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Post by Deleted on Sept 9, 2019 17:05:35 GMT -5
I saw the concert at the Rhyman on PBS last evening. 2 solid hours of musical mastery. Of course the common theme among non fans is 3 chords and crying and weeping. That is true, but if you look deeper, the side men are astounding. I saw a lot of new frontmen/women faces performing the classic hits, But as usual the thing that strikes me the most about country is the articulation of all the sidemen. However the whole show also explained the history in small bytes as well most of which I already knew. I used to watch the Opry every Saturday night back in the day and The Porter Wagoner Show as well as Hee Haw. All my hip hippy musician buddies used to laugh at me for watching that stuff, but I invited them over and pointed out the absolute mastery those sidemen exhibited. Of course the lyrics and progressions were simple, but the side musicians were terrific.
I will watch the series on PBS when it premieres shortly.
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Post by whitefang on Sept 10, 2019 9:43:24 GMT -5
Thanks. I missed that show last night, but will make sure I catch the Burns documentary. He did an excellent job on his JAZZ documentary, and I expect no less for country music. But----- As an old "hippie" musician I never could dismiss the skills of many of those gountry sidemen. And not even the sidemen as CHET ATKINS was more than that. And I was a long fan of Roy Clark, so I'd tune into that show sometimes just to hear ANY smidgen of Roy's "pickin'". And of course, don't forget this tribute---- Whitefang
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Post by earleg on Sept 10, 2019 11:05:26 GMT -5
I got to see parts of it and very good. It took Ken Burns quite a while to put it together from what Mrs had read. I hope they do a replay on it soon.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2019 11:40:06 GMT -5
This Sunday night here in the Phoenix area on PBS they are starting the Ken Burns 8 show series on Country music and it's history.
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Post by whitefang on Sept 11, 2019 9:53:54 GMT -5
Here in the "D" as well. Whitefang
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Post by whitefang on Sept 18, 2019 10:22:40 GMT -5
I'm surprised at no further discussion of this doc. I've been enjoying it so far, Learning about names in country music I'm familiar with but never before knowing much about them. And too, learning about some I've never heard of and their influence and contributions to the genre. One thing I thought interesting: Hank Williams Jr. asserting that the rock'n'roll classic, "Rock Around the Clock" was a clear copy of his Daddy's "Move It On Over". I never noticed or thought of it before, but listen and you'll CLEARLY notice it! So.... Let's do that----- Just listen to the structure of the melody and accompaniment......... And with just a change of lyrics and a slight change of tempo and instrumentation, you get this------ Just interchange the lyrics and see what you get. Whitefang
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2019 11:17:36 GMT -5
I have been watching the Ken Burns Country Music series on PBS every night so far. Some of it is a bit boring and repetitive. Most of it is already known to me, but there are some moments that surprised me a big bunch. Like how Chet Atkins got started in country music. It was actually the Carters that hired him before he was well known, and he played in their band for a while. The Grand Old Opry did not want the Carters to bring him to the Ryhman, and they upped the offer three times, yet the Carters refused to play unless they could include him, which the Opry folks finally did.
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Post by jbone on Sept 18, 2019 15:40:28 GMT -5
I've caught a few hours of the documentary. Burns has compiled a huge wealth of history that I never knew. It's really cool top have it all in one place. I got to see Flatt and Scruggs in the early 80's at a flat picking contest in Kansas. Otherwise I was more into the outlaw stuff ala Willie and the crew, and of course the Man in Black. Some of the artists who are commenting on the history- and they know first hand- are very well spoken and knowledgeable and I see them in a new light.
The truth for me is, when I was a kid I had "that" attitude about country being somehow beneath me. And believe me we were working class and my folks hung out at the Moose lodge and local dives. When I began putting some basic harp skills together I did not know it at the time but I was doing some of the real basic old country, like Circle Be Unbroken and Amazing Grace. When you're the new guy and you can't pick and choose you take the opportunities you find.
I moved to Dallas and that changed my view of country music a lot. Got to a couple of Willie's picnics and saw some greats there, and a few around Big D and Ft. Worth as well. The first jam I went to regularly, out near Love Field, was a mix of country, folk, rock, and blues.
Something I liked seeing/hearing in the doc was how guys like Hank, and others, hung out on the "wrong" side of town and were influenced by the street blues they were exposed to. And Bob Wills, say no more. Earnest Tubb, wow.
I'm eating it up. Old dog, maybe new tricks.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 18, 2019 15:51:23 GMT -5
I moved to Dallas and that changed my view of country music a lot. Got to a couple of Willie's picnics and saw some greats there, and a few around Big D and Ft. Worth as well. The first jam I went to regularly, out near Love Field, was a mix of country, folk, rock, and blues. I actually moved to Austin Texas because of the music scene there. I never went to Willy's picnics, but I sure admired him as a country star, and Stevie Ray for rockin blues. I did audition for a band there, but some other guy got the job. I could never find work as a mason there, so we went back east after a year or two, & especially because my wife's sister came down with cancer (which killed her a few months after we got back east). I really liked Austin a bunch. The music scene there was pretty lively back then, as I assume it still is.
