Opinion: Modern country is the worst musical genre of all time

After I posted, I remembered Bob Newhart on the subject.

It’s been so long, I must paraphrase:

Many people enjoy country music. Myself, I don’t care for it. But I don’t wish to denigrate those who do like it. And for those of you who do… [long pause] …the word ‘denigrate’ means, to insult, or put down.

By the way, just having fun here; I like early country music, old-timey, and bluegrass.

And thank you for the insight, cleeds.

"I like both kinds of music---Country AND Western" is an old, old joke (I first heard it in 1969). It wasn’t written by anyone involved in the Blues Brothers movie, it was just repeated in it.

Here’s another good one:

On one stay in the hospital later in his life, a nurse asked Buddy Rich if he was allergic to anything. His reply was "Yeah. Country music."

By the way, there are two basic strains of Bluegrass music: Traditional, and Progressive. Traditional is that which usually features singing, with the instruments providing musical accompaniment. Progressive is purely instrumental, with lots of Jazz elements. Jerry Douglas plays both. I love his Traditional playing, his Progressive not so much. He and his band came through Portland on his last tour, and I of course went to see and hear them. As is common in Progressive Bluegrass, there was lots of soloing, lots of "noodling", just like in Jazz (and The Grateful Dead and Phish). Not my cup of tea.

Jerry has produced over 100 albums, and played on over 2000! A recent one is his collaboration with John Hiatt: Leftover Feelings, which was nominated for the 2022 Grammy Award For Best Americana Album (Jerry has won 14 Grammy Awards), and as I have been saying for quite a while now is my favorite currently active living musician. But only when playing Traditional Bluegrass ;-) . In this genre Jerry has a "side project"---The Earls Of Leicester, who have produced two albums, one studio, one live.

Genres are ill defined, lending themselves to commercialization more than anything else. Try Wilco, particularly their collaboration with Billy Bragg. California Stars is sublime and Walt Whitman's Niece is poetry.

@bdp24 

Have you read R. Crowell's autobiography?

For those who don’t care for Rap, I have one suggestion for which you may make an exception, and it is from a rather unlikely source: Lucinda Williams!

On her album West she has a 9:06 song entitled "Wrap My Head Around That". The song structure is just two alternating chords played on acoustic and electric guitars (both Bill Frisell and Doug Pettibone are listed in the album credits), with a simple boom/crack drum beat (played by Jim Keltner) and a mildly funky electric bass part (Tony Garnier, Dylan’s long-time bassist).

Like the entire album, the song’s lyrics are absolutely fantastic. Lucinda "sings" them is Rap style of a sort---almost every word in the same note, sung rather "matter-of-factly". For you Rockers, late in the song a stinging, kinetic electric guitar part erupts from out of nowhere, filling the space between the last verse and chorus. Quite thrilling!

Two songs later comes the last song on the album, and it is really something special. It is entitled "West", and once you hear it you will know why she chose the song as the album’s title, and as the album’s final track (it is the best ending to an album I have ever heard, and that includes "The End" on Abbey Road).

"West" is the most beautiful, deeply romantic song I have heard in a VERY long time, and brings me to tears every time I listen to it (almost every day for the past two years). It sort of reminds me of "Moon River" by Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer, as sung by Andy Williams. A masterpiece of a song imo.

The album also starts off strong with "Are You Alright?", in which Lucinda inquires as to a friend’s well being after suddenly disappearing from her life. Yes, Lucinda is a very romantic soul. I deeply love her, and often replay in my head my mid-80’s meeting of her in Club Lingerie on Sunset Blvd. We were both there to see her then-husband’s band The Long Ryders live (he was their drummer. For you musicians he was playing a set of 1940’s Radio King drums. Very cool!).