Country & Western Roots of Rock – 3.

Country & Western Roots of Rock – 3

Required Listening (1/2)
The Carter Family—Will the Circle Be Unbroken (1935) Jimmie Rodgers—Blue Yodel #1 (T for Texas) (1927) Gene Autry—Back in the Saddle Again (1939) Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys Take Me Back to Tulsa (1941) Brain Cloudy Blues (1946) Roy Acuff—The Precious Jewel (1940) Bill Monroe—Blue Moon of Kentucky (1946) Ernest Tubb—Walking the Floor Over You (1941) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Required Listening (2/2)
Hank Williams I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry (1949) Your Cheatin’ Heart (1952) Hank Snow—I’m Movin’ On (1950) Chet Atkins—Country Gentleman (1953) Buck Owens—Excuse Me (I Think I’ve Got a Heartache) (1959) Patsy Cline—I Fall to Pieces (1960) George Jones—The Grand Tour (1974) Willie Nelson & Waylon Jennings Mamas, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys (1977) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Supplemental Video (1/3)
Sara & Maybelle Carter—Sweet Fern (2:34) Bun Wright’s Fiddle Band w/FDR—Soldier’s Joy (Warm Springs, GA, 1/26/33) (0:57) Woody Guthrie—Fight For Your Land (1945) (0:55) Woody Guthrie—John Henry (1946) (1:16) Lead Belly—Pick a Bale of Cotton (1945) (2:41) Lead Belly—Take This Hammer (3:06) Jimmie Rodgers—Blue Yodel #1 (T for Texas) (1929) (2:57) Jimmie Rodgers—Daddy and Home (1929) (2:49) Bob Wills—Faded Love documentary excerpt (7:06) Bill Hartley—Interview on Bristol, TN sessions (4:15) Gene Autry—Nobody’s Darlin’ But Mine (The Big Show, 1936) (2:35) Roy Rogers—Happy Trails to You (0:54) Roy Rogers—It’s Home Sweet Home to Me (1939) (1:05) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Acuff—Roy Acuff Open House—Mama Don’t ‘Low (1950s) (2:54) Roy Acuff—Grand Ole Opry—Great Speckled Bird (1969) (2:19) Bill Monroe—Blue Moon of Kentucky (Ryman Auditorium) (2:57) Bill Monroe—Train 45 (late 1960s) (2:10) Ernest Tubb—Walkin’ the Floor Over You (1:40) Hank Williams—Hey, Good Lookin’ (Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52) (1:20) Hank Williams—Cold, Cold Heart (Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52) (3:13) Hank Williams—I Saw the Light (Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52) (2:26) Chet Atkins—Country Gentleman, Mr. Sandman, Wildwood Flower, Freight Train (Johnny Cash Show, 4/29/70) (3:47) RCA Studio B, Nashville (1:37) Patsy Cline—Crazy (montage (2:55) Patsy Cline—I’ve Loved and Lost Again (Ranch Party, 1958) (2:33) Patsy Cline—Walkin’ After Midnight (2:19) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Tammy Wynette—Stand By Your Man (Hee Haw) (2:13) Merle Haggard—Okie From Muskogee (1969) (2:52) Johnny Cash—I Walk the Line (Tex Ritter Show) (2:39) Johnny Cash—Folsom Prison Blues (Town Hall Party, 1959) (1:57) Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson—Good Hearted Woman (2:46) Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson—Pancho and Lefty (Las Vegas, Last of the Breed Tour, 3/10/07) (4:02) Hank Williams, Jr.—Jambalaya (Porter Wagoner Show, early 1960s) (3:36) Hank Williams, Jr.—Monday Night Football montage (All My Rowdy Friends) (2:41) Highwaymen—If He Came Back Again (3:24) Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton—Islands in the Stream (4:04) George Jones—She Thinks I Still Care (live, 1962) (2:18) George Jones—The Grand Tour (2:57) George Jones—The Race Is On (3:36) Buck Owens—Tall Dark Stranger (2:55) Buck Owens and Merle Haggard—Interview, Bakersfield Sound (8:12) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Supplemental Listening
Riley Puckett The Arkansas Sheik (3:11)* Back On the Texas Plains (2:47)* Lead Belly Bourgeois Blues Gene Autry Here Comes Santa Claus (1947) Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1948) Bob Wills Deep in the Heart of Texas Yellow Rose of Texas Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roots of Rock - 3 - Country & Western - K. Baker
Important stuff Early Country Bristol Sessions Cowboy Western Swing Bluegrass Honky-Tonk Rockabilly Nashville Sound Outlaw Country Bakersfield Sound Countrypolitan Ryman Auditorium Nashville Important people Riley Puckett Ralph Peer Carter Family Jimmie Rodgers Woody Guthrie Lead Belly Gene Autry Roy Rogers Bob Wills Roy Acuff Bill Monroe Ernest Tubb Hank Williams (Sr.) Chet Atkins Patsy Cline Johnny Cash Waylon Jennings Willie Nelson Hank Williams, Jr. George Jones Buck Owens Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Early Country Direct descendant of the ballad and folk tradition brought to the American South by immigrants from the British Isles in the 18th and 19th centuries When not carrying on the oral tradition of storytelling through song, old-time country music featured instrumentals with the fiddle usually taking the melodic role of the voice Cowboy Capitalized on Wild West mania with records & films Sing around the campfire after a hard day’s work Western Swing Depression-era Texas/Oklahoma country/jazz with Big Band line-up Bluegrass Intricate, acoustic, 2 & 3-part harmonies, energetic drive, unbridled emotion, “high lonesome” sound Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Honky-Tonk Free-wheeling, boisterous Southern bar style reflecting facts of cold hard blue-collar life Rockabilly From Memphis,1953 through the end of the 1950s, married rhythm & blues with country Nashville Sound Favored piano, strings and backing vocals over fiddle and banjo As country lost popularity to rock in the late 1950s, attempted to make country sound closer to mainstream pop Outlaw Rebellion against Nashville Sound No frills, “roots” approach Bakersfield Sound Reaction to Nashville Sound Honky-Tonk sound based in Bakersfield, CA Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

