Of all the harrowing, tragic, and redemptive stories in the history of country music, pioneering Hispanic country star Johnny Rodriguez might have the rest of the field beat.
When you think of Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw, you don’t exactly think of a couple of country music “Outlaws.” Horse thievery isn’t exactly what comes to mind either, nor does disorderly conduct or assault.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a decade since someone probably mentioned to you that you should check out this really cool, but really obscure EP from a Canadian guy that sounded like he’d been throat punched by a banshee.
Bill Monroe will forever be the Father of Bluegrass. But it was Jimmy Martin, who studied under Monroe, who was able to rear back and declare himself “The King of Bluegrass.”
Of course, there was a little more going on than innocently picking flowers. But that’s how Johnny Cash loved to portray it at the time, before he was more open and honest about his substance abuse issues.
It wasn’t just a country album. It was the country album. It ended one era in country music, and began a new one, while going on to define the era it founded, and to define country music for generations.
There are just a few landmark records that you can point back to in the history of country music and legitimately claim they revolutionized the genre in fundamental ways.
George Jones and Tammy Wynette were two of the best to ever do it—divorce songs, and country music in general. So it should be of no surprise that Mr. and Mrs. Country Music would themselves get married, and eventually, divorce.
We want our country and Western artists to be the real deal. Even if it doesn’t make any bit of difference in the quality of the music, we want to know that they sing what they live, and live what they sing.
The debut country album from Shooter Jennings called Put The ‘O’ Back in Country was a critically-important moment in the country music revolution we’re currently in the midst of.
It’s often the most simple notions that resonate the deepest in country music. It’s how a song can embrace the cliché nature of country songs, yet still express a certain feeling in a new and unique way.
Though not technically the first country artist on the radio, nor the first on WSM, Bailey is generally regarded as having been the first Grand Ole Opry performer when George Hay introduced him.
Every once in a while, it is important to stop down, pay tribute, and appreciate all of the living legends we still have around in country and roots music. Some trace back to the very formations of country.
It was 20 years ago today—January 19th, 2005—that a 22-year-old man by the name of Ryan Daniel Binkley decided to sneak into the 10,000-square-foot country retreat of Hank Jr’s near Paris, Tennessee.
Part of the story that’s rarely told is the cautionary tale portion. While Willie Nelson was puffing away on the roof of the White House, he had a cast on his foot. It happens to be that his weed consumption had something to do with it.
This is the story of the Christmas kidnapping and robbery of Johnny Cash and his family. It happened on Christmas Day 1982 at 6:00 pm, just as Johnny Cash, members of his family, and distinguished guests had sat down for Christmas dinner.
Everyone knows about Willie Nelson’s country music legacy, his altruistic endeavors through Farm Aid and other initiatives. But not enough is made about Willie Nelson the entrepreneur.
You might see Reba McEntire’s Hall of Fame country career, and her long career in acting in multiple television series, and conclude that showbiz is what she always dreamed of doing. But that’s not exactly the case.
Did you know that there was a very distinct possibility that The Highwaymen might have never been called “The Highwaymen,” and that they might have never recorded the iconic song that gave them their name?
There are many legendary country songs, and there are many legendary country music performers. But there are few songs in the history of country that capture the feelings one country legend had for another like Merle Haggard’s “Always Wanting You.”
Protesting the direction of country music is just about as old as country music itself. As long as there have been radio stations playing it, and record companies making it, fans and performers have been fighting over country music.
From suffering a heart attack mid performance on stage, to playing Russian roulette with an automatic pistol, these are the many times Outlaw country legend Billy Joe Shaver cheated death, and lived to become a hero.
Few songs immediately transport you to a different time and place like this one. You can just imagine yourself out on Route 66 in the 1950’s, neon signs buzzing in the background, and not a care in the world.
George Strait and Alan Jackson weren’t exactly Outlaws, or even outsiders of any kind in country music, especially on October 27th, 1999 when they walked into the studio and recorded their own version of the song.