Country Music

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture, Jan 29, 2002 by Tad Richards

The country establishment still sought the Vegas crossover secret, and they seemed to find it in 1980, when the movie Urban Cowboy created a craze for yoked shirts and fringed cowboy boots. Records by artists like Mickey Gilley, Johnny Lee, and Alabama shot up the pop charts for a short time, but the "urban cowboy" sound was passing fad, and country music seemed to disintegrate with it. In 1985, The New York Times solemnly declared that country music was finished as a genre, and would never be revived.

However, it was already being revived, by going back to its roots. Inspired by the example of George Jones, a country legend since the late 1950s, who is widely considered to possess the greatest voice in the history of country music, country's new generation came to be known as the New Traditionalists. Some of its most important figures were Ricky Skaggs, a brilliant instrumentalist who brought the bluegrass tradition back into the mainstream, Randy Travis, a balladeer in the style of Jones, the Judds, who revived country harmony and the family group, and Reba McEntire, who modernized the tradition of Parton, Wynette, and Lynn, while keeping a pure country sound. The late 1980s brought a new generation of outlaws, too, singer-songwriters who respected tradition, but had a younger, quirkier approach. They included Lyle Lovett, Nanci Griffith, and Steve Earle. These musicians gained a following (Earle, who self-destructed on drugs, but gradually rebuilt a career in the 1990s, remains the most influential songwriter of the era). However, country radio, the center of the country establishment, gave them little air time, and they moved on to careers in other genres.

There had always been country performers on television, Tennessee Ernie Ford in the 1950s, Glen Campbell and Johnny Cash in the 1960s, and Barbara Mandrell in the "urban cowboy" days of the early 1980s. The 1980s also brought cable television, and in 1983, The Nashville Network went on the air with an all-country format of videos, live music, and interview shows. In 1985, TNN broadcast country music's Woodstock--Farm Aid, a massive benefit organized by Willie Nelson for America's farm families. TNN broadcast the entire 12 hours of Farm Aid live, and audiences who tuned in to see the rock stars like Neil Young and John Mellencamp who headlined the bill, also saw new country stars like Dwight Yoakam.

The creative energy that drove country music in the 1980s, had settled into a formula by the 1990s, and it was the most successful formula the genre had ever seen. In 1989, Clint Black, became the first performer to combine the traditionalism of Travis and George Strait, the innovation of Lovett and Earle, and MTV/TNN-era good looks and video presence. Close behind Black came Garth Brooks. With Brooks, the resistance to rock which had limited country's potential for growth for four decades finally crumbled completely.

Brooks modeled himself after 1970s arena rockers like Journey and Kiss, and after his idol, Billy Joel. Rock itself was floundering in divisiveness, and audiences were excited by the new face of country. In a 1991 interview, Rodney Crowell said, "I play country music because I love rock 'n' roll, and country is the only genre where you can still play it." Brooks' second album, Ropin' The Wind, debuted at number one on the pop charts, swamping a heavily hyped album by Guns 'n Roses, rock's biggest name at that time. Pop music observers compared the new country popularity to the "urban cowboy" craze, and many predicted it would fizzle again. However, with country finally catching up to rock 'n' roll, 40 years late. Country music had taken on a lot of the trappings that had been associated with rock--sexy young singing idols, arena tours, and major promotions. Country music's audience had also broadened; the kid at the gas station joined the country traditionalists and country's new suburban audience. Country music has as many faces as American society itself, and no doubt will keep re-inventing itself with each generation.