• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Worst songs on country radio

vchimp,

That song is called "Smoke A Little Smoke" by Eric Church.
 
Casey said:
Taylor Swift is the most played artist of 2010 with 1.128 million airplays across all genres. I don't know what most people here think, but this seems a little excessive.

Wow I know the numbers were up there.1.128 million airplays I like have 3 cents per airplay.
 
Casey said:
Taylor Swift is the most played artist of 2010 with 1.128 million airplays across all genres. I don't know what most people here think, but this seems a little excessive.

typical radio over indulgence, and over kill. a new teeny pop star gets hot, and radio milks it for everything its worth with a mega high rotation feeding frenzy. the record company is eager to feed the fire with more dry kindling. then the other record companys try to get on board with their own copy cat version fed to the countrypolitan market. but, like dry kindling, manufactured pop burns quick and hot, and there is not much to keep it going. in short order, burn out takes over, and the mediocre pre manufactured pop star is short lived at best. how many times have we seen this go down through the years? while i dont have anything against taylor swift for the most part, other than she aint hardly country. i question the manufactured country radio frenzy involved. aint she like won
some female vocalist and entertainer awards at CMA?(i hardly follow that pop country award jive no more).sorry but it aint country. case closed!

for the record, gimme tanya tuckers teenage girl hard core country in the mid 70's("heres some love","blood red and goin down", and pecos promenade") any day over todays pop production taylor swift
countrypolitan........
 
Thanks for mentioning Tanya Tucker-Here's Some Love. That was one of the first country songs I liked when I was a boy. Then years later in the early 90s I got to play it as a gold and always looked forward to it. What a good song.

As for Taylor Swift, personally I do like some of her songs. But I want to know what the P1 country listeners think of her. She has become a core artist at many country stations but do country listeners really like her that much? Do they consider her one of their favorites? Has there been any kind of backlash recently? I would guess that there would have to be some listeners that don't care for her, especially middle aged men.

What I hear too much of is Hollywood style gossip about Taylor Swift's personal life. Hearing every little tidbit about her personal life adds to the overkill/oversaturation. In general I miss the days when radio didn't talk about the artists so much.
 
Alan McCall said:
vchimp,

That song is called "Smoke A Little Smoke" by Eric Church.
Okay, thanks. This is one of many songs that could be salvaged if done right.

Another of the worst songs would have to be "Wildflower" by the JaneDear Girls.
 
around 50% of the current country top 40, is so bland pop produced, its an embarassment to call it country. but, those who know their country music, know this has been going on for decades. it seems the desire to put out bland pop for the masses must be a temptation more powerful than drugs. in fact, in the early 80's several songs stunk up the charts: sylvia-snapshot, barbara mandrell-crackers-sleepin single,ronnie milsap-almost like a song. just to name a few. thank God ricky skaggs, randy travis, john conlee, reba, dwight, steve earle, gave us some real beef on the charts by the mid 80's, instead of soy beans.
 
vchimpanzee said:
Alan McCall said:
vchimp,

That song is called "Smoke A Little Smoke" by Eric Church.
Okay, thanks. This is one of many songs that could be salvaged if done right.

Another of the worst songs would have to be "Wildflower" by the JaneDear Girls.

We disagree on "Wildflower". That is one of my favorite country currents. The vocalist appeals to me, I find her confidence to be sexy and attractive. The lyrics are cliche but cute. It will never be considered a classic or a great piece of art but the song is catchy and fun to listen to
 
I wonder if a new Country network could be formed that would push nothing but real country music. Something that would give the music industry a chance to revive country music and radio stations that wish to play country music an outlet to do so, I guess they would have to call real country music since today's so called country music is so messed up and blured, mixed, screwed up with other types of music that there is very little country music left in it at least on the radio and TV. This is a real problem when stations like mine try to keep a "real" country format with a lite mix of today's country and have an almost impossible task of finding new country music that still sounds like country music. A new country outlet "real country" that would allow current country singers/preformers to do some real country music and promote it to the music industry so that that part of the general public that is basically being ignored in the music industry could have some new "real" country music to listen to. This group of the population is really still pretty large and covers many age groups, all you have to do is read different posts on the internet to tell the truth of the matter. Some will argue what is real country? The answer is simple if you don't feel it, live it, understand it and know what I mean then your not country and neither is the music you try to call country music. If it ain't country then it just ain't country music and all the mixes of other music types into country music should be called something different so that country music could maybe have a chance to return to our lives once again, it is diffently missed by a whole lot of people that the music industry could be serving but has decided not to do. Maybe someone will come along and shake thing up and start a new outlet to serve this large group of the population, I sure hope so.
 
Gatekeeper007 said:
I wonder if a new Country network could be formed that would push nothing but real country music.

Depends on what you call "real country music." I hear people call Americana "real country music," but all I see are former rock stars like Robert Plant and Levon Helm singing roots music. Is that "real country music?" If you study what country music was originally, it's white man's blues. That's what Hank Williams called it, based on Appalachian folk music and Jimmie Rodgers. Is that "real country music?" Then it took a hard turn in the 40s with the popularization of the crooners like Eddy Arnold. What that "real country music?" Then it contemporized itself again with Countrypolitan, starting with Patsy Cline and Brenda Lee. Was that "real country music?"

