Do Audiophiles Listen to Country?

Mag · « **on:** 2 Jul 2018, 02:34 am »

I have a few country albums & songs in my collection, Shania Twain, Sara Evans (Suds in the Bucket) one about a bear that's never been treed, Dwight Yoakam-Essentials (Fast as You), Devil Went Down to Georgia, and a few others like Johnny Cash, Burl Ives. But it's not music I regularly listen to.

Generally speaking, Country songs seems to me to be better recorded. However I can't recall anyone/audiophiles posting about listening to County.

Do you listen to Country?

Tyson · « **Reply #1 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 03:09 am »

Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Lucinda Williams - all are worth listening to, and all of them have pretty good (to very good) recording quality.

galyons · « **Reply #2 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 03:20 am »

You have to define “country” because true country music has been hijacked by formulaic, commercialized pop pablum. Tyson gives a few of the true country artists, as opposed to the chewin’ tabacco flavored bubble gum country music.

Of course, YMMV.

Cheers,
Geary

skunark · « **Reply #3 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 03:25 am »

Johnny Cash is alternative

His cover of Trent Rezner’s NIN Hurt is amazing.

thunderbrick · « **Reply #4 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 04:02 am »

Quote from: galyons on 2 Jul 2018, 03:20 am

You have to define “country” because true country music has been hijacked by formulaic, commercialized pop pablum. Tyson gives a few of the true country artists, as opposed to the chewin’ tabacco flavored bubble gum country music.

Of course, YMMV.

Cheers,
Geary

"Hick" Hop, perhaps?

WGH · « **Reply #5 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 04:37 am »

When it sounds like the latest Alison Krauss album Windy City I listen to country
https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=129767.msg1694501#msg1694501

Alison recorded the album using the Requisite L7 directly coupled line level condenser microphone with no compression, no equalization, no de-essing.

galyons · « **Reply #6 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 05:11 am »

Alison has blue grass roots, not country. Hence the need to define what one considers country music.

Cheers,
Geary

Mag · « **Reply #7 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 05:24 am »

Quote from: galyons on 2 Jul 2018, 05:11 am

Alison has blue grass roots, not country. Hence the need to define what one considers country music.

Cheers,
Geary

Well there's Old Time Country, Mom use to listen to that when I was a kid.

How about defining Country as music that is sung with the Country twang in the vocals?

Folsom · « **Reply #8 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 05:49 am »

Yes. No one has listed something I'd listen to yet however. Some names: T. Texas Tyler, Wanda Jackson, Jimmy Rodgers (no great recordings), Jimmy Martin, George Jones, Ferlin Huskey, Faron Young, Tex Williams,

Waylon Jennings - Dreaming my Dreams on vinyl is great.

Bob Wills, any of the albums from Liberty are fantastic.

I pick stuff up I like fairly frequently, like;

Ernest Tubb ‎– Saturday Satan Sunday Saint (I like this one)

Marty Robbins - Gunfighter Ballads (the first, I don't really like anything else)

Red Simpson - The Man Behind the Badge (a decent album, kinda odd, but I like it sometimes)

There there's lots of country/blue grass type stuff I listen to like Reno & Smiley, Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt, Carl Story, The Stanley Brothers, Hylo Brown, etc.

Can't stand: Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, Hank Williams Sr/Jr, Willie Nelson, anything newer (Garth Brooks, George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, esp Blake Shelton - who likes that shit????)

ArthurDent · « **Reply #9 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 06:19 am »

Quote from: Folsom on 2 Jul 2018, 05:49 am

Yes. No one has listed something I'd listen to yet however. Some names: T. Texas Tyler, Wanda Jackson, Jimmy Rodgers (no great recordings), Jimmy Martin, George Jones, Ferlin Huskey, Faron Young, Tex Williams,

Waylon Jennings - Dreaming my Dreams on vinyl is great.

Bob Wills, any of the albums from Liberty are fantastic.

I pick stuff up I like fairly frequently, like;

If you like Bob you really should check out Asleep At The Wheel. They've done a couple of tribute albums, and are solidly Texas Swing. Actually I need to check Bob out, as I only know him thru Asleep @ the Wheel.

I've enjoyed the original Outlaws- Waylon, Willie, Jesse Colter for some time. As gaylons & Mag note, there's lots of variations of country. While it was never my thing Porter Wagner was a local in the Midwest back in the day, the only reason I know his name, he had a TV show. I would agree that there is definitely a difference between blue grass & country, but to many it may not be obvious.

As has been debated & discussed in many threads, the music that moves you is what counts, regardless of it's genre/classification. There's good & bad in all of the categories. Enjoy what you like, ignore what you don't.

