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Fun Stuff => BAND => Topic started by: Inlander on 25 Oct 2007, 00:49
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. . . especially if you think you don't like country music.
Time to get some musical evangelism goin' on. How can we convert the heathen masses to the glory of real country music? Tell everyone about your favourite country albums and artists (Kieffer, I'm looking at you especially here). Link to downloads or youtubes or whatever if you want to! Describe things to people so that this is a bit more interesting than just another list thread. I won't be happy until we get a few more converts around here (and if you don't like country music, keep your mind open and we'll see what we can do).
Go!
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God no I need to go to bed.
Hank Williams, Sr and Hank III (I still would like to see the ghost of Hank, Sr and Hank III get together and beat the crap out of Hank, Jr.)
Donnie Walser. He died not too long ago. He used to open down in Austin for the likes of Buddy Holly, but he didn't record his first album until he was in his 60s. He has an amazing yodel and is pure cowboy country. He found a big following in the Austin Punk Scene.
I enjoy a lot of stuff from the late 80s and early 90s like John Anderson and Michael Martin Murphy. I love Iris DeMent.
And you can't have a thread like this without mentioning such classics as Jimmy Dale Gilmore's solo stuff and with The Flatlanders, John Prine, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings.
I could keep going.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=RgVfD4TCdKY
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Steve Earle!
The Sadies!
Blood Meridian!
Elliott Brood!
Mike Nesmith!
Gram Parsons!
Loretta Lynn!
Emmylou Harris!
Start there and get back to me.
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Dylan and Ryan Adams have done some amazing country stuff.
And though this may get me raped by two fanbases simultaneously, I think that 'Mama Said' by Metallica is a great country track...
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Jimmie Rodgers
and to a lesser extent
The Smoky Mountain Boys
Roy Acuff
Alan Lomax
The Louvin Brothers
Bob Wills
Gene Autry
Merle Haggard
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Robbie. Fucking. Fulks.
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I actually ended up enjoying a fair bit of Alan Jackson's music. I like the stuff that was more bluesy / rock-ish when it comes down to it. I like the rockabilly style stuff but don't know who is aside from the Stray Cats (once saw the bassist live with his own group, was pretty sweet).
Also, http://youtube.com/watch?v=Q53GmMCqmAM
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O'Death is a pretty cool countryish 'psycho-billy' band that I saw a while back in Philly. They opened for Man Man and were pretty awesome. Definitely not country in the traditional sense of the word, but country nonetheless.
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Ohh good thread
Teddy Thompson has an awesome country album out now of classic old country songs. They don't make them like this anymore
Neko Case, of course, her voice is just so good.
I like The Clumsy Lovers too, its a little more pop, but they play their instruments well and put up a hell of a show I hear
nicklecreek can do some good stuff
Then theres a whole slew of artists that do some country stuff
Bright eyes, Ryan Adams, Jenny Lewis
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Yay Harry, good timing. See, my granpappy taught me all about good country, and his funeral was yesterday. We played him the good stuff during the visitation, so it's still nice and fresh in my mind.
Obviously the previously mentioned Hanks are great
As are Waylon, Willie, Kris (Kristofferson) and the rest of the boys in the Highwaymen
Dolly Parton-Do not be hating on her, she is fantastic and the most important thing in differentiating between good and bad music in my opinion is earnestness and honesty, and she is probably most genuine performer in any genre. She has written amazing songs, and her voice is definitive of this genre. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqEX1nrA8Wo for proof. (sorry, I am used to people hating on her because of the physical appearance and completely disregarding her as an artist)
Emmylou Harris, Loretta Lynn, Alison Krause (she has the perfect bluegrass voice)
Rodney Crowell is pretty good-he took the hard way like Kris did, mostly writing songs for other people before performing himself and he is friends with Townes Van Zant who is also fantastic
newer artists that are really really good include Blitzen Trapper, Two Gallants(one of my newer favorites-as emotionally satisfying as Okkervil River only FUN sometimes), Langhorne Slim, etc but they aren't COUNTRY-country. I don't know if it's the structure or the emotion, but there's definately something in them that makes them country without sounding like a Johnny ripoff
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Two Gallants are fantastic. What's country about them is that they don't give a Goddamn.
