LAZY SUNDAY # 487: GONE COUNTRY

A lot of people have trouble understanding my love of Country music. It just doesn't fit with the understated sophistication and intellectual acumen which are my trademarks. Which not only reveals how little they know me, but Country music as well.

There's as much depth and variety to Country as any other musical genre and maybe more than some. You just gotta find that part of the pasture with the grass that appeals to you. Trouble is, given the picture of Country folk that's always been a mainstay of the media (particularly Hollywood) most people don't bother to give it much of a listen.

I like to think I came to it honestly. My formative years were spent in rural Saskatchewan, where it was everywhere, with the same guys in pick-ups listening to Hank Snow and Marty Robbins were just as likely to pick up records by Perry Como and the Mills Brothers. 

It was just there. Another song on the only radio station you could get.

Later on, I lived in LA when "The Eagles" were taking flight, among other Country influenced artists like "Linda Ronstadt", "Kris Kristopherson","Poco", "Little Feat", "Loggins & Messina" or "The New Riders of the Purple Sage". And trust me, when your only alternatives were Disco or some lounge singer ruining "The Doobie Brothers", listening to those guys was way better.

More often, Country songs are stories, as the old Nashville radio adage goes -- "Listen long enough and somebody sings your life". But sometimes, it's just fun too.

Friday we lost two giants in the world of Country. Don Williams and Troy Gentry.

Williams (top photo) was in his late 70's. Long retired from a career that saw him top the charts 17 times and have much of his song writing covered by other top selling artists.

Gentry died when I helicopter ferrying him to a concert in New Jersey crashed. His Duo "Montgomery Gentry" formed in the 1990's with singing partner Eddie Montgomery also had a couple of decades of hits and Country Music Awards.

Each, in their own way, represented those two sides of Country music, the stories and the fun. 

If you enjoyed their artistry as much as I did, here's a sample of each. If you weren't a fan, have a listen to what you missed.

And -- Enjoy Your Sunday...