Ken Burns' COUNTRY MUSIC Documentary

I thought the last episode was fairly well done, even though it ended with a slide show of all post-1996 country performers (without identifying any of them, which was a little annoying). But that may be my ignorance; if I'd known nothing about the music, I might have thought the last episode of Jazz was fine. Also, for as much as they focused on the commercial success of each artist, George Strait didn't get much coverage, despite having 60 (!) number one hits.

Were there any super-glaring omissions in the final episode?

Like many of you, I’m unsure how I can go on living now that I know George Jones once marketed women’s underwear called Possum Panties.

— Jon Wurster (@jonwurster) September 24, 2019

yeah that was a horrifying detail O_o

George's Secret

See the end of item 6 here:
https://www.neatorama.com/2015/06/17/10-Facts-You-Probably-Didnt-Know-About-the-Beatles/

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/simpsons/images/4/49/I_Love_Lisa_66.JPG/revision/latest?cb=20131017175029

Lots of good links on here, thanks. Here's the xpost excellent James Burton interview:
https://www.npr.org/2019/09/03/757066866/elvis-guitarist-james-burton-i-went-professional-when-i-was-14 with a mention of the new monster box Elvis: Live 1969.

lol Grisso.

Year he ascended the come-back launched in Ded. '68, subsuming country and all his other genres/subgenres, a la Dylan and The Band, electric Miles, etc.

Goddammit they skirted Glen Campbell entirely by classifying him as a pop singer and I’m fkn PISSED

― Squeaky Fromage (VegemiteGrrl), Tuesday, September 24, 2019 12:49 AM (fifteen hours ago)

I'm holding out hope that they return to Glen for "Rhinestone Cowboy" -- that was a giant hit. Perhaps it shows up in the Ronnie Milsap section where we see how popularized country had become by the mid-70s. Opportunity there to talk about his evolution from Square-Jawed Purveyor of Jimmy Webb Songs to Cocaine-Riddled Beardo Fighting With Tanya Tucker.

Aren’t there like two hours reserved at the end for Johnny Cash’s Rick Rubin comeback?

i always sort of thought of glen campbell as basically a pop star too, there i said it

Yes, Cash's Rubin recordings get a lot of time, though Rubin isn't interviewed, which is too bad -- it would've been nice to hear why he chose to work with Cash, and his perceptions of how Cash's fans, and the country audience at large, would receive the records. And no, they don't return to Glen Campbell; the only coverage he gets is the couple of sentences and few seconds of "Wichita Lineman" in episode 6 or 7.

"Country" and "pop" are the "this is Jazz" and "hey, that's not Jazz!" of this series, apparently.

Unless there was more in the front half of ep 4 (which I missed), but it seems like Jim Reeves and Ray Price got a similar treatment, except spread out in pithy bits over a couple of shows.

Cash's Rubin recordings get a lot of time

this is disappointing idgaf about those records personally

ray price was a giant

Indeed, glad I got to see him live when he finally ventured north after a long hiatus.

Think he was Hank Williams’s roommate for a bit and started out as kind of a Hank clone, beehive it or not.

They <did> mention that! Price was quite the Honky-Tonker before embracing balladeering.

Rick Kienzle's Southwest Shuffle: Pioneers of Honky-Tonk, Western Swing, and Country Jazz starts at a peak, then tracks the adaptation, or lack thereof, of adventurous country artists to the rise of rock & roll and The Nashville Sound and Countrypolitan, yeesh. Ray Price made a comeback into honky tonk with a strong beat, rallying the more mobile geezers and even some rock-tending kiddos---then he decided he did wanna go genteel, making his road dawg band learn them weepers (also sometimes crammed some lounge string players etc. into the clubs) And you out there in the audience, you better 'preciate it! Interesting story.
What the hell, he and the audience survived. Later did some good albums with his former teen bass player, Willie Nelson.

Was just trying to think of that book. Believe it may have a chapter on Jimmy Wyble.

Guy Clark!

No Doug Sahm, huh.

They did Ray Price dirty, no question

xpost Hi James, I don't remember there being a whole chapter about Jimmy Wyble, but he's def in there---says he got to play on the wonderful Frank Sinatra - Live in Australia With the Red Norvo Quintet (1959), which may have gotten lost; didn't come out 'til 97, on Blue Note, where it belongs. Everybody's so happy and excited, how can they do the lonely cosmic ballads right? Well, they do! Helps that it's also the many moods of Frank, and one of his jazziest ever, with no need for an orchestra. Jest doin' what comes natcherly.

Have they mentioned Freddy Fender?

Yeah. He and Johnny Rodriguez share a segment.

a highlight tonight was Billy Sherrill yelling at George Jones "that's 'Help Me Make It Through The Night' ... FOOL!" when Jones kept singing Kristofferson's melody while recording "He Stopped Loving Her Today"

For those who don't think of Glen Campbell as Country:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jah3hg119g

(Note: this time I spared you the British Guitarist Reacting to this)

So when Bob Wills interjects “Domino!” what the heck if anything does this mean exactly? Part of me wants to think it is some Victorian formulation for some more intense oath perhaps akin to Héctor Lavoe saying “diablo!”

(I want to believe!)

A minced oath, if you will. Oh, I think I just figured it out. D’oh!

Using George Jones' collapse into alcoholism and homelessness and resurrection with "He Stopped Loving Her Today" to frame the era of last night's episode was pretty masterful ... similar to how Cash's fall and redemption were covered in the previous episode. Also, Ray Benson's chortling while talking about the utter chaos of Willie's July 4th picnics was priceless. I also got chills with the Roy Acuff film on the screen being lifted to reveal the new Opry crowd. That was an all-time moment right there.

Controversial opinion perhaps: was Emmylou Harris necessary? or all the minutes devoted to Gram Parsons?

Gram had to be talked about to set up Emmylou, who was necessary. I would've spent less time doing that (with Gram), though.

I may be ignorant here, but the documentary posits her as a Turning Point in the '70s that I've never read anywhere (nor do her albums bear this out).

I would have given more than 60 seconds to the likes of Barbara Mandrell, Kenny Rogers, and Dottie West.

Mandrell was basically the female Marty Stuart ffs.

exactly!

Emmylou seems more relevant in this context than Gram, but it's a fair question why she gets so much time while other artists much more central to the 70s country charts are ignored or passed over too quickly.

One obvious example: Conway Twitty (though personally I'd rather hear Emmylou than Conway in his 70s loverman mode)

I was a wee boy in the 70s, so I don't know. I will say that the utter ubiquity of Emmylou records for cheap prices must mean they sold shitloads when released.

I guess Eddie Rabbitt is going to ignored entirely. Oh well.

i'm definitely not an expert but even i thought they spent a *lot* of time on Emmylou.

Emmylou is pretty important for setting the table for the New Tradionalists, helping popularize songs by Van Zandt & Crowell, and later on basically saving the Ryman from the, er, wrecking ball.

She also sold tons of records in the '70s to audiences outside the Country spectrum.

otoh I'm glad Rosanne Cash got a spot: a crucial precursor to hot country even if she prefers to be regarded for her Americana stuff.

Self XP Of course, I think it's also weird that they completely sidestepped Linda Ronstadt, unless Trio is covered in the finale.

Gauging the bent they're taking towards the modern era, I 100% expect Trio to be covered.

Hanging out at Guy Clark's house seems like a good time, btw.

Also, Hazel Smith reminds me so much of basically every woman on my mom's side of the family. Watching her speak is a joy. R.I.P.