The “Old Farts & Jackasses” Phenomenon 1 Year Later
One year ago, after receiving numerous tips from readers that in a previously-aired GAC special about country artist Blake Shelton, the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year had some disparaging things to say about classic country music fans, Saving Country Music found the quotes, cued up an article and posted Shelton’s comments verbatim.
Blake Shelton said,
If I am “Male Vocalist of the Year” that must mean that I’m one of those people now that gets to decide if it moves forward and if it moves on. Country music has to evolve in order to survive. Nobody wants to listen to their grandpa’s music. And I don’t care how many of these old farts around Nashville going, “My God, that ain’t country!” Well that’s because you don’t buy records anymore, jackass. The kids do, and they don’t want to buy the music you were buying.
What happened next was one of the biggest awakenings of classic country fans in recent memory.
The original “Old Farts & Jackasses” article was posted fairly late in the afternoon on January 23rd, 2013, and slowly but surely it started making the rounds on social networks channels as the evening progressed. But it was the next morning when the story caught like wildfire and began to circulate far and wide. The outrage was taken to the next level when the now deceased Ray Price took to his Facebook page to post a scathing comeback to Blake Shelton’s comments:
It’s a shame that I have spend 63 years in this business trying to introduce music to a larger audience and to make it easier for the younger artists who are coming behind me. Every now and then some young artist will record a rock and roll type song , have a hit first time out with kids only. This is why you see stars come with a few hits only and then just fade away believing they are God’s answer to the world. This guy sounds like in his own mind that his head is so large no hat ever made will fit him. Stupidity Reigns Supreme!!!!!!! Ray Price (CHIEF “OLD FART” & JACKASS”) ” P.S. YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY AS US OLD-TIMERS. CHECK BACK IN 63 YEARS (THE YEAR 2075) AND LET US KNOW HOW YOUR NAME AND YOUR MUSIC WILL BE REMEMBERED. Ray Price
But it didn’t stop there. The original “Old Farts & Jackasses” article posted on Saving Country Music was shared and liked on Facebook over 25,000 times. Country DJ’s across the country were talking about it, every major country music news outlet ran a story about it, and some ran two or three as the controversy stretched out for days, creating a massive viral event across multiple media channels. Blake Shelton was forced to make a public apology to Ray Price (though he never officially apologized to the Old Farts & Jackasses themselves). Artists both big and small, traditional and new, independent and mainstream came out to publicly defend or distance from Blake Shelton.
Blake Shelton Awakens the Rage of Traditional Country Music Fans
One of the most notable responses was when Willie Nelson re-named the tour he was currently on to the “Old Farts & Jackasses Tour“. The announcement was complete with a sarcasm-filled press release. An excerpt:
The Old Farts and Jackass tour began in Durham, NC on January 18th at the Durham Performing Arts Center. But now it’s January 20th, excitement is in the air, and Inauguration Day is finally here….After much anticipation Willie Nelson finally emerged. Dressed in an all black ensemble by American designer Levi Strauss, the co-leader of the Old Fart Party mesmerized the crowd with the first dance, Whiskey River.
The lip synching controversy would take over the headlines later, but the official answer from Nelson’s camp remained no. No Willie Vanillie here ladies and gentlemen, no tricky audio antics. Willie sang it all live. What we have elected to see is just a man, his band, his family and his guitar. The audience in Atlanta will testify before any congress; country is in good hands.
Many artists took up their pens to write protest songs about the incident. Brandon Fulson wrote “Old Farts & Jackasses“, and Kelly Chambers wrote “Jackasses n’ Old Farts“.
Tom T. Hall and Chuck Redden teamed up to cut “Old Farts, Jackasses, Steel Guitars & Rhyme“:
And Dale Watson wrote the song “Old Fart (A Song For Blake)“:
The effects of Blake Shelton’s Old Farts & Jackasses comments continue even today. Here are some of them:
“Old Farts & Jackasses” An Embraced Term for Classic Country Fans
Blake Shelton may have meant it as an insult, but classic country fans now wear the “Old Farts & Jackasses” moniker with pride, and embrace it as a term of endearment, proudly using it to refer to themselves and other classic and traditional country music fans.
