What matters most is it's YOUR voice. Scream until it's fucking gone. -- Dave Grohl
Friday, March 21, 2014
Even Cowboys Get the Blues Interlude, Or: You Gotta Be Kidding Me
I was feeling better this morning (thanks to a twelve-hour Benadryl coma) and still grooving on Townes Van Zandt so I figured he was the perfect segue into country songs about drugs and addiction. There was a particular song I was looking for but I couldn't remember the correct title so I did a search for "country songs about drugs" and ran across this article titled "What's With All These Country Songs About Drugs?" by Daryl Lang from 2011. Dude, my eyes rolled so hard I had to go find them. Lang's premise is clearly stated: "Kid Rock started it." Because, you know, when in doubt blame the rapper. Before I continue with this series I have one thing to say to Mr. Lang and all those moralizers uptight about drug references in country music but Hank Williams Jr. said it better than I ever could so here you go.
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Every second country music song has alcohol in it. I don't really buy the distinction between alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs. They're all drugs; they all carry the risk of addiction; they can all cause permanent physical or emotional damage. For cultural reasons, we make some arbitrarily legal and laugh at the use of some while others are illegal and the source of horror.
ReplyDeleteExactly. It's the stupid arbitrary lines that are drawn around how we get inebriated that are meant to keep some people "the other"
Deletethat just...I mean, really? When Johnny Cash burned down a national forest and nearly drove Condors into extinction he was drunk, not high, and that wasn't badass, it was asshole.
(or caffeine and nicotine, for that matter)
ReplyDeleteWhat? No moron designation for him? Ha!
ReplyDeleteI'm not that knowledgeable about country music and its themes. I guess the artists sing about what they know and experience--whether it involves relationships, addictions, work/money/life issues, etc.
There are certain songs or artists that I like--whatever the genre. And for country, I like The Dixie Chicks (*ducking*) and their songs, like Wide Open Spaces, etc.--and other artists with good voices and good songs. But I started a new bookmark in my music video folder for Country with your video entry here. So maybe I will discover more artists that I like.
Cheers! Grati ;->
Lol...it's not a stupid legal non-issue so no, no moron designation for him. No need to duck about the Dixie Chicks here, I love them, too. Don't even get me started on Country radio's decades long ban on k.d. lang, who I love. And I will happily feed you Country songs. :)
DeleteEven Poles get the Blues ;) Hope you're feeling better, Jazzy.
ReplyDeleteI am, thanks. Stick around, there'll be more blues coming. :)
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