The reason why country has been "blurred, mixed, screwed up with other types of music," is because THAT is what country music is. It's not a pure, monolythic genre, it's a melting pot. That's what led to the outlaw movement of the 70s, and why Hank Williams Jr. because as popular as his father, but with a different audience. Some people are looking for purity, and they're bothered by a melting pot. It dilutes the gene pool. But that's the heart of America, and that's why country music is still alive after all these years, even though it bears little resemblence to country music from 50 years ago.

Anyway, you want a "country network that pushes real country music?" Take your pick. There are lots of them. But you have to do some work and find them. There are five choices on Sirius XM, so I'm sure one of them will work for you. Citadel syndicates "Real Country," which is a classic format from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Dial-Global has Mainstream Country, which combines classic country with current hits. And then you can simply listen to the Country Legend, WSMONLINE.com, and hear country music the way Roy Acuff saw it, with traditional country, bluegrass, and roots music.
 
the problem with the loss of real country music through the years, one could point the finger at the elite gate keepers(music consultants, record company producers, radio program directors etc) which control the flow of music to the major market country radio stations. it is the logic of thinking that pop produced cotton candy(carrie underwood) will have more instant appeal, than hard core country meat and potatoes(amber digby) to the average quarter hour listener, which major market country stations aim for. also, the elite major market country outlets, with its music consultants flexing muscle, set the trend, and control the chart songs for the most part. the end result is a lot of cotton candy/eye candy contrived acts, stinking up the charts. as the decades have gone by, the country music knowledge of the average major market listener is so tainted, that real country stands little chance to have a major impact. but, i never give up hope. because there is always a glimmer of hope here and there. occasionally, you will see a real genuine bonified country song/artist make the charts. jamie johnson, and sunny sweeny are a couple to speak of right now. a few years ago, we had daryle singletary, and leanne womack make the AAA grade. unfortunatly, after a few hits those artists were gone off the charts thanks to the idiot gate keepers, who controlled the music rotations. my hope is that pre 30 year old country listeners will take a liking to the real stuff, as they hear it, and eventually dig deep enough on their own to discover the real deals like george jones, vern gosdin, don williams, tammy wynette, patty loveless, randy travis,loretta lynn, and even the mel streets, and leona williams hard core stuff. i truly believe that this real country stuff can work,but it needs rotation baby! and the question is, who can give it the roatation in this environment which is so polluted with bland pop via large corporate media outlets, and a mostly now country uneducated listening base.
 
scott salvatori said:
the problem with the loss of real country music through the years, one could point the finger at the elite gate keepers(music consultants, record company producers, radio program directors etc) which control the flow of music to the major market country radio stations.

I really disagree with this.

There has been NO LOSS of "real country music." It continues to be made and heard every day. Alan Jackson, George Strait, Brad Paisley (who happens to be the CMA Entertainer of the Year), Chris Young, Joe Nichols, and hundreds more continue to get radio airplay every day. Lee Ann Womack hasn;t released any new music in two years. When she does, it gets airplay and award nominations.
 
by the way mr 007, much of todays country music spewed out via the charts i call "countrypolitan" cause it aint country. occasionally, ill come upon some young fellers (early 20's) beer drinkin' in a parking lot, listening to the latest contrived pop/rock produced countrypolitan muzak with the usuall superficial rednecked themed song about bonfires, or pickup trucks. i like to ask them if they ever heard of david allen coe, or waylon jennings, or hank jr, or willie, or johnny paycheck, or even shooter jennings, or hank III. if the boys are all ears to my jawin' away on the subject, ive even been known to give out a hank III CD, in an effort to learn em up, as to who the real deals are, and who the contrived major market radio pushed acts are. rememeber, we can learn em up one or two, or three at a time. cause you know, they will also spread the music as well.......
 
TheBigA said:
scott salvatori said:
the problem with the loss of real country music through the years, one could point the finger at the elite gate keepers(music consultants, record company producers, radio program directors etc) which control the flow of music to the major market country radio stations.

I really disagree with this.

There has been NO LOSS of "real country music." It continues to be made and heard every day. Alan Jackson, George Strait, Brad Paisley (who happens to be the CMA Entertainer of the Year), Chris Young, Joe Nichols, and hundreds more continue to get radio airplay every day. Lee Ann Womack hasn;t released any new music in two years. When she does, it gets airplay and award nominations.

much of those artists are fine. alan jackson, is a true hero of country music! anytime you dig deep into the albums, you can find some good country. but, most times, the single releases from those artists, are more watered down country production for the mass market. okay, but "really disagree"? how can you say "no loss". i can really notice the loss, when im forced to listen to big city slicker country radio stations cause someone is force feeding my personal space with it.
 
scott salvatori said:
how can you say "no loss". i can really notice the loss, when im forced to listen to big city slicker country radio stations cause someone is force feeding my personal space with it.

