Rural Country
Country music defined by its rural subject matter and homespun, down-to-earth sound — songs of farm life, small towns, dirt roads, hard work, and country values, carried on acoustic guitar, fiddle, and steel with plain, earnest vocals. The instrumentation is unpretentious and acoustic-leaning, tempos are easygoing, and the mood is sincere, nostalgic, and tied to place and land. Lyrics prize authenticity, simplicity, and the dignity of rural living.
History
Rural country is less a discrete scene than the enduring thematic core of the genre, present from the first hillbilly recordings of farm and mountain life through the Depression-era songs of the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers, which spoke directly to a rural audience. As Americans migrated to cities and factories in the mid-20th century, "country" music kept rural identity alive, and the theme was reinforced by the Grand Ole Opry's down-home image and by artists who sang the working farmer's experience.
Defining artists
Essential listening
- Green, Green Grass of Home — Porter WagonerSpotifyYouTube
- Thank God I'm a Country Boy — John DenverSpotifyYouTube
- Country Boy Can Survive — Hank Williams Jr.SpotifyYouTube
- Mountain Music — AlabamaSpotifyYouTube
- Don't Rock the Jukebox — Alan JacksonSpotifyYouTube
- Okie from Muskogee — Merle HaggardSpotifyYouTube
Sources
- Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
- Ken Burns' Country Music (PBS)
- AllMusic