“Old Farts & Jackasses” on Facebook
In the aftermath of Blake Shelton’s comments, a Facebook page was set up for “Old Farts & Jackasses” that has subsequently collected over 97,000 “likes” (Ironically, the Saving Country Music “like” page only has 2,400). The Old Farts & Jackasses page continues to remain active and vibrant, and continues to grow every day.
Dale Watson Launches The “Ameripolitan” Genre
Beyond Dale Watson’s “Old Fart (A Song For Blake)” tune, the Old Farts & Jackasses incident inspired Dale to start the “Ameripolitan” genre, according to the classic country singer. Though Dale had been throwing the term Ameripolitan around for a years, Old Farts & Jackasses is what motivated Dale to get organized behind it.
The National Traditional Country Music Association
The National Traditional Country Music Association also found renewed strength for the Old Farts & Jackasses phenomenon, and used it to organize an Old Farts & Jackasses March.
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Though Blake Shelton’s comments we’re initially uncalled for and angering, in the end it let the world know that there are plenty of fans of traditional and classic country music that are willing to stand up, be accounted for, and fight for the music they believe in.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:01 pm
I personally think Shelton has gotten a little too much flack for his comments. I haven’t read the entire context but my impression is they were made off the cuff, he was feeling defensive, and therefore said some things that make him sound like the jackass. Keep in mind, I entirely disagree with what he said.
I think the fallout of it all has been good however. The enormous reaction shows that people LOVE their grandfather’s music. I think the whole shebang might have been a predecessor to all these artists, songwriters and even some business types coming out to criticize the direction of country radio. Perhaps, just maybe the right person or people will clue in to what we want and start playing some of it on the radio dial or releasing those deep album cuts as singles every so often. Or maybe that is my wishful thinking for the day.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:12 pm
I’m not sure if I would say that Blake should have received less flack, but I do agree, and said at the time that despite the hurtful nature of his comments, too much was being made of it.
Usually when I post an article I have a pretty good handle on how it is going to be received. I thought there would be some angry folks and it would make the rounds as usual, but had no idea how big it would get. In fact there was some resentment towards Saving Country Music by some of my writing peers like I had unfairly attacked Blake, when if you read the original article, all I did was post his comments in context and then refuted them in a pretty dry manner. I was really conflicted when it became such a big deal that Blake was forced to publicly apologize. Yeah, the attention was great and it was good that Blake saw the error in his ways (at least to some extent), but I would have rather it have been something positive that became a big sensation.
I’d suggest people also read the followup article I wrote the next day where I tried to reason with the conflict I felt with the story becoming so big.
https://savingcountrymusic.com/blake-shelton-awakens-the-rage-of-traditional-country-music-fans
January 24, 2014 @ 3:15 pm
Only if a bean counter decides that a little bit more investment in a traditional artist would be a valuable investment (that would be my guess). Or maybe Triggers point about investment diversity.
Which by the way, I noticed they pimped The Cadillac Three on the Nashville TV show a week ago. And, (interestingly enough) they pimped Rascal Flatt’s and now their new song is number 1 on iTunes (gag). It seems like that show that started out not really involving real country artists for a long time has become a marketing tool lately.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:20 pm
“Nashville” did feature some real artists the first season, but it was mostly independent acts. Brantley Gilbert and a few others also made cameos.
Last week’s episode also featured music by Rosanne Cash and the Turnpike Troubadours, so at least their doing a good job representing all sides of the country music world. With Buddy Miller in there as musical director, my guess is we’ll get more good than bad, despite whatever casting of stars in cameo roles happens.