Are you people listening to The Sadies yet? For those of you that answered no: what is wrong with you?
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Robbie. Fucking. Fulks.
Go to the top of the class!
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I grew up in a house hold of George Straite fans. Seriously, my Mom has been in love with the man for as long as I can remember. I also enjoy Joe Nichols.
Oh, and does Tom T. Hall count as country??
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I saw a Tom Waits video on the Country Music Channel at 3:00 a.m. once. I wasn't sure what happened to the universe but I woke up the next day and everything was back to normal so it's okay.
So....listen to Tom Waits.
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Ohh! So much good stuff, newish and old!
Let's see:
Old97's, but only the first three albums: Early Tracks, Wreck Your Life and Too Far to Care. After that they get kinda smarmy.
Handsome Family,
The Knitters- X as a country band.
Waco Brothers,
Uncle Tupelo,
Split Lip Rayfield,
Slim Cessna's Auto Club,
16 Horsepower,
Trailer Bride
That's probably a good start on newer folks.
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Magnolia Electric Co! Pretty much my favorite band at the moment. best albums: Fading Trails and the self-titled one. All others are great but a little harder to get into.
also some that have been mentioned but bear repetition and some that haven't
Gram Parsons and/or the Flying Burrito Bros.
Townes Van Zandt
Old 97's
Son Volt
M. Ward
Ryan Adams & the Cardinals and/or Whiskeytown
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Ahh I can't believe I forgot Magnolia Electric Co. Actually, everyone listen to everything that has anything to do with Jason Molina. mmm
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Robbie. Fucking. Fulks.
this is pretty much the exact post I was going to make.
also, I am going to upload some John Prine later because John Prine is just so goddamn awesome
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I got this new album, War Elephant, by a dude who calls himself and his band Deer Tick. Has anyone heard it? I think it might be kinda country but I'm not sure. But it's really really good.
Also, does anyone have an opinion on Lyle Lovett? I have an album of his that I got from my mom but I want to know if it's worth investing my listening time in.
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Jimmie Rodgers in sendspace because it's important. I mean, really really important.
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be there a difference between alt. country and country? Tell me please if so?
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Townes Van Zandt, Tim Hardin, Karen Dalton.
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guys guys we all know the only country song anyone could possibly ever need is 'achey breaky heart'
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also, I am going to upload some John Prine later because John Prine is just so goddamn awesome
John Prine. Pretty good, not bad, but it sounds all about the same.
(I'm so very sorry)
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I don't know if anyone outside Alberta has ever heard of these guys, but check out the Corb Lund Band:
http://www.myspace.com/officialcorblund
Listen to the track "Hair in my Eyes like a Highland Steer" on there. It's gold.
Trivia: Corb Lund was a member of The Smalls. Again, I don't know if anyone outside Alberta ever heard of them back in the day, but they were pretty swell.
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I have a couple of Smalls tracks from somewhere on my computer.
They sound like pretty bad alternative rock to me.
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Eh, it was the 90's. The Smalls played a lot of all-ages gigs in my town when I was teenager. They honestly weren't that great, but I'm a sucker for that kind of nostalgia.
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guys guys we all know the only country song anyone could possibly ever need is 'achey breaky heart'
Man just get out of the thread instead of being deliberately dumb and annoying.
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You can tell your brother Cliff that he can split my lip.
He never really liked me anyway.
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also, I am going to upload some John Prine later because John Prine is just so goddamn awesome
John Prine. Pretty good, not bad, but it sounds all about the same.
(I'm so very sorry)
GET IN THE GROUND
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Old 97's is my favorite alt-country band, although I only have Too Far to Care and Fight Songs (which is actually pretty good). Next time I go music shopping I'm looking for Wreck Your Life.
I heart Wilco.
