Welcome back to Music For You To Enjoy. In an effort to show that I truly am reaching out to all people and all genres of music, we're going to explore an area that most people either love or hate: country. The way I see it, there are 5 different schools of thought when it comes to country music:
1.) The Grandparent: "Taylor Swift ain't country. Merle Haggard, now THAT'S country. Slide guitars and heart! What the hell's a Shania? Where's my tobacco? I love John Deere."
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| Country Fester in 20 years |
3.) The True Country Fan: "I listen to WKLB 102.5. I like a variety of modern country music performers. I love Chesney. I'm glad Miranda Lambert is finally getting recognized. I respect Darius Rucker's transition from Hootie to Honkie. Chris Cowan has no problem with me."
4.) The Hater: "I HATE country music under any and all circumstances."
5.) Me: I strongly dislike most country music. I specifically can't stand Toby Keith, Reba (who doesn't have a last name anymore apparently), Alan Jackson, and anyone who only sings about beer and/or the culture of their one-of-a-kind hometown. And I especially hate that song 'beer is great, God is good, and people are crazy'. Who is Billy Currington to proclaim these things? I for one get indigestion from beer. Oh well. I try to be open minded because every now and then some good music really does comes along. For instance, Keith Urban's a hell of a guitarist. The Band Perry had a nice little tune, and so did some others. And to be honest, one of my favorite musicians, Ryan Adams, gets even countrier than country singers now and then.
So if you like country, you probably already know these songs. If you hate country, you probably hate this blog entry. If you're feeling open minded like me, give these 2 songs a try. Overall, I just think they sound nice. Isn't that what a good song is supposed to do after all?
These are from an up-and-comer named Kenny Chesney, or as I like to call him, Chenny Kesney. I chose these songs partially because they don't sound very "country", which ruins my whole "open-minded" premise and I am aware of this. I think Kenny, even though hugely successful already, is evolving into a more complete artist. The lyrics are direct, honest, and a little deeper than "she thinks my tractor's sexy...". The music is grander. And frankly, the only thing that is distinctly "country" here is his unmistakable voice. Without having a ton of knowledge about him, it seems he's gone from typical country singer to country's Jimmy Buffet to who he is today-a talented guy who isn't afraid to break down walls that limit his genre to one. He's country, I get it. But he's creative and risky and he's earned that. And now he has someone like me respecting his work a hell of a lot more than I used to. And no, I will not be attending Countryfest. I don't like country music or Kenny Chesney, remember?
*Last thing- try to listen to the songs in their entirety's. They take a few twists and turns. Then you'll understand the "breaking down genre walls" thing.
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