String Bands Bun Wright’s Fiddle Band w/FDR Soldier’s Joy Warm Springs, GA (1/26/1933) (0:57) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Riley Puckett George Riley Puckett B. 1894, Alpharetta, GA, d. 1946, East Point, GA One of the pioneers of country music Medical mishap in infancy left him blind Attended Macon School for the Blind Learned to read Braille Began playing banjo, then guitar Unique, arhythmic style of playing bass note runs to link chord changes Member of the supergroup the Skillet Lickers Accomplished musician on several instruments; however, his singing was responsible for establishing him as an important figure in country music history Riley Puckett listening The Arkansas Sheik (a3:11)* Back On the Texas Plains (a2:47)* Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bristol “Big Bang” of modern country music, July-August 1927 Ralph Peer found artists, paid them $50 on the spot and 2.5 cents for each single sold Country music had been recorded commercially since Among these very early artists were Vernon Dalhart, who recorded the million-selling "Wreck of Old 97," Ernest Stoneman from Galax, Virginia and Uncle Dave Macon. However, any "hillbilly" artists who recorded had to travel to the New York City studios of the major labels, and many artists, including Dalhart, were not true "hillbilly" artists but instead crossed over from other genres. ("Hillbilly" is used here to distinguish the largely secular folk music of the region from gospel and blues, and is not meant as a pejorative.) Okeh Records and later Columbia Records had sent producers around the South in an attempt to discover new talent. Peer, who worked for Okeh at the time, recorded Fiddlin' John Carson using the old acoustic method (known for its large intrusive sound-gathering horn) in 1924, at the behest of the Okeh dealer in Atlanta, Polk Brockman. Despite Peer's belief that the record was of poor quality, the 500 copies made of "Cluck Old Hen" sold out in weeks. This experience convinced Peer of the potential for "hillbilly" music. Peer left Okeh for the Victor Talking Machine Company, taking a salary of $1 per year. However, Peer owned the publishing rights to all the recordings he made. Peer's arrangement of paying royalties to artists based on sales is the basis for record contracts today, and the company he founded, peermusic, remains in existence today. The rise of electronic recording allowed records to have a sound better than radio, which had threatened to reduce the recording industry to irrelevance by This new method allowed softer instruments such as dulcimers, guitars and jaw harps to be heard, and it also meant recording equipment was highly portable -- and as such, recordings could be made nearly anywhere (the acoustic equipment was not really portable.) Peer asked his friend Stoneman, who had recorded for Okeh, how to find more rural talent. Stoneman convinced Peer to travel through southern Appalachia and record artists who might otherwise have been unable to travel to New York. Peer recognized the potential with the mountain music, as even residents of Appalachia who didn't have electricity were using hand-cranked Victrolas. He decided to make a trip, hoping to record blues, gospel and "hillbilly" music. Artists were paid $50 on the spot and 2 1/2 cents for each single sold. In February and March, he made a trip which recorded blues and gospel music, and decided to make another trip. He decided to make a stop in Savannah, Georgia and Charlotte, North Carolina. He settled on Bristol (at the urging of Stoneman) as a third stop as with Johnson City, Tennessee and Kingsport, Tennessee, it formed the Tri-Cities, the largest urban area in the Appalachians at the time. In addition, three other record companies had held or were scheduling auditions for Bristol. So Peer set out with his wife and two engineers for Bristol. [edit] The Sessions themselves Peer then set up a record studio in a hat warehouse on State Street, which is the state line in Bristol. He placed advertisements in the local papers, which did not receive much response aside from artists who had already travelled to New York or were already known by Stoneman. Stoneman was the first to record with Peer, doing so on July 25. He recorded with friends such as his wife Hattie, Eck Dunford and Mooney Brewer. Other acts, including the Johnson Brothers vaudeville duo (best known for their "Crime of The D'Autremont Brothers") and a church choir, filled out the rest of July. However, these artists were only enough to fill the first week of recordings and Peer needed to fill out his second week. A newspaper article about one of Stoneman's recordings, which stressed the $3,600 in royalties that Stoneman had received in 1926 and the $100 a day he was receiving for recording in Bristol, generated much more interest. Dozens of artists went to Bristol, many of whom had never been to Bristol in their lives. He had to schedule night sessions to accommodate the extra talent, which included the Carter family and Jimmie Rodgers. Rodgers had a disagreement with his band over what name to record under, and so Rodgers recorded solo and his band recorded as the Tenneva Ramblers. Rodgers and his band only found out about the sessions when they stayed at the boarding house of one of the band members' mothers. Eventually, nineteen performers recorded seventy-six songs at the Sessions. A second group of sessions was made by Peer in 1928, but the artistic success was not duplicated. Through either chance or providence, in those twelve days in Bristol, Peer had managed to fully introduce America to the authenic music of southern Appalachia. The results were two new superstars, the Carter family and Jimmie Rodgers, and Peer's becoming very wealthy. [edit] Artists who recorded Ernest Stoneman/M. Mooney Brewer: The Dying Girl's Farewell, Tell Mother I Will Meet Her (7/25) Ernest Stoneman/Eck Dunford/Miss Frost: The Mountaineer's Courtship, Midnight on the Stormy Deep (7/25) Stoneman's Dixie Mountaineers: Sweeping Through the Gates, I Know My Name is There, Are You Washed in the Blood?, No More Goodbyes, The Resurrection, I Am Resolved (7/25) Ernest Phipps and His Holiness Quartet: I Want to Go Where Jesus Is, Do Lord Remember Me, Old Ship of Zion, Jesus is Getting Us Ready for That Great Day, Happy in Prison, Don't You Grieve After Me (7/26) Uncle Eck Dunford/Ernest Stoneman/Hannah Stoneman/T. Edwards: The Whippoorwill's Song, What Will I Do, For My Money's All Gone, Skip to Ma Lou Ma Darling, Barney McCoy (7/27) Blue Ridge Corn Shuckers (Ernest Stoneman/Hannah Stoneman/Eck Dunford/T. Edwards): Old Time Corn Shucking (7/27-28) Charles and Paul Johnson with the Tennessee Wildcats: Two Brothers are We (From East TN), The Jealous Sweetheart (7/28) Blind Alfred Reed: The Wreck of the Virginian, I Mean to Live for Jesus, You Must Unload, Walking in the Way With Jesus (7/28) Charles and Paul Johnson: The Soldier's Poor Little Boy, Just A Message from Carolina, I Want to See My Mother (7/28) El Watson and Charles Johnson: Pot Liquor Blues, Narrow Gauge Blues (7/28) B. F. Shelton: Cold Penitentiary Blues, O Molly Dear, Pretty Polly, Darling Cora (7/29) Alfred G. Karnes: Called to the Foreign Field, I Am Bound for the Promised Land, Where We'll Never Grow Old, When I See the Blood, When They Ring the Golden Bells for You and Me, To the Work (7/29) J.P. Nestor: Train on the Island, Georgia, John My Lover, Black Eyed Susie (8/1) Bull Mountain Moonshiners: Sweet Marie, Johnny Goodwin (8/1) The Carter Family (A.P., Sara and Maybelle): "Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow, Little Log Cabin By the Sea, The Storms are on the Ocean, Single Girl, Married Girl, The Wandering Boy (8/1, last two 8/2) Alcoa Quartet: Remember Me O Might One, I'm Redeemed (8/2) Henry Whitter: Henry Whiter's Fox Chase, Rain Crow Bill (8/2) The Shelor Family: Big Bend Gal, Billy Grimes the Rover (8/3) The Shelor Family (as Dad Blackard's Moonshiners): Suzanna Gal, Sandy River Belle (8/3) Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Baker: The New Market Wreck, On the Banks of the Sunny Tennessee (8/3) Jimmie Rodgers: The Soldier's Sweetheart; Sleep, Baby, Sleep (8/4) Red Snodgrass and His Alabamians: Weary Blues (8/4) Tenneva Ramblers (Jack Pierce, Claude Grant, Jack Grant, Claude Slagle): The Longest Train I Ever Saw; Sweet Heaven, When I Die; Miss Liza, Poor Gal (8/4) West Virginia Coon Hunters (W.S. Meadows et al.): Greasy String, Your Blue Eyes Run Me Crazy (8/5) Tennessee Moutaineers (20 mixed voices): Standing on the Promises, At the River (Beautiful River) (8/5) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bristol Sessions Interview—Bill Hartley (4:15)
