Country & Western Roots of Rock and Roll

Original Folk/CountryEarly Sources: English Scottish

BalladsFolk Song Collector Francis James

Child, found English ballads. Published 1882-98

Childs Ballads often referred to by number

Early Irish Settlers kept music alive

Appalachian Mountain BalladsOld Songs Kept Alive by Mountain

SettlersJean Ritchie, dulcimer, Sang

Songs With Her FamilyBA Sociology, Moved to New York

1946Brought Her Family Songs To

NYC: Lead Belly, Pete Seeger, Oscar Brand

Jean Ritchie & Dulcimer

1st Country Recording1922 Eck Robertson & Henry

Gilliland recorded Turkey in the Straw (Zip Coon)

1923 Ralph Peer recorded on location he discovered Fiddlin’ John Carson

1927 Peer recorded in Bristol TN & discovered the Carter Family & Jimmie Rodgers

The Carter FamilyOne of the Most Popular Acts

from 1927-1936.Broke up in 1936, Maybelle

Carter performed with her Daughters

Maybelle Carter, thumb-brush guitar style

June Carter became a regular Grand Ole Opry

Married Johnny Cash

Jimmie RodgersFather of Country Music, The

Singing Brakeman.Worker on the railroad, collected

African-American songs from workers

Blue Yodel, or T For Texas (blues without the response)

Died 1933 at age 35

Country HarmonyThe Sound of Country Harmony

likely came from Shaped-Note Singing (Sacred Harp)

Religious Songbooks used different shaped notes to indicate harmony.

Shaped-Note Music

Barn Dance Radio ShowsNational Barn Dance, WLS

Chicago, 1924Grand Ole Opry, WSM Nashville,

1925National Life & Accident

InsuranceWSM = We Shield MillionsSeveral Locations, 1940 The

Ryman Auditorium1970s Opry House, Opryland

Hotel & Convention Center

Western Music/Cowboy SongsJohn Lomax, Cowboy Songs and

Other Frontier Ballads (1911)1st Recorded Cowboy Song Carl T

Sprague, When The Work’s All Done This Fall

The Hollywood Singing Cowboy, Sons of the Saddle (1930)

John Wayne started as Singing Cowboy (1933)

Western Music cont.Singing Cowboys:Gene Autrey, 1935 a serial The

Phantom Empire (outer space and cowboys).

Roy Rogers (Leonard Sly) Song of the Pioneers led to Movie & TV Career with Dale Evans.

Both Autrey and Rogers had TV Shows

Western SwingA Combination of Swing and

CowboyString Band with Trumpets,

Saxophones, and Drums1931 Burrus Mill & Elevator

Company started the Light Crust Doughboys

Bob Wills & the Playboys; Bob Wills left the Doughboys in 1931 and formed the Playboys

BluegrassA Stylized version of Old Time Country

musicInstrumentation: Fiddle, Mandolin, Banjo,

Guitar, String BassVocals feature high male harmony, High

Lonesome SoundMonroe considered Father of BluegrassMonroe Brothers recorded 60 songs

19363-8Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys

formed 1939 played Grand Ole Opry

BluegrassWell-Known Bluegrass: Stanley

Brothers, Flatt & Scruggs

Honky TonkOrigin of the term is vague:1889 there was a theater in Ft Worth, TX called Honky Tonk TheaterTexas/Oklahoma Bar featuring

music Move off Farm for Urban

Employment & Breakdown of Family Structure

Honky Tonk cont.Bands: Steel Guitar & Fiddle are

Featured Themes: Alcohol, Adultery, Lost

Love, Loneliness Floyd Tillman, Hank Williams,

George Jones, Ernst Tubb, Hank Thompson