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Post by whitefang on Sept 19, 2019 10:24:10 GMT -5
Yeah, like Bone I went through a period of thinking Country music was nowhere. Mostly because most country music "stars" kept putting down rock'n'rollers and such. It STILL grinds me that at the beginning( as pointed out in the doc) the Opry and Country music in general had no use for Elvis Presley, but a decade(I think) after he died they had the audacity to induct him into the COUNTRY MUSIC Hall Of Fame! Claiming."Elvis was a COUTRAY Boah, and loved to sang a countray tune...." Humph! AZZWIPES. And something in the doc and something I recently(in another thread) just posted made me think of something.... How popular a name like JIMMY ROGERS was. ie: JIMMIE RODGERS, known as the "Father of Country Music" or "The Singing Brakeman" who died in 1933. The same year another JIMMIE RODGERS was born. You know, the HONEYCOMB guy! But no relation. And no relation too, another JIMMY ROGERS( notice the different spelling), an African-American bluesman came to prominence in the early '40's and with Muddy Waters the two were the first Chicago blues artists to electrify Chicago blues. His first name isn't really Jimmy, and Rogers was his stepfather's name. Bur professionally, he was known as JIMMY ROGERS. Makes me wonder if there's a fourth Jimmy Rogers somewhere! And also... I still remember having to go to the "Country/Western" bins to find Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison records. Whitefang
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Post by jbone on Sept 22, 2019 21:13:13 GMT -5
Saw tonight's installment of Mr. Burns' doc. I doubt anybody could do a better job.
Know what would be REALLY cool? If he does one on the Blues.
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Post by whitefang on Sept 23, 2019 9:32:26 GMT -5
That'd be good too. The closest you can come now is his earlier documentary on Jazz. And while this probably wasn't news to all you who closely followed country music all these years, but last night was the first I've learned that BUCK OWENS' actual first name was ALVIS! Made me wonder.... Did HIS parents or PRESLEY'S parents misspell it, or are both names separately valid...? I'll hafta look that up. But too I'm thinking..... My nephew's first daughter is named KARLEE (instead of the more common "Carly") and my sister's grandson is named KALEB( instead of the more familiar "Caleb") But I don't think back in the '20's and '30's that people were "into" different spellings of common names. Whitefang
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Post by jbone on Sept 23, 2019 13:31:12 GMT -5
I remember Buck from Hee Haw. Which was pretty corny stuff mostly- pun intended. To find out he brought about that Bakersfield sound was pretty cool. One guy Mr. Burns has not touched on-who was coincidentally also a Hee Haw alum- and could play probably any instrument as well- is Roy Clark. Dude was a monster in the genre.
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Post by whitefang on Sept 24, 2019 9:41:19 GMT -5
Oh yeah. Burns mentioned Clark. My only perceived flaw in the whole doc is his use of obvious fans of whomever gets mention to give some "insight". Seems nothing gets settled. In one segment for example, it's MERLE HAGGARD who was country music's "greatest songwriter" and next we learn it was KRIS KRISTOFFERSON who was. Seems that country music's had many "greatest songwriters"! AND many who had the "greatest voice" of all other country music singers( or...is that "sangers"? ) Truly IMHO (and as this genre's "untrained ear") Many country music singers had what could be called "great" voices, but also that all sounded alike. Blindfolded, I couldn't tell you the difference between Bobby Bare, Faron Young, Merle Haggard, George Jones or any number of other country singers. All I can say is also IMHO that, to my ear, JOHNNY CASH, HANK WILLIAMS and WILLIE NELSON were and are( as Nelson is still with us) the only unique sounding singers in the genre. There may be a very few more, but I can't think of any right now. Even today, I couldn't tell the difference between TOBY KEITH, TIM McGRAW, TRACE ADKINS. KEITH URBAN or KENNY CHESNEY. Many of the women country singers also(to me) sound the same. But this isn't unique to only country music. I can't tell one RAP artist apart from all the others. And in rock( mostly in the '90's) there seemed to be very little difference in lead vocalists voices from each other. Just like '80's big hair "Heavy Metal" bands. Whitefang
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Post by whitefang on Sept 25, 2019 9:43:53 GMT -5
The only disappointment(for me) in last night's installment was the no mention of Hank Williams Jr. doing all the vocals that actor GEORGE HAMILTON "lip-synced" to in the 1964 biopic "Your Cheatin' Heart". The movie brought nationwide attention to Jr. as a good singer and helped spring his popularity to a wider audience than just country music lovers.
I was also hoping the segment would elaborate more on Loretta Lynn's public breakdown and strong recovery and comeback, something I've come to admire her for.
And too, why wasn't one of country music's more prolific songwriters( and a favorite of mine as well) JOHN D. LOUDERMILK given any hint of a mention? Whitefang
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