Worm must be a huge tim mcgraw fan, according to his standards that is

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TennAg: Bad comparison.

Faron Young vs. Zac Brown is not equal to Citizen Kane vs. Avatar.

A better comparison might be Citizen Kane vs. Weekend at Bernie's.

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I understand where TennAg is coming from, and I am not at all opposed to the light popcorn flick or the musical corollary. If you're Steven Spielberg you can make a popcorn flick with little substance and be fine, but if you're a director who has never made anything but shallow popcorn flicks, people shouldn't be expected to take you seriously.

This goes back an old discussion we've had on this board in regards to Texas country party songs. Robert Earl Keen's "The Road" is revered as the pinnacle of party songs and new artists are constantly recording party songs in hopes of copying The Road's success and greatness.

Problem is, most of them don't have the talent or writing chops to hold REK's jockstrap. They hear the road and then try to throw together their own jam song with some lyrics about sex, drugs, alcohol, partying, etc. They don't understand that the song is great because it's more than just a "party song": it's a fun song to listen to and jam to with a great tune, but it's a marvelous story song that weaves a great tale from beginning to end.

Point being: I'm not opposed to party songs and such, but I don't care much for music that doesn't at least have some original quality to it. I don't want to hear a lot of young guys trying to act like Jimmy Buffett or George Strait because it's the cool, trendy thing.

And for whoever said that country music has never been known for great songwriting, I would suggest your knowledge of country music is rather lacking.

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Worm must be a huge tim mcgraw fan, according to his standards that is

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I hope that's sarcasm, because I can't imagine how anything I've said could be construed as me liking that no talent greaser. However, despite his lack of talent and near 100% reliance on an auto-tuner, he has recorded the occasional gem. "Please Remember Me" is a great song, but if you've heard Rodney Crowell do it, there's no reason to hear Timmy do it. "Angry all the time" is a great sing, but Bruce and Kelly do a much better version. He's even had a few "fun" songs that I'll admit having sung along with in the past, like "Refried Dreams".

WestTx and I see things similarly. There are guys who will put out a crap song, but they get a pass because of their total body of work. I mean, George Strait had "Honk if you Honky Tonk" and Alan Jackson had "Little Bitty" for crying out loud.

Haha, I actually agree with you on Tim McGraw. I don't think he's particularly talented, and he's among the worst offenders in a group of guys who change their style based on the trends of the day (he dressed like a George Strait clone when it was trendy, now he dresses like a hobo), but he's recorded some good songs. "Just to See You Smile" is probably my favorite. I, too, like "Refried Dreams." And for some unexplainable reason, I enjoy singing along with "Indian Outlaw."

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WestTx and I see things similarly. There are guys who will put out a crap song, but they get a pass because of their total body of work. I mean, George Strait had "Honk if you Honky Tonk" and Alan Jackson had "Little Bitty" for crying out loud.

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Exactly. Like I said before, I don't mind a crap song every now and then, but it's the guys who base their entire careers on country music mad libs. Toby Keith put out some decent songs in the old days but for some unexplainable reason has decided to go mad libs on us. Craig Morgan seems incapable of recording anything but a mad libs song.

woe is yall

They aren't in it for the love of the music any more when you get to that level most of the time. And I'm not saying they don't still love what they do. It has become a business at that point, and to make the most money they have to appeal to the lowest common denominator. That's why you get mostly crap, mixed in with a few really good songs. That's what Mark Chestnut was alluding to with his remarks.

And I don't want this to come across as saying these guys have sold out. That's not the case by any means. They have a family to support, their band members have a family support, and this is the best way to provide a steady income. There is also lots of influence from the record label to make an album that sells as many copies as possible.

But I'll go on record as saying I really like "Chicken Fried" and Zac Brown Band. It is a catchy shallow song. But I also am of a like mind with many of my musical preferences as Worm.

[This message has been edited by La Fours (edited 2/17/2010 4:59p).]

I really want to see Joey & Rory and will consider it a good deal if the headliner just doesn't suck.

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They have a family to support, their band members have a family support, and this is the best way to provide a steady income. There is also lots of influence from the record label to make an album that sells as many copies as possible.

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I understand that and I don't fault them for earning a living. I also understand that, unfortunately, the record labels like force feeding crap to the masses, and he with the gold makes the rules. But, there are times that guys who have proven they can write and record quality songs then turn to recording mass market poo. That's not the case here. I'm not saying the guys not talented. I'm saying I haven't seen any evidence that he is because the record labels and radio stations haven't created a market for talent. They've created a market for mass consumption. What the powers that be have forgotten is that the two don't have to be mutually exclusive.

Having said that, last night I went to Bass Hall to see an Acoustic song swap with Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson. It took exactly 2 minutes and 45 seconds to remind me how stupid it is to even discuss the legitimacy of someone like Zac Brown as a songwriter. What I saw last night was greatness on a level we will likely never see again. And I'm not being over dramatic. Merle Haggard had 40 #1 songs, over a span of 4 decades, including several that will always be considered among the greatest country songs of all time. I can't imagine that we'll ever see an artist/songwriter with that level of staying power again. I don't see how the current state of the music industry would even make it possible.

[This message has been edited by Worm01 (edited 2/18/2010 5:42a).]

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last night I went to Bass Hall to see an Acoustic song swap with Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson.

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I really hate you sometimes Worm.

[This message has been edited by La Fours (edited 2/18/2010 9:25a).]

I know. It was 9 kinds of badass.

A little story: Merle did quite a bit of talking and at one point mentioned how someone asked why he wrote "Okie from Muskogee". He said, "Because I was the only one who knew the words."

Greatness.

Didn't he write that song on a bus going through Muskogee or something like that? IIRC, he was writing that song to expess his feelings on the USA and patriotism and decided that a guy from Muskogee would probably feel like he did.

I heard them talking about that show on 95.3 the Range, sounded incredible. If I was in DFW, I probably would have gone.