Concert Venues

The Growth of Country Music-Country music originated from the old folk music that the pioneers sang and played as they settled across the country. They used wagon trains. That is where a group of people drive their wagons across the country is a single file trying to go further west. At night they would get together and the ones that could play fiddles, banjo, and guitars, would play and make up songs about their experiences on the trail.

Then came along people like the Carter family and Jimmy Rodgers (the singing brakeman) and they came up with a newer style of country songs. Still everything was acoustical, no electrical instruments. When wannabe singers heard Jimmy Rodgers, they all wanted to sing like him. His singing had confidence and you could hear it.

The Grand ole Opry started broadcasting in 1925. This let millions of people hear folk and country music all across the country. The Louisiana Hayride started in 1948 and a lot of singers got their start there. These radio shows made a lot of young kids want to sing, and a lot of them did come on and make stars, each bringing a new style to country music. Recording companies then didn’t want you to sound like somebody else, they want your sound. If they liked it you got a contract.

When Hank Williams was on the hayride, I had a good friend playing for the hayride. He was playing when Hank had seven encores for lovesick blues. Then everybody wanted to sound like Hank Williams. Hank was top dog, then came Elvis to knock him off the mountain. Of course Hank had died before Elvis made it. Still Hank was on top after his death.

Every year country progresses to something new. Still there’s a lot of people that don’t progress with it. A lot still prefer the old traditional kind of country. That’s what makes the world go around.