January 24, 2014 @ 6:41 pm
I agree it was taken way out of context. Of all the younger generation Blake was NOT the one to try and rally the troops over. He has continually helped and promoted older more traditional singers for years. Yeck, he is even taking Neal McCoy on tour this summer and he and Miranda produced his CD a few years back.
I find it funny that people weren’t going crazy for Church’s comments in Rolling Stone talking about not caring about older fans in the audience since they wouldn’t be around when he came back into town. Etc. Also I think this shined a much needed light on a bunch of older artists responding to this and getting new music out and heard.
Blake is performing on The Grammys w/ Willie, Merle and Kris so I guess he made it out OK and he handled the critizism. Man I wish Waylon was here Sunday to make the group complete…Highway Men
January 24, 2014 @ 6:59 pm
Lee,
With all due respect, you may believe that Blake Shelton’s commitment to the roots of country music are pure, and on that point we’ll have to agree to disagree. But as far as him being “taken out-of-context,” that was an incorrect assertion when the quotes were first published a year ago, and it is incorrect now. The term “taken out-of-context” has become sort of a colloquialism on American culture that is employed even when it is not true, almost like a knee jerk comeback. Blake Shelton’s comments were published verbatim, then and now, with the entire context of the things Blake said before and after the controversial quotes included. Additional in the original post, the video that the quotes were taken from was also provided so that readers could see the quotes and judge for themselves. The video has subsequently been removed.
January 25, 2014 @ 12:49 pm
Neal McCoy is far from a traditional country artist. He would sell is soul to be relevant again. He’s songs were hooky and stunk. He was no more than a prancing pretty boy.
January 27, 2014 @ 11:54 am
Lee, just so you know, adding Waylon Jennings to a group consisting of Blake Shelton, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, and Kris Kristofferson wouldn’t come close to completing the Highwaymen. If you don’t understand why, you just don’t get it.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:01 pm
You should have stuck the Williamson Branch video right after the Blake Shelton quote.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:10 pm
BTW – I think the Grammy’s are this Sunday right? Are we getting a “who will win” prediction article. Honestly I’d like to see you try and explain the nominations. Like the “Best Country Album” category. If it was based on sales, Kacey Musgraves should not be on there at all and FGL should have been nominated. If it was based on album quality, no one should be on there except Kacey Musgraves. The country categories are more confusing to me than Chinese writing.
January 24, 2014 @ 3:13 pm
Going to be posting a Grammy preview article on Sunday, and will be live blogging during the entire event. Gonna be all over the Grammys like a bad rash. 😉
January 24, 2014 @ 3:22 pm
This whole ordeal still gets the blood pumping, what a fucking douche bag Shelton is, more or less all he said is “We don’t give a fuck about Country’s past, nor we will we give you the recognition you deserve” A fucking sell out wanabe skin puppet, I hope your teenager fan base enjoy your retarded reality show, us old farts and jack asses will be listening to our old Country records.
January 24, 2014 @ 4:38 pm
I think what’s stupid and hypocritical is that he wants to call people who like old country “old farts and jackasses” when he mentions in his own songs about listening to old country. Such as in “Boys Round Here” when he says in the first line “well the boys round here don’t listen to the Beatles, run ole Bocephus through a jukebox needle…” Blake Shelton is a jackass.
January 24, 2014 @ 5:52 pm
You know what’s fun is when I’m browsing around the Internet and accidentally run across a Trigger quote.
“Saving Country Music”˜s indie-championing blogger Trigger posted a full on rant about the song, saying: “Blake Shelton”™s “Boys ”˜Round Here” is songwriting by algorithm and analytics, fashioning together words and sounds known to have the widest impact on mainstream radio”™s weak-of-mind demo. The “boys” in the title of “Boys ”˜Round Here” is fitting, because this song is rank immaturity. It”™s the audio equivalent of sneaking out of your mom”™s house to smoke pot behind a Pizza Hut.”
http://music-mix.ew.com/2013/10/01/country-music-identity-crisis/
I don’t think I’d call Trigger an “Indie-championing” blogger though. That doesn’t fit right. I did liked the timeline they had.