Bendingwave · « **Reply #10 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 07:07 am »

Growing up I loved to listen to Kenny Rogers songs. I also liked Anne Murray. Lonestar. Vince Gill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JKdeNDmSLM

S Clark · « **Reply #11 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 07:31 am »

For a while there was a progressive country movement that yielded BW Stevenson and Michael Murphey. Then there is Lyle Lovette country/folk. All music that I still listen to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuQ78mtiwHs

Mag · « **Reply #12 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 07:50 am »

Quote from: Folsom on 2 Jul 2018, 05:49 am

Yes. No one has listed something I'd listen to yet however. Some names: T. Texas Tyler, Wanda Jackson, Jimmy Rodgers (no great recordings), Jimmy Martin, George Jones, Ferlin Huskey, Faron Young, Tex Williams,

Waylon Jennings - Dreaming my Dreams on vinyl is great.

Bob Wills, any of the albums from Liberty are fantastic.

I pick stuff up I like fairly frequently, like;

Ernest Tubb ‎– Saturday Satan Sunday Saint (I like this one)

Marty Robbins - Gunfighter Ballads (the first, I don't really like anything else)

Red Simpson - The Man Behind the Badge (a decent album, kinda odd, but I like it sometimes)

There there's lots of country/blue grass type stuff I listen to like Reno & Smiley, Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt, Carl Story, The Stanley Brothers, Hylo Brown, etc.

Can't stand: Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, Hank Williams Sr/Jr, Willie Nelson, anything newer (Garth Brooks, George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, esp Blake Shelton - who likes that shit????)

Had a diet of Merle Haggard on the old 8 track player in the car. The question is, do audiophiles listen to it?

Mama Tried: www.youtube.com/watch?v=loT_pYzi3Vw
Okie From Muskogee: www.youtube.com/watch?v=68cbjlLFl4U
Working Man Blues: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbEstJ98TcM

ctviggen · « **Reply #13 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 10:52 am »

Not sure whether these are "country", but here are some I like:

Brothers Osborne - Port Saint Joe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQajmEKF438
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eERCG_pBUs

The Steeldrivers - Reckless
Random song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yo_1fgGYQE

Chris Stapleton - Traveler (hmm...just realized my metadata says "Traveller" not "Traveler")
Random song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zAThXFOy2c&start_radio=1&list=RDEMradT0dHPo4itc33ZP6-P-g

Ashley Monroe - Sparrow
Random song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85fVsUylk5I

All new artists.

Also, Drive-By Truckers and some slightly "older" artists I have some of the original artists (Merle, much Johnny Cash - my biggest collection of any artist, Willie Nelson, etc.), too.

But I listen to a wide variety of music and also have Vampire Weekend, Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, Dorothy, Imagine Dragons, etc.

I started out listening to heavy metal (which I no longer listen to at all), and then went much more mellow.

JLM · « **Reply #14 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 11:14 am »

Agree about the cross breeding of genres. Like Cowboy Junkies, Shana Twain, Allison Krauss (but consider her Blue Grass), but for me - no twang.

Doublej · « **Reply #15 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 11:51 am »

Audiophiles can listen to whatever they want but they are not allowed to listen to more than 30 seconds of any given song.

Letitroll98 · « **Reply #16 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 12:08 pm »

Almost anything but typical Nashville country, I suppose Kenny Chesney is the standard bearer for what I can't listen to. I love the alt country scene you see on Austin City Limits, Nancy Griffith, Lyle Lovett, May Chapin Carpenter and many others. Country rock that was popular in the 70s and 80s, Outlaws, Grateful Dead's country albums, Allman Brothers, Charlie Daniels, Asleep at the Wheel. And a special shout out to a favorite of mine singing traditional Appalachian and Old English folk songs, Ellen Gozion who has several solo albums in that genre and several with her group, The Early Mays, who perform mostly original material.
https://theearlymays.com/new-album-1/

macrojack · « **Reply #17 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 12:31 pm »

There's a lot of blur. Consider Linda Ronstadt, John Prine, or even Leon Russell. What about Flying Burrito Brothers or Eagles or maybe David Bromberg or Jesse Winchester. All of these and many others seem to bring the country music flavor without the hokey yokel taint that probably prompted this question in the first place. For me, modern country music fails on many levels --- as does NASCAR. It's high time (or maybe too late already) we all reject stupid. That means no more Fox. Why limit this to music? Our media doesn't.

mav52 · « **Reply #18 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 12:51 pm »

Sure Audiophile listen to country, its no difference than audiophiles listening to Opera, Classical, pop, rap, rock, jazz, indie etc..

Nick V · « **Reply #19 on:** 2 Jul 2018, 01:06 pm »

Alison Krauss & Union station in high resolution sounds amazing.

Also been loving Chris Stapleton and Brandi Carlile lately.