Cisum Yrtnuoc: A Backwards Approach to the History of Country Music
Allison Carr Olsen
15 March 2012
Lynn Brown
MUSC – 1040-004
Country Music transformed from Folk tradition into the realm of popular music in
the 1920’s. The first commercial recording of ‘Country music’ was “Sallie Gooden” by
fiddlist A.C. (ECK) Robertson in 1922 for Victor Records. In 1923 Georgia moonshiner,
‘Fiddlin’’ John Carson who was a local popular radio performer, recorded “The Little
Old Cabin in the Lane” and “The Old Hen Cackled and the Roosters Going to Crow” for
Okeh Records. His recordings were very successful, prompting recording companies to
move to the South and set up temporary studios.
These recording studios started recording groups and individual musicians by the
dozen, driven by the success of Country music’s popularity. In 1924, Columbia Records
joined the recording frenzy with a series of releases. The first country singer to have a
nationwide hit was Vernon Dalhart in May of 1924 singing “Wreck of the Old ‘97”. In
1925, WSM Radio’s Grand Ole Opry was created to feature country music acts on its
stage for live Saturday night broadcasts. It began as a simple radio broadcast in 1925, and
today is a live entertainment phenomenon. It is Tennessee’s number one attraction and
every year it attracts hundreds of thousands of people who come to watch some of
Country’s most famous performers on stage. Membership in the Opry remains one of
Country music artists’ greatest ambitions.
The family is often mentioned in this realm of music. It is important to note that
realism and sentimentality seem to be reoccurring themes in the Country music genre.
Often realism is expressed when songs are written about life experiences that touch one’s
emotions. Objects are also written about in very sentimental ways. Country music relies
on words to express with songs how one sees or observes the reality of a person’s human
life experience. Often the reflections of family are center in the songs of country music.
In society families are closely involved in the socialization of children to the adult world.
We all live in families whether they are by birth or choice, and our experiences will
determine who we are, how we live and how we will react to different situations. (Cite
understanding society text here pg 15) In the book, “family” is defined as “a unity of
interacting persons.” Our daily interactions assist us in creating who we are. Many
Country music songs are written based on different artists’ reflections of their own life
experiences.
Kellie Pickler is a Country music artist who, in 2007, recorded a song “I Wonder”
on her album “Small Town Girl.” This song was written about her mother, who left her
with her grandparents to raise her since birth. Ms. Pickler co-wrote the song about her
childhood and her thoughts about her mother through the years. She performed the song
live at the 2007 CMA Awards and was notably emotional, where she received a standing
ovation. Other songs however often make light of the serious nature that surrounds
country music lyrics. Rascal Flatts, another artist in the Country music genre, wrote and
produced a song entitled “Backwards.” This song gives hope to anyone who has ever
been through a “divorce from hell.” It promises that if you play a County song
backwards,
“Ya get your house back, ya get your dog back,
Ya get your best friend Jack back
Ya get your truck back, ya get your hair back
Ya get your first and second wives back
...
Ya get your mind back, your nerves back
Your first heart attack back
You get your pride back, get your life back
And you get your first real love back . . .”
The key to success for Country music has been the fact that it speaks to a large audience,
yet to each individual in his/her own way. However, it’s a good thing for the legal
profession that undoing a divorce is more complicated than just playing a song
backwards.
Works Cited
Dandelaria, Lorenzo, and Daniel Kingman. American Music: A Panorama. 3rd ed.
Belmont: Thomson/Schirmer, 2007. Print.
Kotardba, Joseph A., and Phillip Vannini. Understanding Society Through Popular
Music. New York: Routledge, 2009. Print.
Pickler, Kellie. I Wonder. BNA Records, 2007. CD.
Rascal Flatts. Backwards. Lyric Street Records, 2005. CD.
Roughstock Staff. Acuff And The Grand Ole Opry. Cheri Media Group, 27 Jan. 2009.
Web. 15 Mar. 2012.