There's an americana/alt-country band called The Avett Brothers that I've heard a few songs by, and I'm liking them a lot. I especially love "Die, Die, Die." I think it might be on their MySpace, although I can't remember the URL right off hand.
Son Volt, Uncle Tupelo, Neko Case, Ryan Adams, Johnny Cash, and Drive-By Truckers are all good.
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The Byrds' album 'Sweetheart of the Rodeo' (1968) is one of my favorite albums. Gram Parsons was a member of the Byrds during this time. Then Gram and Chris Hillman started the Flying Burrito Brothers, another wonderful band that blended country and rock.
Anything by Gram Parsons, Townes van Zandt, or Patsy Cline gets a lot of play from me. Also, the Townes van Zandt movie/documentary 'Be Here to Love Me' is definitely worth renting.
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80% of the music in this thread isn't country.
95% of it is really good though, and a very good intro to what country music is.
Whoever said they didn't like John Prine should be banned immediately, however.
Go listen to waylon jennings, guys.
Also, Dough Sahm.
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As I was typing that post, this Live Whiskeytown bootleg I am listening to suddenly started playing a version of the Jefferson's Theme.
I love Ryan Adams so hard.
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80% of the music in this thread isn't country.
95% of it is really good though, and a very good intro to what country music is.
Steve Earle!
The Sadies!
Blood Meridian!
Elliott Brood!
Mike Nesmith!
Gram Parsons!
Loretta Lynn!
Emmylou Harris!
Whiskeytown starring Ryan Adams
wtf
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I really like the Miranda Lambert album this year. And Van Lear Rose was a great album, and West is pretty much the first Lucinda Williams album in a while that's not good.
I really need to catch up on some of the older country stars who weren't infected by the pop-countryisms like cowboy hats and moral condescension. People like Hank Williams, Johnny Cash.
For the purposes of this thread do we count alt-country as country? (In other words, does Steve Earle count?)
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be there a difference between alt. country and country? Tell me please if so?
No one else has tried to answer this one yet, so I'll give it a try.
Yes, there's a difference. That's the short answer.
The long answer goes something like this: Like very other genre under the sun, there are a ton of sub-genres. My take on the general break-down of the overall country music umbrella goes something like this, and will probably leave out a lot of stuff, 'cause there are a lot of areas I'm not as familiar with:
The biggest divisions are Classic Country and Modern Country.
Classic covers a lot of other types, but you can think of it like a combination of Oldies and Classic Rock from the Rock'n'roll side of things. This will include early Nashville stars like Hank Williams, Sr., Patsy Cline, The Carter Family, George Jones, Loretta Lynn, as well as the later Outlaw Country guys - Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard.
Modern Country is more rock influence and tends to be the stuff most younger folks thing of when they thing of Country - Garth Brooks, Billy Ray Cyrus, Brooks and Dunn. Like it's cousins in top 40 pop and rock of the 80s and 90s it's over-wrought, over-produced and all about pushing units.
Alt. Country, or Insurgent Country started getting some traction in the early 90s with bands like Uncle Tupelo, younger performers influenced by punk rock and classic country who wanted to make GOOD country music, or country-influence anyway.
Uh. I think I kinda lost where I was going with this, but I hope it helps some.
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80% of the music in this thread isn't country.
95% of it is really good though, and a very good intro to what country music is.
Steve Earle!
The Sadies!
Blood Meridian!
Elliott Brood!
Mike Nesmith!
Gram Parsons!
Loretta Lynn!
Emmylou Harris!
Whiskeytown starring Ryan Adams
wtf
Most, not all. I am not calling Ryan Adams country, he's very clearly 100% alt.
I feel like I have made the posts for this thread so many times though, I don't know if I even want to bother anymore.
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Elliott Brood is a very excellent choice. I saw them twice (opening for Do Make Say Think for some reason) and rather enjoyed them both times. Fun, countryish music without that irritating country twang. Well worth a listen if you ask me.
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The twang is the best part of country music!
You should leave this thread, probably.
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If Magnolia Electric Co. counts, then Neil Young most certainly counts. Also, The Band.
But they don't really fit this bill...
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Fun, countryish music without that irritating country twang. Well worth a listen if you ask me.
They replace the country twang with a voice like a rusty gate.
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also, I am going to upload some John Prine later because John Prine is just so goddamn awesome
John Prine. Pretty good, not bad, but it sounds all about the same.
(I'm so very sorry)
GET IN THE GROUND
I like Prine as much as the next guy. It's just that that's the only song I knew of his, aside from the Flag Decal song.
"While digesting Reader's Digest, in the back of a dirty book store..."
Any song that starts out with lyrics like that is just awesome.
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Oh man guys I forgot to talk about Wayne Hancock. I just stumbled on an album of his, and fuck it's so good. Just 100% straight honky tonk, no apologies and no fucking around. Just real good country music, and he's got the perfect twang in his voice for it. I can't ever get enough.
Also, Doug Sahm is amazing, even if he is a little bluesy and swingy sometimes. You should listen to that guy.
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Well, I'm not sure how helpfull to this thread this is, but I really like Willie Nelson.
And, I cant find a discography torrent for him. I don't want his 16 greatest hits, I want everything.
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I actually ended up enjoying a fair bit of Alan Jackson's music. I like the stuff that was more bluesy / rock-ish when it comes down to it.
EVERYBODY, FOLLOW THIS EXAMPLE
Seriously Alan Jackson is a god among men.
I will also second Kieffer's mention of Dougie Sahm. HUGE points if you can find any Texas Tornados, even if it's totally just English-language TexMex.
I'll second Steve Earle ("Guitar Town," anybody?) and Emmylou Harris, although I'm of the opinion that the only Emmylou album worth getting is her Duets album. Seriously, when she's alone, her voice is like a speech by Ann Coulter. Grating, obnoxious, and you just want to shove a rock down her throat.
devilcrayon gets points for mentioning both Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard. I'm glad Cash is finally getting the recognition he deserved his whole life, but I'm very disappointed that it only happened after he made the movie and promptly died.
I'll subtract a few points for pointing the finger of commercialism on Brooks and Dunn, though. Sure, there was plenty of unit-pushing, especially with that era of country, but there's no better duo in terms of creating the sheer number of '90s country classics like Kix and Ronnie. Not to mention the pop culture influence of bringing back line dancing for a short period of time with the release of "Boot-Scootin' Boogie," heh.
Idunno, I might just be defending Brooks and Dunn because "Brand New Man" was the first song I ever knew all the words to. The story goes that I was 2 and singing my heart out to that song in the back seat of our Chrysler minivan.
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I'm glad Cash is finally getting the recognition he deserved his whole life, but I'm very disappointed that it only happened after he made the movie and promptly died.
I... you... what? I'm pretty sure Live At San Quentin alone sold enough copies to make the man a damn institution.
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Yeah, but it was pretty much within the country crowd. After Nashville wouldn't let him play because of the Opry incident, it didn't change anything. He was still the best act in country music.
Doesn't change the fact that nobody outside of one specific crowd ever gave him any recognition until he died and the movie was released.
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He had that recognition outside of country long, long before the movie ever came out.
(http://www.paradox1x.org/weblog/kmartino/archives/Billboard_ad.JPG)
and before that ad was published too.
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Why the fuck has no one mentioned Albert Lee yet?? I mean, the guy is the best country guitarist of all time.
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http://www.myspace.com/officialcorblund
Shit! I forgot about Corb Lund & The Hurtin' Albertans!
Their album Horse Soldier! Horse Soldier! is streaming on Myspace right now. It's pretty awesome.
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I just looked at these forums. And decided to join so I could post to this topic.
I wanted to add Buck Owens.
And his buckaroos. Don Rich was a helluva guitarist.
Also Jimmy Bryant & Speedy West have some crazy instrumentals. Jimmy Bryant is probably the fastest guitarist I've ever heard.
Spade Cooley.
Um. Merle Travis. Chet Atkins.
And of course Hank Sr., Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson.