Where is Country Music From?
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We all know and love country music, but where did it come from? Join us on a journey as we explore the origins of this genre and how it has evolved over time.
Origins of Country Music
Country music is a genre of music that originated in the southern United States in the 1920s. It is a blend of popular music and folk music. Country music has been influenced by other genres such as blues and rock n’ roll.
Appalachian music
Some of the first country music came from the southern mountain region of the United States, which is why it is sometimes called Appalachian music. This area was settled by Scots-Irish immigrants who brought their musical traditions with them when they arrived in the eighteenth century. Many of their songs were about everyday life and their instrumentation included fiddles, banjos, guitars, and harmonicas. One of the most famous Appalachian musicians was Fiddlin’ John Carson, who was born in North Carolina in 1868. He started performing on a local radio station in 1925 and became one of the first country music stars.
Celtic music
Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that have emerged from the native folk music traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe. It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music and the styles vary considerably to include everything from “trad” (traditional) Irish, Scottish or Canadian fiddle music to contemporary singer-songwriter influenced versions.
Cowboy music
Country music has its roots in the music of the cowboys who worked on the ranches in the American West. This music was a mixture of folk songs from England, Ireland, and Scotland, as well as songs of the native Americans and Mexicans. The cowboy music was often sung around the campfire at night, and it was used to help pass the time during long cattle drives.
Influences on Country Music
Country music is a genre of music that originated in the southern United States in the late 19th century. It takes its influences from a variety of music genres, including folk, blues, gospel, and Appalachian music. Country music has been one of the most popular genres of music in the United States for many years, and it shows no signs of slowing down.
Folk music
Folk music has been a significant influencer on country music. Early country artists such as Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family were influenced by songs they heard sung by black Americans. In fact, the original Carter Family band was started after A.P. Carter heard his wife playing an old song called “The Wandering Boy” on the banjo. Folk songs like these were often passed down from generation to generation, and many of them found their way into the country music repertoire.
Other important folk influences on country music include ballads, work songs and hymns. Ballads are narrative songs that were originally meant to be sung in a public setting, like at a tavern or around a campfire. Many of these songs told stories of love and loss, and they often had a mournful tone. Work songs were used to help pass the time while performing repetitive tasks like chopping wood or sewing tobacco leaves. These songs usually had a very simple musical structure, which made them easy to remember and easy to sing along with. Hymns are religious songs that have been around for centuries; they were originally written for churches but many of them have become secularized over time. Country artists such as Dolly Parton and Hank Williams have both recorded versions of well-known hymns like “Amazing Grace” and “I Saw The Light.”
Gospel music
Gospel music is an important influence on country music. Gospel music is a style of Christian music that is characterized by dominant vocals (often with strong use of harmony) and traditional lyrics, often with a Christian message. Gospel music has been around for many years and has been a major influence on other genres of music, including country. Many famous country musicians got their start in gospel music, including Ricky Skaggs, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly Parton.
Blues music
More than just a type of music, the blues is a way of life. The earliest form of the blues was created by African Americans who were working in the cotton fields and other manual labor jobs in the American South. These workers would sing about their struggles and sorrows as a way of coping with their difficult circumstances. The blues soon became a popular form of entertainment at dance halls and parties, and eventually found its way into country music.
Modern Country Music
Country music has come a long way since its humble beginnings. What was once a genre for rural Americans has now become one of the most popular genres in the world. Country music has been able to retain its core values while also evolving with the times. In this article, we’ll take a look at the history of country music and how it has changed over the years.
Country pop
During the 1950s, Nashville became the second most important recording center for country music (after New York City) and country pop developed as a distinct subgenre. Country pop overrides the typical twang of country music with a smoother, more radio-friendly sound that was first popularized in the 1950s by artists such as Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, and Eddy Arnold. Country pop tends to have a more polished sound than regular country music and often incorporates elements of other popular music styles, such as pop and rock.
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined subgenre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music. It has been used to describe country music bands and artists that have incorporated influences ranging from rock, bluegrass, punk rock and rockabilly.
Some prominent alternative country artists include: The Bottle Rockets, The Handsome Family, Uncle Tupelo, No Depression magazine and Whiskeytown.
Honky-tonk
Honky-tonk is a hard country subgenre that developed in the 1940s from earlier rural string band music. Honky-tonk music is named after the honky-tonks, bars where the music was commonly played. The term honky-tonk originally referred to bawdy variety shows in the West and Southwestern states. These shows featured singing, laughs, dancers, and various comic acts. Music historian William Ruhlmann says that “honky-tonk” was originally used in the 1900s to describe lower-class establishments that sold liquor and provided light entertainment such as music and dancing. According to one source, honky-tonks were “the most common name for country music clubs” throughout the 1930s. The name was also used for shops specializing in hillbilly music.[1] In some places honky-tonks were also known as “tubs of fun.”
The development of honky-tonk was strongly influenced by four major factors: migration of rural Southern musicians to urban areas; World War II; changes in recording technology; and drinking and socializing.[2] Over time, as Southern Rural culture changed greatly from its 19th century roots, so did the style of music—and the meaning of the word honky tonk.
