Why I love country music

Hat Tip to Michelle Malkin on this one. This is a transcript of Jeff Foxworthy hosting the CMT awards. Michelle has to preface her video post with “I don’t really like country music BUT…”

That caveat is so lame and gets really old. I didn't like country music either when I was 19 and getting ready to study jazz in college...I feel different now that I am a little more mature.

Most people who say they don't like it usually do not listen to it beyond the first note and haven’t since 1969. They don’t even know it is pretty much what Southern Rock was back in the late 70’s…only tighter, better produced but with a little twang.

Most country music (not all) has lot of family values thrown in. So if you don't have children or a home of your own to protect, you might not like it. But as you mature, it will grow on you.

Country music is about family, God, love, children, and sacrifice…with a little bit of sin songs thrown in for spice. To each his own, but I just get really tired of people saying "I really don't like country music" but did you hear that one song?

I also like Contemporary Christian music but so much of it is very poorly produced. Country music production is top notch…downright perfect musically in many ways.

Musically I used to think country music was easy to play (when I was 20), or not challenging. Now I know better. As a drummer, playing a top 40 country tune from opening to ending perfectly like the record is a tough thing to do and not many can do it that well. Sure it may be 4/4 beat, not worthy of Coltrane but the songs are good, some of them are really good.

Michelle ought to tune in…I think she could be persuaded. If she liked Foxworthy’s speech…she would like County Music.

So.. I pretty much agree with Jeff, and here is what he said, I’ll try and type the slang, just like he says it.

I like country music because it’s about the things in life that really matter. It ain’t about braggin about how your gonna mess somebody up or about how somebody ain’t respectin ya. It’s about love, family, friends, with a few beers…. With a cheap woman and two timin’ man thrown in for spice.

It doesn’t take political sides even on things as ugly as war. Instead it celebrates the men and women who go to fight em, the price they pay to do it, and the longing we have for them to return home to the ones that they love.

It’s about kids and how there ain’t nothing like em. I get tired of hearin about how bad kids are today because there are a lot of great kids out there that just need somebody to love em and believe in em. Country folks love their kids and they will jack you up if you try to mess with em.

People in country music don’t forget the people that allowed them to do what they do for a living. They sign autographs and they take pictures with the fans because they know without em, most of us entertainers would be getting a lot dirtier in the course of our workday. We are thankful that people want to hear the songs and the jokes that we write.

Country music doesn’t have to be politically correct. We sing about God because we believe in Him. We’re not trying to offend anybody, but the evidence that we have seen of him in our small little lives trumps your opinion about whether or not He exists.

We love country music because it touches us where we live. It’s about mammas. and when they were hot, and when they are unappreciated and when they were dying.

It’s about daddies and the difficulties they have telling the people they work so hard to protect and provide for how they feel about them.

Country music is about new love and it’s about old love. It’s about getting drunk and it’s about getting sober. It’s about leavin’ and it’s about comin’ home. It’s real music, sung by real people FOR real people. The people that make up the back bone of this country.

You can call us rednecks if you want, we’re not offended, ‘cause we know what we are all about. We get up and go to work, we get up and go to church and we get up and go to war when necessary.

All we ask for is a few songs to carry us along the way and that’s why I love this show (the CMT music awards.) Because it ain’t some self-important Hollywood hype where the winners are determined by somebody else. On this show, YOU decide who goes home with the trophy and YOU get to dance and sing along with the people that bring you the songs of your life. – Jeff Foxworthy CMT awards 2007