(12.09.2004 - 5:58 p.m.)
In case you don't know, country music is unfashionable in the extreme in the UK. You'd be hard pressed to find many people who own up to liking it. It's hard to here much of it on the airwaves, unless you have a new fangled DAB digital doofery. So, for all us closet country fans, their are only two hours of radio where we can get our fix, both hours of which appear on the hugely unfashionable BBC Radio 2. Again, for those of you that don't know, Radio 2 has a reputation for bland programming aimed at 30-somethings and grandparents. But I like it. As a percentage of total output, I would say that Radio 2 plays more music that I like than it's sister station, BBC Radio 1 (which is full of that latest pop tunes, and is squarely aimed a teenagers and early 20-somethings.) On a Wednesday, between 7 and 8pm, there is a country show hosted by Nick Barraclough. Then, on a Thursday, at the same time, is Bob Harris' Country. Most of the tunes that Nick plays are in the more traditional vein: your Dolly's, Tammy's and Emmylou's. A lot of Bob's output is more modern, covering people like Sara Evans, say, or Mindy Smith. But, as you might expect, sometimes there is some crossover. And it was in fact on the Nick Barraclough show this week that I was turned on to the delight that is Big & Rich. I now know that there are many out there that dislike them in the extreme and feel that they are desecrating the legacy of country music, but damn, I think they're fantastic. It was on the same show that I was introduced to redneck genius that is Gretchen Wilson. Imagine how everything fell into place when I discovered that Big & Rich co-wrote a lot of Gretchen's songs. So I throw off my shackles, climb to the top of the mountain and tell it with the loudest voice I can muster: I love country music and I ain't ashamed to admit it.
Currently Spinning: Horse Of A Different Colour, Big & Rich
Link-O-Rama Link Of The Day: Big & Rich