I grew up thinking there was just one thing - music. I didnt know types. I lsat with my Dad and listened to Johnny Horton, Hank Williams, the Beatles, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles.
to me it was all the same. As I grew up I got into blues, metal and heavily into jazz. While studying jazz, my teacher was a record collector and we talked for hours about early country players, much of the music I grew up on. I dont like today's country or most country made in the last 30 years or so. The old stuff featured fantastic hook song writing, excellent musicianship. these guys were raised on blues, swing, rockabilly and folk music and it was refeclted in there music. The best part is, they didnt require studio effects and major producing, they sounded great live. The steel pedal kills me.So have an open mind, and check these out. Some of my all time favorites.
List to the musicianship, song writing and harmonies.
Buck Owens - Don Rich, inventing the "twang" of a tele
Johnny Horton - you know his tunes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1Ygm9bvjUE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfSPneMXCgk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lydLUrEIR_I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnJL4ErQK8k

Then theres the "new" guys playing the old music
Big Sandy and the Flyrite boys - I've seen them 25+ times
these guys can play

The Derailers, playing Bakersfield style.

I love this stuff!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQbMpcdFQ4w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q27F4srofg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS3OGwYG520

Come on RIRockhound.........as George Clinton said - free your mind and your ass will follow

Jim;
I can dig it, and do listen to a bit of 'modern' rockabilly on occasion (Stray Cats and Setzer...)
My mind is always open on music, just not politics :D

nice Jim..

nice clean sound

I never would have known this stuff even existed,let alone make such an impression on you.I appreciate you sharing that with me.One other thing I took away from this post.
Music was impressed on me at a young age,thanks to my much older sisters.Your dad must have been or still is a hell of a guy.

I never would have known this stuff even existed,let alone make such an impression on you.I appreciate you sharing that with me.One other thing I took away from this post.
Music was impressed on me at a young age,thanks to my much older sisters.Your dad must have been or still is a hell of a guy.

Thanks, that means a lot. I once heard a quote, there are two kinds of music, good music and bad music.
My Dad was an awesome, guy and although he never played an instrument he was a HUGE musical influence on me. we sat and listened to music for hours. Harry Belafonte, Stonewall Jackson, Della Reese. when I was older, I would blast Zeppelin or Hendrix and he never put it down.
My Dad was an avid runner and believe it or not, his favorite band in his walkman was AC/DC. I had let him borrow a tape once and he loved it.
Most people dismiss country as hick music, but these guys listened to jazz and blues and were great players. If you believe the Ken Burns Jazz documentary, Charlie Parker ( to me the greatest jazz musician ever) used to put $ in the jukebox to listen to Hank Williams and other country songs because he loved the words.

heres one more for ya...
current guy - Junior Brown, pays a custom guit-steel. Fantastic player, great tunes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRMNeoaosQw