What is it about the Opry?

About Steel Guitarists and their Music

Moderator: Shoshanah Marohn

Charles Davidson
Posts: 7549
Joined: 9 Jul 2005 12:01 am
Location: Phenix City Alabama, USA

Post by Charles Davidson »

Was channel surfing this afternoon,On either GAC[Great American crap]or CMT [Crappy music televison]Was a show about Big and Rich,with Cowboy Troy in concert,Watched as much as I could take,Kind of seemed like a heavy metal benefit for the Hell's Angels.What is so sad millions REALLY think they are watching and hearing country music.DYKBC.
Hard headed, opinionated old geezer. BAMA CHARLIE. GOD BLESS AMERICA. ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVIST. SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC !
User avatar
Joe Drivdahl
Posts: 849
Joined: 18 Oct 2003 12:01 am
Location: Montana, USA

Post by Joe Drivdahl »

Barry Blackwood wrote:Dennis, if Ms. Underwood is not country, then what is she, and what constitutes the difference? :|
They have been running some old shows on the RFD network from like 1980. I'm not sure what these shows were, but they were big production shows like the CMA awards. You know what? Country had already gone out of style by 1980. I'm not sure country has really changed that much since it became "cool" whenever that was.

There was Dave and Sugar on this show? Remember them? What can you say about them? Not exactly legendary country singers.

Barbara Mandrell sang "You can eat crackers in my be anytime." Nothing against Barbara, but I'm not sure you could turn that into a country song regardless what you did with it. Even Marty Robins and Conway sounded kind of generic with all the strings, and horns, and arrangments of whatever other non-country intruments were behind them.

I guess I'm wondering if the good old country that we all miss ever really existed at all? I mean with all the big instrumentations even the most country song becomes a show tune.

So why not induct Carrie Underwood? She's as country as many others who came before her a lot more country than most out there today.

Joe
Steve Hinson
Posts: 3879
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Hendersonville Tn USA

Post by Steve Hinson »

Theresa...thanks for watching...it was not announced that we were playing last night-Carrie's birthday was last week and the Opry management wanted to surprise her(she is a BIG RT fan and cut"I Told You So"on her latest album)...I think she was surprised.Tell my hero I said hey...
Farris Currie
Posts: 4261
Joined: 26 Apr 2004 12:01 am
Location: Ona, Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Post by Farris Currie »

OK GUYS

I will take a lots of the blame,i'm old sick man 66

I like lots of stuff, like CRYING MY HEART OUT OVER YOU.

the young folks call this TEAR JURKING stuff.

I miss a CHRISTMAS SHOW every year, because they hire a D.J.to play records like STROKE IT ECT.

they want some beat to it they say.

i see C6TH as the beat they want, and some life to it

Its got to have some BEAT LIFE TO IT

farris
User avatar
Joe Drivdahl
Posts: 849
Joined: 18 Oct 2003 12:01 am
Location: Montana, USA

Post by Joe Drivdahl »

Farris said:
Its got to have some BEAT LIFE TO IT
Exaclty, which is the reason why drums and bass have become lead instruments.

I played in a rock band in the late 90's. We specialized in classic rock. We were a big hit! I thought it was our overall sound. After I quit the band (due to musical taste differences) I went to the Elks club where the band without me was playing. I remember how let down I felt that out front, all you could hear was bass and drums (mostly drums). All that work I put in learning Skynyrd licks and lyrics only to find out, nobody ever hear me anyway.

That was it for me and bands with loud drummers. From now on, my drummer will be in a box where I can control him and don't have to pay him.

Joe
User avatar
Ken Thompson
Posts: 357
Joined: 13 Aug 2004 12:01 am
Location: Great Falls, Montana, USA

Post by Ken Thompson »

Joe, you have hit on a point that I have made several times on these kinds of threads. Unless you go way back to the 50s and some of the 60s, and I have to admit, I was pretty young then, country music has always had music that I found to be too pop and/or rock sounding.

My point is this; I like the traditional sounding three or four chord, lots of steel, 4x4 beat, or tear in my beer balad, no matter what decade it is in. We still have some of them but we have to listen to a lot of fluff to get to them. I hear that same fluff on our AM station and have to wait for the good ones there also.