January 24, 2014 @ 7:55 pm
Saw this article earlier and I see Trigger has it in his newsfeed at the top of the home page but I thought I would put a link here in the spirit of the “Old Farts’. Amazing how such timeless music can come from such simple daily experiences. And of course the genius of Merle Haggard.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304302704579334773204348540?mod=trending_now_2
January 25, 2014 @ 10:47 am
Thanks for sharing this. What a great story! Made me remember why I love me some Merle!
January 24, 2014 @ 7:57 pm
Hey,
I think it just proves the disconnect. He’s a pop star that play adult contemporary pop music under the guise of Country. There should be a petition to get them to change the name of their genre. They dropped Western and don’t play Country.
There is that saying “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.”. I think you do a good job introducing people to new artists, but articles like this indirectly promotes those pop stars. Even Google’s search suggestions after “Saving Country Music” are Taylor Swift, Eric Church, and Luke Bryan, instead of Sturgill Simpson, Hank 3, etc etc…
I’m not trying to be shitty, but as long as people are talking or writing about these folks they are going to profit. And as long as there’s a profit we’re stuck with these assholes and their music.
Cheers!
January 24, 2014 @ 9:42 pm
Danny,
I understand and appreciate your concern, but I think the things indirectly promoted here were Dale Watson, Ameripolitan, The National Traditional Country Music Association, Old Farts & Jackasses on Facebook, Tom T. Hall, Brandon Fulson who said it made his day to see his name mentioned here, etc etc. Sure, maybe no pub is bad pub, but if you read the comment from Six String Ritchie below, you will see that it is articles like this that have led to thousands of people reading Saving Country Music and being turned on to new artists. If all I ever did was sit here and write about unknown artists, I wouldn’t be promoting anything, I’d just be preaching to a choir, not to mention how important I believe it is to hold an artist like Blake Shelton accountable for his words and actions.
As for the Google thing specifically, all I can tell you is that each person’s Google experience is different. When I Google Saving Country Music, I get a list of the article categories listed below the principle URL: Reviews, Down With Pop Country, News, etc. I can’t tell you specifically why you are seeing Taylor Swift and Luke Bryan as opposed to Sturgill Simpson and Hank3. It could be because of your browsing habits, it could be because those names are what draw the most Google traffic, but I can assure you I have talked about Sturgill Simpson more in the last year than any other artist, and that has been on purpose. I can’t be responsible for how Google does it’s business, but the priority of Saving Country Music has always been promoting worthy artists, and believe it or not and no matter how weird it sounds, criticizing Blake Shelton is sometimes the best way to do that.
January 24, 2014 @ 8:12 pm
I can’t believe that was only a year ago. I think I saw a link about it on Engine 145’s website that lead me to this website. The Old Farts and Jackasses article was what got me reading this blog. Almost a year after reading this blog frequently I’ve started commenting pretty frequently, too. I remember hoping back then that the controversy would somehow end Blake’s momentum on radio and at award shows. Guess that didn’t happen. I’m still glad he triggered this movement, though.
January 24, 2014 @ 8:22 pm
……………..and, one year later, Shelton has the top-selling album of his entire recording career to date (let alone his first to cross the one million in actual sales mark) and he has on the verge of topping Brad Paisley’s streak of consecutive #1 Billboard airplay hits (“Doin’ What She Likes”, despite being a fourth single, has been enjoying ridiculous growth in its first few weeks on the chart).
Yeah, I’m sure Shelton’s sleeping easy tonight!
*
Anyway, this is still momentous when you consider the fact “Old Farts & Jackasses” is on the cusp of the 100,000 “Likes” threshold and it has become such a badge of honor to liken yourself either (or both).
