southern

Robert Altman’s movie Nashville is based on the political, social, and personal problems that our country has to deal with. These problems are rooted in the battle between the need to create some false image of success and the need for truth which is the struggle that exists in every character of this film (except Jeff Goldbloom). To show this Robert Altman takes us through Nashville’s Country Music using political commentary, music and realistically portrayed dialogue to tell the story.

In today’s day and age when people think of country music they imagine the classics, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, George Strait and many more. When people think of a redneck, they imagine a diehard country boy, who loves his country with a confederate flag in one hand and a beer in the other. But that is our generations take on these two words. The real question here is what did those two words mean to the people who came up with them and defined them. It couldn’t have been easy. It was no surprise that people were still recovering from the Great Depression and the more recent recession. Families were left destitute, men were working factory jobs for less than minimum wage, if that, and people had just about given up hope. In the time of

Country music has changed over the past decades, as all music does, stepping away from the focus on freedom, family, friends, faith, and home, to songs about women, drinking, dirt roads, and big trucks. Many people feel that this has led to the objectification of women, creating an unrealistic expectation for women to live up to. Most artist have followed the lead of this and are writing more and more songs about these issues to stay with the trends, as many people enjoy this twist because it is coming with incorporations of other styles of music. This concept has become know as bro country, music that men can relate to when they are talking to their buddies or bros. In “Girl in a Country Song” the lyrics tell a story of the girls

With such tension in these lyrics the song goes from giving the audience melancholy feelings, to leaving them with a sense of hope. In this lyric Underwood reminds us that though people may be gone, (like the victims of the attack on the Twin Towers and Sandy Hook shooting), today’s society must carry their memories throughout life.

This song was the second best-selling song by a male, solo singer, as of April 2014. Hayes wanted to “…try to tell somebody something” thus presenting it in music with this song. Everyone wants to feel loved, wanted and important, every human being does. One day we will all feel that love, importance, and wanted. Not only with our families, but with that special someone, that will make you their whole world.

“Then” by Brad Paisley is a song about his love story with his wife. All of the song's lyrics have a direct link to his love for his wife. Not one stanza in the song says anything different. The song is portrayed in a slow, but powerful tone that makes the listener have a deep connection with the song. This shows that there is a story and a strong message in it. By saying “There were people around, But I didn't care, I got down on one knee right there (Brad Paisley)” he shows that he is not embarrassed or afraid to show his love for his wife to the world. Also by using “I can just see you, When your hair's turning grey (Brad Paisley)” he reveals that he sees a true future with her. He wants to grow old with her, which just leaves the listener’s

In the end, after everything that fades away, nobody will remember that great moment you just had, but rather they will stand by you because of the lasting impact you have had on your life and the friendship formed. This is the message that this song is working to try show to those who are willing to listen to what it will tell