I was on a thread on Facebook yesterday, and it was a pretty good threadline about a great piece of work about Hawkshaw Hawkins. However, I can tell you that there were many posts by people who felt that there was nothing redeeming about any recently made music, and others that felt that Garth Brooks and Shania Twain were responsible for the demise of Traditional Country Music.
As I ponder this, I think back to the way things used to be. Vernon Dalhart's recording of "The Wreck of the Old 97" eventually sold 7 million real records, and there is no telling how many it has sold when you add recordings and downloads today. That is a lot of records any way you cut the pie.
After Dalhart's single, there have been many singles and albums put out, but they normally didn't sell in the same huge amounts. In fact, the first CERTIFIED million seller album did not come until "The Outlaws" featuring Waylon, Willie, Jessi, and Tompall. After this feat came Randy Travis' "Storms of Life" which was the first million seller on 9 months sales by a solo artist.
After this came a rush of gold and platinum albums, with Garth and Shania leading the charge. I believe Shania sold over 25 million of some of her albums, and Garth sold as many as 17 million of one of his. Garth finally sold over 100,ooo,ooo albums before he 'retired'.
I have everything Garth did in that period of time, and though not all of it would qualify as traditional, and I don't consider it classic country, most of it is pretty good music. I rate "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damned Old)" and "I Know One" as two of the best cuts on ANY album. And for those 'purists' who think they know country music, "I Know One", written by Jack Clement and previously a hit for Charlie Pride, is one of the best country songs of all time. I also know for a fact that a lot of the 'stars' these people claim to 'know' or 'follow' loved Garth and his music. Roy Acuff, Johnny Russell, and Charlie Louvin all had a lot of respect for Garth.
As far as Shania Twain is concerned, I think she made a lot of good pop music. In fact, I have been on construction jobs singing along with her music, even though I don't consider it 'Traditional" or "Classic". I do believe that it is better than most pop, and especially rap.
The truth is Garth and Shania did not ruin country music, any more than the Elvis or the Beatles ruined pop music. The music these people made was attractive enough to the youngsters that the fans spent their disposable income on albums, concert tickets, and swag items from these artists. They knew how to market themselves in a way which brought them unprecedented fame and fortune.
Had these 'fans' or traditional and classic country put their money where there mouth is, chances are many of the stars of the past would still be played on mainstream radio today, and there would still be a Grand Ole Opry that wouldn't have to reach out to new artists today to fill the seats.
When it is all said and done, people forget that country music is an industry like all others. It is a 'for profit' enterprise. Where lies the greatest profit, there will be the majority of the investment. Anything else becomes a niche market.
Therefore, money, and the greed, graft, and corruption that accompany it, has helped to hurt the music that we all love, as it has also destroyed our country in the past few decades. We can all look in the mirror and see some of the reasons our music and our country are hurting right now.
I know many of you are like me, if you come to this site. You are retired or have limited resources, due to the economy, job situation, or whatever. But if you are going to spend your bucks, spend them on something you need, and then on something that really is close to your heart. I will make all of my purchases of music and related items such as tickets, and swag, show how I "steel" feel about traditional and country music.