“Big Bang” of modern country music, July-August 1927 Ralph Peer found artists, paid them $50 on the spot and 2.5 cents for each single sold Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Carter Family “First Family of Country Music” A.P. took wife Sara and pregnant cousin Maybelle from Maces Springs, VA to Bristol, TN to record “Carter scratch”—melody lines on low strings with thumb, two fingers for rhythm Carter Family listening Will the Circle Be Unbroken? (1935) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Carter Family Sara & Maybelle at a reunion Sweet Fern (2:34)
“First Family of Country Music” “Carter scratch”—melody lines on low strings with thumb, two fingers for rhythm Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Jimmie Rodgers “The Father of Country Music” “The Singin’ Brakeman” “The Blue Yodeler” B. 1897, Meridian, MS; d. 1933, New York, NY First country music superstar Contracted tuberculosis at age 24 Night before Bristol sessions his band broke up over billing on the recording; Rodgers showed up alone Recorded again for Ralph Peer again at the Victor studios—these recordings made him a star Blue Yodel #1 sold half a million copies Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Jimmie Rodgers Blue Yodel #1 (T for Texas) (1929) (2:57) Sold half a million copies “The Father of Country Music” “The Singin’ Brakeman” “The Blue Yodeler” B. 1897, Meridian, MS; d. 1933, New York, NY First country music superstar Contracted tuberculosis at age 24 Night before Bristol sessions his band broke up over billing on the recording; Rodgers showed up alone Recorded again for Ralph Peer again at the Victor studios—these recordings made him a star Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Jimmie Rodgers Daddy and Home (1929) (2:49)
“The Father of Country Music” “The Singin’ Brakeman” “The Blue Yodeler” B. 1897, Meridian, MS; d. 1933, New York, NY First country music superstar Contracted tuberculosis at age 24 Night before Bristol sessions his band broke up over billing on the recording; Rodgers showed up alone Recorded again for Ralph Peer again at the Victor studios—these recordings made him a star Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Woody & Lead Belly Woody Guthrie: b. 1912, Okemah, OK; d. 1967, New York, NY “The Great Historical Bum” Guitar frequently read: “This Machine Kills Facists” Huddie William Ledbetter: b. 1888, Mooringsport, LA; d. New York, NY, 1949 (ALS) Recorded for the Lomaxes Library of Congress recordings in the 1930s Imprisoned and pardoned twice Inmates nicknamed him based on his last name and his physical toughness Rich folk songbook as well as topical songs on news of the day Lead Belly listening Bourgeois Blues Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Woody Guthrie Fight For Your Land (1945) (0:55) First of two existing video clips b. 1912, Okemah, OK; d. 1967, New York, NY “The Great Historical Bum” Guitar frequently read: “This Machine Kills Facists” Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Woody Guthrie John Henry (1946) (1:16) Second of two existing video clips b. 1912, Okemah, OK; d. 1967, New York, NY “The Great Historical Bum” Guitar frequently read: “This Machine Kills Facists” Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Lead Belly Pick a Bale of Cotton (1945) (2:41)
b. Huddie William Ledbetter, 1888, Mooringsport, LA; d. New York, NY, 1949 (ALS) Recorded for the Lomaxes Library of Congress recordings in the 1930s Imprisoned and pardoned twice Inmates nicknamed him based on his last name and his physical toughness Rich folk songbook as well as topical songs on news of the day Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Lead Belly Take This Hammer (3:06)
b. Huddie William Ledbetter, 1888, Mooringsport, LA; d. New York, NY, 1949 (ALS) Recorded for the Lomaxes Library of Congress recordings in the 1930s Imprisoned and pardoned twice Inmates nicknamed him based on his last name and his physical toughness Rich folk songbook as well as topical songs on news of the day Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Singing Cowboys Subtype of cowboy heroes of early Western films, popularized by many of the B-movies of the 1930s and the 1940s White-hat-wearing clean-shaven heroes with the habit of showing their emotions in song Notable singing cowboys Gene Autry Roy Rogers Jimmy Wakely Tex Ritter Rex Allen Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Gene Autry “America’s Favorite Cowboy” b. 1907, Tioga, TX; d. 1998, Studio City, CA Discovered