This episode hasn’t accomplished much in re-shaping the mainstream to better respect its elders as a viable listening demographic that grew up on this exact same musical culture that has since become flash-pasteurized by Borchetta & Co. But what it HAS done is united much of the broader country listening demographic and has, in effect, made so much great music more accessible than ever before. I think that’s the main victory in all of this.
January 24, 2014 @ 8:24 pm
When I first saw that comment by Shelton, I my blood boiled. Then I started paying attention more when I went out. Now mind you this is circumstantial evidence, there ought to be a MIT study done with fancy algorithms to verify my hypothesis; but at my local honky-tonk I’ve been really paying attention to what the kids dance to. The country-rap stuff you’ll get the dance floor not even half full with old women and a bachelorette party, but when the band plays anything with a fiddle you can’t even move out there. Tracy Byrd covers seem to be the most popular with the kids?
January 24, 2014 @ 10:09 pm
Greetings from a packed house at the White Horse for Arty Hill. Nice recap including the coverage of our March.
January 25, 2014 @ 3:00 am
I think he was getting fed up with being thought of as Mr Miranda Lambert and wanted toshow the world he was still around!
January 25, 2014 @ 7:41 am
From the very beginning I knew that Blake Shelton started to dig his own grave by his stupid statement, but I would never even think that the term: ‘Old Farts & Jackasses’ will become such a cult classic. I’m nearly 23, but I am an Old Fart & a real Jackass…
January 25, 2014 @ 9:33 am
Old Farts and Jackasses….hmmmm.
The new political party of 2016. We need a new one.
January 25, 2014 @ 11:44 am
At least we know that in 50 years Blake Shelton is going to be viewed as a once promising young artist who bought into his own ego, became a raging alcoholic, and ended up destroying his musical integrity quicker than perhaps any artist in country music history.
January 25, 2014 @ 4:19 pm
The true irony is that he will be sharing the stage with Haggard, Nelson, and Kristofferson at the Grammys this year..
January 25, 2014 @ 5:55 pm
I’d like to twist the line in Dale’s song from “I’d rather be an old fart than a new country turd” to I’d rather listen to an old fart than a new country turd 😀
January 25, 2014 @ 10:22 pm
I saw this earlier tonight which is a weird Forbes magazine take on music:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/nickmessitte/2014/01/17/ten-gallon-hits-why-hip-hop-country-pop-in-2014/
The URL is interesting (a joke?) and doesn’t match the article title or any text in the article: “ten-gallon-hits-why-hip-hop-country-pop-in-2014”
Funny they mention Ray Charles (and the movie “Ray”). I watched that movie and was somewhat irritated they didn’t touch at all on Ray’s Country contributions. Ray Charles singing “Seven Spanish Angles” with Willie Nelson to me is iconic.
Pointing to Blake Shelton’s comment though, the article spells out more doom and gloom for main stream country though (last paragraph).
January 25, 2014 @ 10:32 pm
“Wost thing that could happen in main stream country 2014” nominations:
1) Miley Cyrus country album
2) A country duet involving Miley Cyrus
3) Tim McGraw / Macklemore duet
4) Pistol Annies singing “The Girls ‘Round Here”
5) A Luke Bryan / Pitbull duet
6) Florida Georgia Line’s new album (it’s on the way, hold on to something)
7) Kacey Musgraves and Katy Perry singing a country duet of “I kissed a girl”
…
January 25, 2014 @ 11:35 pm
“Kacey Musgraves and Katy Perry singing a country duet of “I kissed a girl””
I would love to see this performed live…
January 26, 2014 @ 12:30 pm
I’ve never seen the appeal of watching two women kill and Katy Perry is straight Fugly w/o makeup. Everyone seems to just have this immature thing about Katy’s boob size (whatever – shallow way of thinking honestly).