You point on the Dave & Sugar music is right on the mark. I didn't like it all in the 70s and 80's either.
User avatar
Joe Drivdahl
Posts: 849
Joined: 18 Oct 2003 12:01 am
Location: Montana, USA

Post by Joe Drivdahl »

Hey Ken,
Yup! Now we just have to wade through more pop than we used to maybe. There are really only two entertainers today keeping the faith: George Strait and Alan Jackson. I liked the oldie album Martina did a while back. So some things come along now and then, but you do have to listen to a lot of no-so-country music to get to it.

Hey do you know Dave Wilson and Jim Lynn(sp) who do the "Grassroots Gold" show? We get that 8:00 - 10:00 am on Saturday mornings. Its usually pretty good music.

Joe
Kevin Lange
Posts: 70
Joined: 1 Apr 2005 1:01 am
Location: Dickson, TN

Post by Kevin Lange »

A little over a month ago, I was in Nashville and had the opportunity to take in the Opry at the Ryman. It was the first time I had seen the Opry there, and it was a double pleasure because I got the chance to see my son Eddie, who has been playing steel with Bill Anderson for just about two years now, perform on that hallowed stage.

There was LOTS of great country music performed there that night, as there always is on the Opry stage. I saw and heard, Jimmy Dickens, Jim Ed Brown, Connie Smith, Marty Stuart, Bobby Osborne, Del McCoury, Bill Anderson and many others, as well as a "new" country artist or two.

It seems one of the biggest complaints here has to do with the television coverage of the Opry. The Tuesday Night Opry, Friday Night Opry and the Saturday Night Grand Ol' Opry are, and always have been so much more than that one hour TV show has ever shown. If you check any Opry line-up, you will find plenty of great country music to listen to. Remember, the Opry is a radio show that you can watch.

With regard to the "new" artists, the Opry has always been at the fore-front of promoting new talent. Ernest Tubb, Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzell, Marty Robbins, Jean Shepard, the list goes on and on, were at one time "new" artists to the Opry. Electric guitars, drums and pedal steel guitars were at one time new sounds on the Opry. I to wish some of the "new" artists were better singers and their music sounded more "classic", but I'm sure each passing generation has said the same thing.

I don't care for most of the "new country" all that much, but I do try to keep a bit of an open mind. If I like it, I'll listen to it, if I don't, I'll shut it off. I figure that's why there's a knob on my radio and television to change stations. If enough people stop watching or listening, those media will make a change. So far, there must be money being made the way they are doing it, or they would have changed by now. Presently, there seem to be a number of places for people to find the music they like. There's satellite radio, reissues of many, many classic albums and commercial radio at least playing some blocks of classic music all over the country.

I am the program director and Saturday morning DJ for a small classic country radio station here in Sauk Rapids, MN. 90% of our playlist is 20+ years old, with the balance being newer tradtional sounding country. I am also involved with three bands that perform predominately classic and traditional style country music here in central MN. We average playing about 10 nights a month. I have found there to be many different opinions as to what classic country music is. There are those who think country music died with Hank Williams, and those who think Alabama, Sawyer Brown, and the Charlie Daniels Band are Classic Country. I personally have no problem with either line of thinking. As already stated in this post, music is in the "ears" of the beholder. There are as many opinions of music as there are artists performing it. I think classic country is a sound, not a year.

What is it with the Opry? I think it's operating pretty much as it always has. After all, it is a business, and it's become a pretty good sized business. Like alot of you, I don't always agree with what goes on with the Opry, but there's not much I can do about, so I listen to what I like, then change the channel.

Kevin
Bobbe Seymour
Posts: 7418
Joined: 12 Jan 2001 1:01 am
Location: Hendersonville TN USA, R.I.P.
Contact:

Post by Bobbe Seymour »

Where do I join the Dennis Graves fan club?
Theresa Galbraith
Posts: 5048
Joined: 30 Sep 1998 12:01 am
Location: Goodlettsville,Tn. USA

Post by Theresa Galbraith »

Hey Steve,
It was great seeing you and Randy on the Opry again! :)
Carrie did a great job singing "I Told You So". She's amazing and I'm happy for her, she was very surprised! :)
User avatar
Stephen Winters
Posts: 135
Joined: 4 Oct 2002 12:01 am
Location: Scobey, Mississippi, USA
Contact:

Post by Stephen Winters »

Kevin Lange wrote:A little over a month ago, I was in Nashville and had the opportunity to take in the Opry at the Ryman. It was the first time I had seen the Opry there, and it was a double pleasure because I got the chance to see my son Eddie, who has been playing steel with Bill Anderson for just about two years now, perform on that hallowed stage.