Percentage-wise, the amount of traditional country music on the radio today is no different than when George Jones shared the airwaves with Anne Murray, Olivia Newton John, and John Denver.

It's been my experience that country music has been far more embracing and more tolerant of other styles and approaches to music than any other genre. You go to the Grand Ole Opry, and on any given night, you can hear bluegrass, cajun, gospel, outlaw, rock, blues, traditional country, and even some soul music. I saw Don Ho there one night. Country people are friendly and open to all kinds of people and music. George Jones considers Kenny Chesney one of his good friends. Hank Jr. considers Kid Rock the son he never had. Alan Jackson has said many times how much he admires the songwriting of Taylor Swift. That is the spirit and feeling of country music.
 
you bring up some decent points. country music is ever evolving. if you go back to some of the mid/late 70's, there was even some disco influence mixed in with country, paychecks 'freind,lover,wife', and bill andersons 'double S'. i for one love all the country music evolutions from past to present day. what i dont like, and can spot like a three dollar bill is soul less country. very pop influenced cheese wiz, that mysteriously gets mega rotation, and is superficially brought to the top of the charts by what seems to be one big infomercial for the nashville cookie cutteresque elite recording industry gate keepers.

by the way, i always hated kid rock, and wondered why my peeps like hank jr coddled this foul mouthed rap/rock noise maker punk. well, in the last few years ive seen this boys music evolve from pathetic noise, to stuff that ranks up there with lynyrd skynyrd, and john mellencamp. yep, i need to get that new kid rock CD!

BIG A you bring up some decent comments.
 
TheBigA said:
scott salvatori said:
the problem with the loss of real country music through the years, one could point the finger at the elite gate keepers(music consultants, record company producers, radio program directors etc) which control the flow of music to the major market country radio stations.

I really disagree with this.

There has been NO LOSS of "real country music." It continues to be made and heard every day. Alan Jackson, George Strait, Brad Paisley (who happens to be the CMA Entertainer of the Year), Chris Young, Joe Nichols, and hundreds more continue to get radio airplay every day. Lee Ann Womack hasn;t released any new music in two years. When she does, it gets airplay and award nominations.
Is this the same Lee Ann Womack whose "I Hope You Dance" was on the AC charts for so long we had to wonder if anyone was actually paying attention to what was there?
 
TheBigA said:
Gatekeeper007 said:
I wonder if a new Country network could be formed that would push nothing but real country music.

Depends on what you call "real country music." I hear people call Americana "real country music," but all I see are former rock stars like Robert Plant and Levon Helm singing roots music. Is that "real country music?" If you study what country music was originally, it's white man's blues. That's what Hank Williams called it, based on Appalachian folk music and Jimmie Rodgers. Is that "real country music?" Then it took a hard turn in the 40s with the popularization of the crooners like Eddy Arnold. What that "real country music?" Then it contemporized itself again with Countrypolitan, starting with Patsy Cline and Brenda Lee. Was that "real country music?"

The reason why country has been "blurred, mixed, screwed up with other types of music," is because THAT is what country music is. It's not a pure, monolythic genre, it's a melting pot. That's what led to the outlaw movement of the 70s, and why Hank Williams Jr. because as popular as his father, but with a different audience. Some people are looking for purity, and they're bothered by a melting pot. It dilutes the gene pool. But that's the heart of America, and that's why country music is still alive after all these years, even though it bears little resemblence to country music from 50 years ago.

Anyway, you want a "country network that pushes real country music?" Take your pick. There are lots of them. But you have to do some work and find them. There are five choices on Sirius XM, so I'm sure one of them will work for you. Citadel syndicates "Real Country," which is a classic format from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Dial-Global has Mainstream Country, which combines classic country with current hits. And then you can simply listen to the Country Legend, WSMONLINE.com, and hear country music the way Roy Acuff saw it, with traditional country, bluegrass, and roots music.
There's also Classic Hit Country. By the way, Citadel's channel, unless they changed it, has the occasional new song.
 
vchimpanzee said:
Is this the same Lee Ann Womack whose "I Hope You Dance" was on the AC charts for so long we had to wonder if anyone was actually paying attention to what was there?

Yes and by the way, Lee Ann received an Academy of Country Music nomination for Female Vocalist even though she hasn't released anything recently. And Martina McBride wasn't nominated for anything.
 
I began listening to country music while I was just a kid, and basically never stopped. Even in high school, while my peers were always listening to Top 40, I was a fan of country. Seeing such artists as Tom T. Hall, Connie Smith, Freddy Weller and others at the ripe old age of 14 just made me like it more.

My Internet station began as just a hobby, as I had a full-time gig in radio when I started it.
Now that I'm working with my station full time, came the inevitable "classic country vs. new country" question.

I do play new country, as we are a reporting station to a couple of charts. However, I also have a lot of classic country mixed in - I play everything from Eddy Arnold "Bouquet of Roses" from around 1948 to the current music of today. I'm also targeting Tallahassee, North Florida, and South Georgia, as opposed to a 24-hour looped playlist aimed at "whomever." I'm doing a daily 4-hour local show, with a good deal of that music being local favorites with even some regional artists getting airplay.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom