This is one of those songs where you know right away by the artists and title whether or not you’ll love it.
You’ll love it!
Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty - You’re The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly
http://www.lorettalynn.com

Call me an old cornball, but some songs just kind of give me the happy chills. Even if you don’t like this song, you have to appreciate the effort.
I’m a little wistful though, when I think about the ladies who left the country music behind. Maria McKee in the 80s, and k.d. lang in the [...]

Rest peacefully, Eddy.
Eddy Arnold - Cattle Call from whichever compilation you like — allmusic recommends the 1967 RCA collection The Best Of Eddy Arnold (amazon / itunes)

It’s Wednesday, which can mean only one thing: German Pop Day!
Today’s tune is in that sort of early-70s country-pop Olivia Newton-John vein, and it comes from Danish singer Gitte Hænning (known in Germany only as Gitte, possibly because there is no “æ” in German).
1974, kommen an Ihnen!
Gitte - So Schön Kann Doch Kein Mann Sein
And [...]

One of the miracles of popular music is when a songwriter expresses a feeling or a moment in a very specific way that rings true on a personal level. Not just the feeling of missing someone, or the joy of payday, but something very specific. Like being alone in a new town, sitting in a [...]

This one goes out to the fine folks at Pine State Biscuits, who filled my insides with glee twice last week and helped make my week in Portland as rockin’ as it were.
David “Stringbean” Akeman is one of the holy triumvirate of comic banjo players, along with Grandpa Jones and Uncle Dave Macon. He also [...]

For me, Jimmie Dale Gilmore stands as a prime example of why it’s important to see opening acts. I was hoping Willie Nelson wouldn’t just be foisting some MOR labelmate on us, and he came through. Jimmie Dale Gilmore went immediately into my mental file of “men with the voices of angels.”
These days, folks can [...]

When my wife and I went to the Country Music Hall Of Fame maybe ten years ago, there was an associated tour of “RCA Studio B.” I wasn’t too sure about this side trip, which necessitated a bus ride and seemed a little dollar-grubby.
When we arrived at Studio B, my cynicism seemed validated. There [...]

Today’s Vegetable is brought to you by the shuffle function on my ipod. It brings this song to me a lot, and I’m always very happy when that happens.
One of the greatest film musicals ever. Please see it if you haven’t.
John Cameron Mitchell - Sugar Daddy from the soundtrack to the movie Hedwig And [...]

I’ve had this one rattling around in my noggin for a couple days. It’s another one of those songs I didn’t realize was a cover until recently. It was written by Dave Alvin when he was in The Blasters (a band I’ve obviously not paid enough attention to). Alvin dedicated it to Hank Williams [...]