by Will Rogers in 1929 93 feature films 91 television productions 635 recordings, 300+ songs written or co-written by him Only entertainer to have all five stars on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame Radio, recording, motion pictures, television, live theatre/performance Bought the California Angels in 1961; American League VP Gene Autry listening Back in the Saddle Again (1939) Here Comes Santa Claus (1947) Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1948) 2nd all-time best Christmas single, over 30 million copies sold Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Gene Autry Nobody’s Darlin’ But Mine The Big Show, 1936 (2:35)
“America’s Favorite Cowboy” b. 1907, Tioga, TX; d. 1998, Studio City, CA Discovered by Will Rogers in 1929 93 feature films, 91 television productions 635 recordings, 300+ songs written or co-written by him Only entertainer to have all five stars on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame Radio, recording, motion pictures, television, live theatre/performance Bought the California Angels in 1961; American League VP Composed Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1948) 2nd all-time best Christmas single, over 30 million copies sold Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Rogers “King of the Cowboys” b. Leonard Franklin Slye, 1911, Cincinnati, OH d. 1988, Apple Valley, CA Moved to California at age 18 to become a singer Formed The Sons of the Pioneers four years later Appeared in westerns as a bit player starting in 1935 Gene Autry briefly walked out on his Republic contract in 1937 By the time Autry returned, Leonard Slye was a competing star named Roy Rogers On TV with his 3rd wife, Dale Evans, & his horse, Trigger Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Rogers Happy Trails to You trademark sign-off (0:54)
“King of the Cowboys” b. Leonard Franklin Slye, 1911, Cincinnati, OH d. 1988, Apple Valley, CA Moved to California at age 18 to become a singer Formed The Sons of the Pioneers four years later Appeared in westerns as a bit player starting in 1935 Gene Autry briefly walked out on his Republic contract in 1937 By the time Autry returned, Leonard Slye was a competing star named Roy Rogers On TV with his 3rd wife, Dale Evans, & his horse, Trigger Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Rogers It’s Home Sweet Home to Me The Arizona Kid, 1939 (1:05)
“King of the Cowboys” b. Leonard Franklin Slye, 1911, Cincinnati, OH d. 1988, Apple Valley, CA Moved to California at age 18 to become a singer Formed The Sons of the Pioneers four years later Appeared in westerns as a bit player starting in 1935 Gene Autry briefly walked out on his Republic contract in 1937 By the time Autry returned, Leonard Slye was a competing star named Roy Rogers On TV with his 3rd wife, Dale Evans, & his horse, Trigger Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bob Wills—Western Swing
b. 1905, Kosee, TX; d after 18 month coma Driving force behind Western Swing, a form of country & western that was broader in scope than the parent genre Master at synthesizing styles, brought jazz, hillbilly, boogie, blues, big-band swing, rhumba, mariachi, jitterbug music & more together Called the “King of Western Swing” and “the first great amalgamator of American music” Grew up in a part of Texas where diverse cultures and forms of music overlapped His enthusiasm and mastery were such that he assimilated disparate genres into what might best be termed American music (he called it "Texas fiddle music") Paved the way for the “Bakersfield Sound” George Strait has covered many of Wills’ songs Bob Wills listening Deep in the Heart of Texas Yellow Rose of Texas Take Me Back to Tulsa (1941) Brain Cloudy Blues (1946) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bob Wills Faded Love (documentary excerpt) (7:06)
b. 1905, Kosee, TX; d after 18 month coma Driving force behind Western Swing, a form of country & western that was broader in scope than the parent genre Master at synthesizing styles, brought jazz, hillbilly, boogie, blues, big-band swing, rhumba, mariachi, jitterbug music & more together Called the “King of Western Swing” and “the first great amalgamator of American music” Grew up in a part of Texas where diverse cultures and forms of music overlapped His enthusiasm and mastery were such that he assimilated disparate genres into what might best be termed American music (he called it "Texas fiddle music") Paved the way for the “Bakersfield Sound” George Strait has covered many of Wills’ songs Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Nashville, 2004 Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Acuff “King of Country Music” b. 1903, Maynardville, TN; d. 1992, Nashville, TN Primary interest was sports, but sunstroke and a nervous breakdown ended his budding career in pro baseball After 1938, became one of the Grand Ole Opry’s biggest attractions Hosted NBC network portion of the show First country music superstar after the death of Jimmie Rodgers Printed his own song book in the early 1940s; sold over 100,000 In 1942, backed Fred Rose in the formation of Acuff-Rose, the music publishing house that helped establish Nashville as Music City, U.S.A. Purchased by SONY in 2002 for at least $150 million Became the Country Music Hall of Fame’s first living member in 1962 Built home near the Opry so he could greet people Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Acuff Mama Don’t ‘Low (Open House, 1950s) (2:54)
“King of Country Music” b. 1903, Maynardville, TN; d. 1992, Nashville, TN Primary interest was sports, but sunstroke and a nervous breakdown ended his budding career in pro baseball After 1938, became one of the Grand Ole Opry’s biggest attractions Hosted NBC network portion of the show First country music superstar after the death of Jimmie Rodgers Printed his own song book in the early 1940s; sold over 100,000 In 1942, backed Fred Rose in the formation of Acuff-Rose, the music publishing house that helped establish Nashville as Music City, U.S.A. Purchased by SONY in 2002 for at least $150 million Became the Country Music Hall of Fame’s first living member in 1962 Built home near the Opry so he could greet people Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Roy Acuff Great Speckled Bird Ryman Auditorium, 1968 (2:19)
“King of Country Music” b. 1903, Maynardville, TN; d. 1992, Nashville, TN Primary interest was sports, but sunstroke and a nervous breakdown ended his budding career in pro baseball After 1938, became one of the Grand Ole Opry’s biggest attractions Hosted NBC network portion of the show First country music superstar after the death of Jimmie Rodgers Printed his own song book in the early 1940s; sold over 100,000 In 1942, backed Fred Rose in the formation of Acuff-Rose, the music publishing house that helped establish Nashville as Music City, U.S.A. Purchased by SONY in 2002 for at least $150 million Became the Country Music Hall of Fame’s first living member in 1962 Built home near the Opry so he could greet people Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bill Monroe “Father of Bluegrass Music” B. 1911, Rosine, KY; d. 1996, Springfield, TN Rich family heritage of singing and fiddling With brother, one of the most popular country duos of the 1930s After split in 1938, formed the Blue Grass Boys Bluegrass named for them In the 1940s, perfected sound Hard-driving mandolin solos, tense high-pitched vocals Added Earl Scruggs on banjo in 1945 Flatt and Scruggs left in 1948 to form the Foggy Mountain Boys Mostly instrumentals starting in the mid-1950s, often with double/triple fiddle harmonies “It’s got a hard drive to it. It’s Scotch bagpipes and old-time fiddling.... It’s blues and jazz, and it has a high lonesome sound. It’s plain music that tells a story. It’s played from my heart to your heart, and it will touch you.” ~~Bill Monroe Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bill Monroe Blue Moon of Kentucky Ryman Auditorium (2:57)
“Father of Bluegrass Music” B. 1911, Rosine, KY; d. 1996, Springfield, TN Rich family heritage of singing and fiddling With brother, one of the most popular country duos of the 1930s After split in 1938, formed the Blue Grass Boys Bluegrass named for them In the 1940s, perfected sound Hard-driving mandolin solos, tense high-pitched vocals Added Earl Scruggs on banjo in 1945 Flatt and Scruggs left in 1948 to form the Foggy Mountain Boys Mostly instrumentals starting in the mid-1950s, often with double/triple fiddle harmonies “It’s got a hard drive to it. It’s Scotch bagpipes and old-time fiddling.... It’s blues and jazz, and it has a high lonesome sound. It’s plain music that tells a story. It’s played from my heart to your heart, and it will touch you.” ~~Bill Monroe Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

