Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys. Or do. Just make sure they replicate the old, better version of country music they were born to play. Not the new stuff. In terms of good music, old country is at the top. Just try and fight me on this.
It’s difficult not to love country music at its peak—everything prior to the year 2000. From 1950 to 2000, there are about 250 country songs that I know and love, ranging from classic artists like Johnny Cash and Hank Williams to late eighties chart-toppers like Willie Nelson, George Strait, and Garth Brooks. The genre’s echoic but diverse sound is perfect.
However, everything after 2000 is an entirely different story. Sure, there are a select few great songs, but most of them are the final songs by the last generation of good country artists in the early 2000s like “Hurt” by Cash and “Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)” by Alan Jackson. I am willing to admit that not all modern country is bad. I do have certain songs by Josh Turner, “Your Man” and Brad Paisley, “I’m Gonna Miss Her,” but that’s about it. That’s all of the good country after the year 2000—end of discussion.
The contrast between old and new country is stark. Classic country/western could basically be anything. From the singing riffs of “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd to the strumming of the sad, blues-like feel of the guitar in “He Stopped Loving Her Today” by George Jones, old country music was anything it wanted to be. However, new country is just the same old, same old. Artists like Luke Bryan, Morgan Wallen, and Luke Combs all have a very repetitive awk without a signature sound.
Another reason that the old country reigns supreme is that pop singers have largely dominated recent music. The occasional blending of different types of music with country is okay, but when Taylor Swift, a dominant pop artist, comes out with a double-digit number of country songs, you know something’s wrong. Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Post Malone, and Beyonce have all come out with their respective country songs in the past twenty or so years, and I feel like they have caused the culture and foundation of country music to take a hit.
Pop-country music really began in the 1970s with John Denver and Dolly Parton putting a whole new spin on country. The early pop-country artists wrote the genre correctly by giving it a unique sound and turning it into a firm cornerstone in the roots of country music. Still, ever since the Dixie Chicks played “Traveling Soldier” in ‘03, it really hasn’t been the same. Even primary pop-country artists like Kelly Clarkson and Keith Urban haven’t been hitting the same note as others in previous decades.
Contemporary country music really isn’t even country music. It’s a combination of country, pop, rap, and blues. While this blend of different music tastes sounds good from time to time, the endless repetition of recent country music can take a toll on the mind.
Some could say that old country music is too depressing and dismal, but I believe that the sorrow creates and embodies traditional country. The current country is an inaccurate portrayal of the genre without sadness being between the lines. In modern country, there’s not much sadness written in the lyrics. And that’s just sad.
