The Music That Built Me, Volume 14 - No Fences

Though it has grown considerably since my school days, Dickson, Tennessee was definitely a rural country town in 1990. Still, even being just an hour to Nashville, you were looked down upon to an extent if you were a country fan. You might get away with listening to Kenny Rogers, Alabama, or Hank Williams, Jr., but that was about it – even in 1990.

Then came Garth Brooks. The Oklahoma native blew upon the scene for the first time in the spring of 1989 with the ultra-traditional “Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old),” and quickly became one of the most talked about newcomers in quite a while. His follow-up, “If Tomorrow Never Comes” was the next-to-last number one of the 1980s, and he kicked off the new decade with “Not Counting You” and Tony Arata’s thought-provoking “The Dance.”

In the fall of 1990, Brooks released what would become his biggest hit to that point in his career – a rowdy, hell-raising epic titled “Friends In Low Places.” The song, which incidentally also appeared on Mark Chesnutt’s debut album Too Cold At Home, became the calling card Brooks used to jump into the A-List of Country stars, where he has stayed ever since. The song was one of the best kiss-off songs in the format’s history – all about a man who showed up intoxicated at his former lovers’ wedding. If you did or didn’t drink, it didn’t matter, chances are you felt like the outcast that the woman made the man feel in this song – and the fans latched on, as the record became a number one hit for a month in the fall of 1990, leading the way to the release of Brooks’ sophomore album, No Fences.

Though Brooks’ presentation – particularly with his live show – was cutting edge, his music – particularly that of his first three albums was country. Follow-up singles “Two Of A Kind, Workin’ On A Full House,” “Unanswered Prayers” and the blockbuster “The Thunder Rolls” helped to establish Brooks as THE hitmaker of his time.

But, No Fences didn’t end with just the songs you know. He tipped the hat to the 50s with a cover of “Mr. Blue,” waxed melancholy on the masterpiece “Same Ol’ Story” and delivered a stone-cold country performance for the ages with “New Way To Fly.” I heard somewhere that George Jones was going to cut this a few years after Garth. I wish he had, as he could have sang the heck out of it. As it were, Brooks didn’t do that bad with the song. Simply said, there wasn’t a miss on the entire album. While one could make the argument that Ropin The Wind, his 1991 follow-up to this disc, might have been a bit better (if not a bit more pop-influenced), the truth is that if you wanted to have a well-rounded musical collection, you needed both discs. But, if you leaned more toward the traditional sounds, No Fences was a pure classic.

Join me on Wednesday, September 2, as we look back on an album that changed the format – literally. No Fences is the featured album of the week as part of “The House That Built Me” musical series on “Crazy Chucky’s Classic Country Corner” on WNKX 96.7 FM in Centerville, TN. Showtime is 1pm, and as always, the program is brought to you by Tennessee Properties. So, go find your Brush Popper or your Mo’ Betta, and go back in time with me…..to one of the greatest Country albums of all time, celebrating its’ silver anniversary this year….

The House That Built Me, Volume 13: Trio

It was an album that had been in the making for years. In the 1970s, Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt appeared on Emmylou Harris’ recording of “Mister Sandman.” Needless to say, the blend of such three uniquely talented female vocalists made fans of all three artists hungry for a collaboration between the three. There was just one little problem. All three were signed to different labels, so the legalities of such a situation made an album impossible to pull off.

However, by 1986, both Harris and Ronstadt’s labels were under the same corporate umbrella, and Parton was in the midst of changing labels from RCA to Columbia – so the time for the collaboration was now. Needless to say, the three made the most of the long-awaited opportunity with the release of Trio in the spring of 1987.

If this album had been released five years later, it might not have had the commercial impact that it did. By 1992, Country Radio had ceased to play almost anyone over 40 for the most part. But the disc – and the singles all found favor with a mainstream audience. “To Know Him Is To Love Him,” a cover of a pop classic from The Teddy Bears, was the lead single – and subsequently topped the singles chart. The set’s other three singles, “Wildflowers,” “Telling Me Lies,” and the bluegrass-flavored “Those Memories Of You” all hit the top ten.

Looking back, the cool thing about Trio was that the disc served as a musical history lesson, of sorts. In addition to “To Know Him Is To Love Him,” the ladies brought a new shimmer to classics like “Hobo’s Meditation,” “Rosewood Casket,” and “My Dear Companion.” Parton also offered a preview of a reconciliation she was about to have with Porter Wagoner by including “The Pain of Loving You” (which she co-wrote with Wagoner) and “Making Plans” (a huge hit for the duo) on the collection.

Fans had been longing for the album for years, and the four million in total sales – plus a Grammy – proved to be well worth the wait. Trio will be the featured album of the week on “Crazy Chucky’s Classic Country Corner” on Wednesday, August 26 from 1-3pm on WNKX 96.7 FM. The show is brought to you by Tennessee Properties.

The House That Built Me, Volume 12 - Ricky Skaggs Is A "Bad Ass"

Pardon me for the use of this term, but I am using it to state a point. In 1983, Ricky Skaggs was the biggest “bad-ass” in Country Music. A one-time member of Ralph Stanley’s band (along with Keith Whitley), the Kentucky native had made a name for himself in the Bluegrass world over the late 1970s and early 1980s. With his signing to Epic in 1980 and the subsequent release of his Waitin’ On The Sun To Shine, he quickly became one of the biggest stars in the format.

But….how he did it is something else.

Skaggs managed to become one of the most successful artists of his time with a modern-day approach to traditional country – which was in itself, a novel concept. At the time, many of the top artists in the format were experiencing success with a more crossover based approach such as Anne Murray and Kenny Rogers. But, all of a sudden, you have this young kid on the radio with songs made famous by Webb Pierce and Flatt and Scruggs, among others. He did so with a rock-and-roll type swagger. Having seen his stage show during this time period, I’ve got to say that it was one of the best concerts I’ve ever seen. To simply call him “cool” or “hip” doesn’t begin to do him justice. If the current performers’ reliance on “Bro Country” has earned the moniker “Bad Ass” in terms of being a trend-setter, then make no mistake about it – Ricky Skaggs was a bad ass.

He might not have been any more so as he was on the 1983 album Don’t Cheat In Our Hometown. The set’s first single was an ultra-traditional take on a Stanley Brothers classic, and it became a number one record. The next single was a cover of Mel Tillis’ “Honey (Won’t You Open That Door),” which was also recorded by Pierce. In addition to being a hit recording artist, Skaggs was the eccentric history teacher that you wanted to have. He made the legends hip and cool. But, the third and final single might have very well been his most artistic statement – a sizzling version of Bill Monroe’s “Uncle Pen.” A bluegrass standard, the song hit the charts and kept climbing – all the way to number one. It was only the second bluegrass song to do so – and considering the fact that the first, “The Ballad Of Jed Clampett,” was from one of the biggest TV shows of the day in 1962, I tend to think of it as the first to do so on its’ own merits. Class was in session in 1983, and Skaggs was leading the way

And, there were other reasons to love this album. “Don’t Step Over An Old Love” and “A Vision of Mother.” He tipped the hat to Stonewall Jackson on a gorgeous version of “A Wound Time Can’t Erase,” and made his contribution to the Country Holiday sub-genre with “Children Go.” To call Don’t Cheat In Our Hometown as his best work might be a little pre-mature – because his catalog is so good – but it might be his biggest “bad ass” statement of all!

Don’t Cheat In Our Hometown will be the featured album as part of “The House That Built Me” series on Crazy Chucky’s Classic Country Corner on August 19 from 1-3pm on WNKX 96.7 FM. The show is brought to you by Tennessee Properties.