The Beatles (surviving) Paul, George & Ringo Blue Moon of Kentucky Good Morning, America, promoting Anthology (1994) (1:42) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bill Monroe Train 45 (late 1960s) (2:10)
“Father of Bluegrass Music” B. 1911, Rosine, KY; d. 1996, Springfield, TN Rich family heritage of singing and fiddling With brother, one of the most popular country duos of the 1930s After split in 1938, formed the Blue Grass Boys Bluegrass named for them In the 1940s, perfected sound Hard-driving mandolin solos, tense high-pitched vocals Added Earl Scruggs on banjo in 1945 Flatt and Scruggs left in 1948 to form the Foggy Mountain Boys Mostly instrumentals starting in the mid-1950s, often with double/triple fiddle harmonies “It’s got a hard drive to it. It’s Scotch bagpipes and old-time fiddling.... It’s blues and jazz, and it has a high lonesome sound. It’s plain music that tells a story. It’s played from my heart to your heart, and it will touch you.” ~~Bill Monroe Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Ernest Tubb “The Texas Troubadour” b. 1914, Crisp, TX (now a ghost town) d. 1984, Nashville, TN Boyhood hero was Jimmie Rodgers Dreamed of emulating Rodgers Didn’t own 1st guitar until age 20 Rodgers widow helped set up his 1st recording session in 1938 Cut his trademark “Walking the Floor Over You” in 1941 Joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1943 Headlined the first Opry show at Carnegie Hall in 1947 Honky-Tonk style Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Ernest Tubb Walking the Floor Over You (1950s) (1:40)
“The Texas Troubadour” b. 1914, Crisp, TX (now a ghost town); d. 1984, Nashville, TN Boyhood hero was Jimmie Rodgers Dreamed of emulating Rodgers Didn’t own 1st guitar until age 20 Rodgers widow helped set up his 1st recording session in 1938 Cut his trademark “Walking the Floor Over You” in 1941 Joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1943 Headlined the first Opry show at Carnegie Hall in 1947 Honky-Tonk style Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Hank Williams b. Hiram King Williams, 1923, Mount Olive, AL; d. 1953, Oak Hill, WV Combined Roy Acuff’s tradition with Ernest Tubb’s honky-tonk style Lived the songs he sang – captured universal emotion in few words Hear the lonesome whippoorwill, he sounds too blue to fly, The midnight train is whining low, I’m so lonesome I could cry. I’ve never seen a night so long, when time goes crawling by, The moon just went behind the clouds to hide his face and cry. Did you ever see a robin weep when leaves begin to die? That means he’s lost the will to live, I’m so lonesome I could cry. The silence of a falling star lights up a purple sky, And as I wonder where you are, I’m so lonesome I could cry. Hank Williams listening I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry (1949) Tennessee Waltz Your Cheatin’ Heart (1952) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Hank Williams (Sr.) Hey, Good Lookin’ Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52 (1:20) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Hank Williams (Sr.) Cold, Cold Heart Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52 (3:13) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Hank Williams (Sr.) I Saw the Light Kate Smith Evening Hour, 4/23/52 (2:26) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Hank Williams – Demons 1948: regular on Louisiana Hayride 1949: moved to the Grand Ole Opry 1952: fired from the Opry for drunkenness and unreliability (drank to relieve pain from spinal disorder) Divorced, rapidly remarried (publicly) Returned to Louisiana Hayride Heart gave out and died en route to New Years show in Canton, OH Legacy lived on in many performers, inc. Elvis Presley Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Honky Tonk Free-wheeling, boisterous Southern bar style reflecting facts of cold hard blue-collar life Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Nashville Sound Favored piano, strings and backing vocals over fiddle and banjo As country lost popularity to rock in the late 1950s, attempted to make country sound closer to mainstream pop Created by producers Chet Atkins & Owen Bradley Artists Eddy Arnold, Faron Young, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Marty Robbins, Jim Reeves, Conway Twitty, Patsy Cline, et al Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Chet Atkins Country Gentleman, Mr. Sandman, Wildwood Flower, Freight Train Johnny Cash Show, 4/29/70 (3:47) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