There was LOTS of great country music performed there that night, as there always is on the Opry stage. I saw and heard, Jimmy Dickens, Jim Ed Brown, Connie Smith, Marty Stuart, Bobby Osborne, Del McCoury, Bill Anderson and many others, as well as a "new" country artist or two.

It seems one of the biggest complaints here has to do with the television coverage of the Opry. The Tuesday Night Opry, Friday Night Opry and the Saturday Night Grand Ol' Opry are, and always have been so much more than that one hour TV show has ever shown. If you check any Opry line-up, you will find plenty of great country music to listen to. Remember, the Opry is a radio show that you can watch.

With regard to the "new" artists, the Opry has always been at the fore-front of promoting new talent. Ernest Tubb, Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzell, Marty Robbins, Jean Shepard, the list goes on and on, were at one time "new" artists to the Opry. Electric guitars, drums and pedal steel guitars were at one time new sounds on the Opry. I to wish some of the "new" artists were better singers and their music sounded more "classic", but I'm sure each passing generation has said the same thing.

I don't care for most of the "new country" all that much, but I do try to keep a bit of an open mind. If I like it, I'll listen to it, if I don't, I'll shut it off. I figure that's why there's a knob on my radio and television to change stations. If enough people stop watching or listening, those media will make a change. So far, there must be money being made the way they are doing it, or they would have changed by now. Presently, there seem to be a number of places for people to find the music they like. There's satellite radio, reissues of many, many classic albums and commercial radio at least playing some blocks of classic music all over the country.

I am the program director and Saturday morning DJ for a small classic country radio station here in Sauk Rapids, MN. 90% of our playlist is 20+ years old, with the balance being newer tradtional sounding country. I am also involved with three bands that perform predominately classic and traditional style country music here in central MN. We average playing about 10 nights a month. I have found there to be many different opinions as to what classic country music is. There are those who think country music died with Hank Williams, and those who think Alabama, Sawyer Brown, and the Charlie Daniels Band are Classic Country. I personally have no problem with either line of thinking. As already stated in this post, music is in the "ears" of the beholder. There are as many opinions of music as there are artists performing it. I think classic country is a sound, not a year.

What is it with the Opry? I think it's operating pretty much as it always has. After all, it is a business, and it's become a pretty good sized business. Like alot of you, I don't always agree with what goes on with the Opry, but there's not much I can do about, so I listen to what I like, then change the channel.

Kevin
Kevin,
Great post. I totally agree. By the way, I think Bill Anderson has one of the finest bands in country music....and your son always plays magnificently.
Stephen Winters
ZumSteel, Sho-Bud Pro1
Peavey Nashville 112
User avatar
Ben Jones
Posts: 3356
Joined: 12 Dec 2005 1:01 am
Location: Seattle, Washington, USA

Post by Ben Jones »

I guess I'm wondering if the good old country that we all miss ever really existed at all? I mean with all the big instrumentations even the most country song becomes a show tune.
Joe-check out the Johnny Cash show dvd that was just released. Some amazing country performances on there...course that was over thirty years ago now so yeah...guess you gotta go back a ways...

where/when did country get lost? well I'm not sure but I do remember in 1986 or so...Hank Jr. coming out with this live album that was all loud rock guitar solos and stadium stage antics...that was the first time i heard "country" music and thought "wow..this is COUNTRY?".

of course I know NOTHING about country music so take those comment for what their worth...next to zero.
User avatar
Donna Sherrard Williams
Posts: 194
Joined: 20 Nov 2000 1:01 am
Location: Louisville, Ky.

Post by Donna Sherrard Williams »

Well I just think maybe..... POBODY IS NERFECT :roll: so I reckon we will just love the Opry and Country Music irregardless of who comes and goes because we all know in our hearts that without STEEL .... it ain't country.... and without sour notes... it ain't human I reckon ... Nuff said.... :D
Post Reply