I caught a wee bit of the Grammy Awards last night. Ugh. Snorefest. We happened to pop in at the point where a bunch of country singers were singing with Lynrd Snynrd. Gretchen Wilson makes me want to claw my eyes out. (aside…Redneck Woman wins best female country vocal performance. Eek. No wonder I rarely listen to country radio anymore.) I can’t stand her. I can’t stand her stupid song that, for reasons completely escaping my comprehension, has become a crossover hit.
Sample lyric:
I ain’t never been the Barbie doll type
No, I can’t swig that sweet Champagne
I’d rather drink beer all night
In a tavern or in a honky tonk
or on a four-wheel drive tailgate
I’ve got posters on my wall
of Skynyrd, Kid and Strait
Some people look down on me
but I don’t give a rip
I’ll stand barefooted
in my own front yard
with a baby on my hip
Full lyrics here.
“This is going to sound bitchy,” I told Rand, “But she’s trailer trash with a recording contract.”
Umm…anyway…I did find myself listening to WYRK a bit over the weekend. They were playing older stuff, from like ten years ago, when I first started listening to country music. The very first song I heard was “That’s My Story” by Collin Raye. Yay, Collin! Then it was “18 Wheels and a Dozen Roses” by Kathy Mattea, which got me to thinking about one of the things I first enjoyed about country music…the story song.
I love story songs. Perfect little pieces of flash fiction set to music. And country music was doing it better than pretty much anyone at the time. Some of my favorite story songs:
Love, Me
Harder Cards
She’s in Love with the Boy
The Thunder Rolls
***addition, I can’t believe I forgot Little Rock.***
I’m sure there are more, but those are good for now. 🙂
And on the other end of music, I had Jessica (my little) in the car with me on Saturday. We listen to hip hop when she’s in the car, which I don’t mind at all…that is, until I start listening to the lyrics. Then I end up depressed that this is what 13-year-old urban girls are identifying with. Sigh. This is the one that got to me on Saturday:
Destiny’s Child? I’d have thought better of Beyonce and the crew.
Sample lyric:
If his status ain’t hood I aint checking for him
better be street if he looking at me I need a soldier
and he’s gotta stand up for me
known to carry big things if you know what I mean
Am I just old and out of touch?