C & W Renegades Open rebellion against the conservative Nashville hierarchy (lifestyle & lyrics) Rock-derived sound Outlaws Waylon Jennings Willie Nelson Kris Kristofferson Hank Williams, Jr. Jerry Jeff Walker Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Patsy Cline b. Virginia Patterson Hensley, 1932, Winchester, VA d. 1963, Camden, TN Performed her first hit, Walkin’ After Midnight, on Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts show, 1957 Moved to Nashville in 1960; joined Opry cast Her voice fit the Nashville Sound style; she became one of its leading interpreters Died in a plane crash in 1963 Elected to the Country Hall of Fame in 1973 Patsy Cline listening I Fall to Pieces Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

RCA Studio B, Nashville (1:37)
Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Patsy Cline Crazy (montage; 2:55)

Patsy Cline I’ve Loved and Lost Again Ranch Party, 1958 (2:33)

Patsy Cline Walkin’ After Midnight (2:19)

Country Establishment
Television shows Roger Miller, Johnny Cash, Glen Campbell The Wilburn Brothers Show The Porter Wagoner Show Hee Haw Many shows mixed great music with cornball humor Hillbilly image Ambivalent toward change Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Country Establishment Tammy Wynette Stand By Your Man Hee Haw (2:13)

Country Establishment Merle Haggard Okie From Muskogee (2:52)

Hank Williams, Jr. Porter Wagoner Show (early 1960s) Jambalaya (3:36)

Hank Williams, Jr. Monday Night Football montage All My Rowdy Friends (2:41) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

C & W Outlaws Johnny Cash Tex Ritter Show I Walk the Line (2:38)

C & W Outlaws Johnny Cash Town Hall Party (1959) Folsom Prison Blues (1:57) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

C & W Outlaws Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson Good Hearted Woman (2:46) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

C & W Outlaws Merle Haggard & Willie Nelson Last of the Breed Tour, Las Vegas, 3/10/07 Pancho & Lefty (4:02) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

C & W Outlaws The Highwaymen Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson If He Came Back Again (3:24) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Countrypolitan Country’s crossover to pop in the 1970s Bland image Pop and watered-down country that was passed off as country Artists John Denver, Anne Murray, Olivia Newton-John, et al Early 1980s had a revival of traditional country styles (New Traditionalists) as a reaction to this Ricky Scaggs, George Strait, Clint Black, Randy Travis Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Countrypolitan Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton Islands in the Stream (4:04) Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

George Jones b. 1931, Saratoga, TX Over 75 Top Ten hits as a solo singer, in duets with friends and with his late former (3rd) wife, Tammy Wynette Major influence on New Traditionalists Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

George Jones She Thinks I Still Care Live, 1962 (2:18)

George Jones The Grand Tour (2:57)

George Jones The Race Is On (3:36)

Buck Owens Bakersfield Sound
b. Alvis Edgar Owens, Jr., 1929, Sherman, TX d. 2006, Bakersfield, CA Bakersfield Sound was a honky-tonk alternative to the Nashville Sound in the 1960s Owens hosted Hee Haw Merle Haggard also part of the Bakersfield Sound Buck Owens listening Act Naturally Excuse Me (I Think I’ve Got a Heartache) I Got a Tiger By the Tail Roots of Rock Country & Western - K. Baker

Bakersfield Sound Buck Owens Tall Dark Stranger (2:55)

Bakersfield Sound Buck Owens and Merle Haggard Interview (8:12)

Country & Western Roots of Rock – 3.

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Country & Western Roots of Rock – 3.

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