Kacey however looks really nice w/o makeup. 🙂
January 27, 2014 @ 10:55 am
Praying for a big chest, believing in aliens and winning Wisconsin for Obama””where do we begin? Katy Perry really opened up to GQ, giving the magazine plenty of interesting ””and, OK, super strange”” tidbits about her life.
Perry dished about her signature sexy bod, saying that her prayers were answered at the age of 11.
“I lay on my back one night and looked down at my feet, and I prayed to God. I said, ”˜God, will you please let me have boobs so big that I can’t see my feet when I’m lying down?”™”¦ God answered my prayers. I had no clue they would fall into my armpits eventually.”
January 29, 2014 @ 6:26 pm
Blake was wrong when he said the younger generation doesn’t want to listen to “old farts and jackasses”. I’m probably the only one, but I’m in my early teens and although I am guilty on singing Taylor Swift songs in the shower/car (hey, everyone is allowed a guilty pleasure. I would never go as far as to say she was a good singer) I do love listening to traditional country. I love listning to the classics when I have the chance and some of my favorite songs ever are Merle Haggard songs (Okie from Muskogee), and I also LOVE He Stopped Loving Her Today. Some teens DO want to still listen to traditional country, even if the minority. Honestly, if people eant to listen to songs similar to country radio nowadays, just switch over to pop and bring back country music!
January 29, 2014 @ 8:03 pm
He was also wrong with “Country music has to evolve in order to survive” because apparently he was talking about it going PBR (pure pop, bro, and rap), which really kills country. It doesn’t even have to be classic or traditional country, people love any kind of great, actual country from country to country/pop. That isn’t “grandpa’s music.” I don’t care how many jackasses around Nashville say “this (PBR) is country,” it ain’t and the notion that country was dying and PBR saved it is ridiculous. Blake probably thinks The Voice saved it too. As far as his point about kids buying music, have country sales skyrocketed since PBR started? I don’t think so and the same acts were selling fine before they went PBR plus Kacey outsold acts radio plays more just like Carrie, Miranda and Kellie did with their great country music.
January 30, 2014 @ 7:46 am
When Blake first came out in the early 2000’s I really liked his debut album. I thought the song ‘Ol Red was a great country story song and had a ’70’s throwback feel to it. But with each following album he drifted farther away from that and is now fully engulfed in the black cloud over Nashville that I refer to as Pickup Truck Pop or Cliche Country. Every new popular song on the radio features a pretty boy singing with an overly exaggerated southern accent and each line is one cheesy country cliche after another. The poetry that was there in songs by the likes of Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, George Strait, and Dwight Yoakam has disappeared. I’ve never put a lot of value into individual awards. There are a lot of great singers and songwriters who will never be considered for a Grammy or CMA award. Blake may feel like he has a say in how country music moves forward and where it goes but the only say he has is where Blake Shelton goes. And if his current music is any indication, Blake will move farther away from traditional country and more toward poppy music with little meaning and no content. Country music will move forward and carry on because of its fans and the legacy that was left by its founders.Just because popular radio doesn’t play it, doesn’t mean there aren’t still guys and gals out there turning out music that still means something. As long as people like Chris Knight, Hayes Carll, and Lucinda Williams are turning out new music, we’ll be fine.
August 6, 2017 @ 8:40 am
Why is it that everyone gets angry when their favorite kind of music progresses into something else over time..Did any of you really expect Country to remain the same for 60 years plus?? It reminds me of how my Sister acted when her rock and roll went from The Lovin’ Spoonful and The mamas And Papas to The Blues Magoos and then worse(in her opinion) to to The Doors,King Crimson ,Jimi Hendrix,etc..Music changes..progresses to something somewhat different.That’s just how it is..It is that way with Rock,with Pop and with Country..You have the choice of accepting that fact or remaining old school and being called an old fart..It isn’t just country that changed sounds or style but everything else as well..maybe except Opera..And to me it might as well be rap as all opera music sounds the same to me regardless of the year it was released