Philosophy Discussion Forums

Can country music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances? Most of us would find the world a much poorer place without music. Think of the void we would create if we removed Beethoven, Bach, Miles Davis, Gershwin, The Beatles, The Osmonds (?) and so on and so on, from our cultural landscape. We probably never even thing what life would be like without our own particular music, for, like love, friendship and all the things that are fundamental to our spiritual wellbeing, we take it for granted that it will just be there. Now, just imagine, that this pleasure we, so called, normal people get from the aforementioned sources could only be accessible to you by listening to country music. Would it be right to deny these unfortunates something that we, ourselves, would find so hard to live without? I don't think it would. No matter how distasteful it might be to us, should we impose our prejudices on others who, through no fault of their own, don't know any better? Obviously, there have to be checks and safeguards to prevent the general public from unwittingly being exposed to this music but that could be achieved, given the will. I realise there is a strong counter argument to my view on this subject and I haven't even attempted to address the Jim Reeves question but that's a whole topic on it's own. What do you think, am I being too liberal?

Can rock music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

Can rap music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

Can pop music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

I like the song 'Over and Over' by Tim McGraw and Nelly.

Shania Twain singlehandedly validates country music, in my opinion. (Yes, I'm Canadian.)

Scott wrote:Can rock music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

Can rap music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

Can pop music ever be justified and, if so, under what circumstances?

I like the song 'Over and Over' by Tim McGraw and Nelly.

Yes, no and sometimes. Who is Tim McGraw and Nelly?

De gustibus non est disputandum.

That having been said, everything country since about 1948 is awful.

Kepler1571 wrote:De gustibus non est disputandum.

You are obviously highly educated but, out of consideration for those of us who are not, could you stick to English please.

No you can never justify country music. This goes for line dancing also

I blame the general public for having musical taste in their backsides and encouraging the whinging twangers, amongst other peddlers of formulaic pap.

Most of you are talking out of your arses. Listen to some John Prine. Good musician, good song writer, & his words are sheer poetry.

That's correct rederic. You could say I've got a burning ring of fire. Seriously, there's some great country artists. My favourites are merl haggard's okie from Muskogee and the lyrics from green green grass of home which really paint and picture.

It is easy to confuse a music style with the audience and artists of the music style.

They say that the definition of country music is:

"Three chords, and the truth."

Country music is more than OK. It is the artistic pinnacle of our civilization. When Loretta Lynn sang:

"I was born a coal miner's daughter In a cabin on a hill in Butcher Holler"

It was because she really was born the daughter of a man with that particular profession in that particular location. When Leonard Cohen sang (in the song called "Tower of Song"):

"I asked Hank Williams, how lonely does it get? Hank Williams hasn't answered yet, But I hear him coughing all night long, A hundred floors above me in the tower of song."

he wasn't actually in a tower occupied also by Hank Williams. He was singing metaphorically. Leonard Cohen was no country singer, but he recognized the elevated position of Hank Williams in the edifice of music.

Rederic wrote:Listen to some John Prine. Good musician, good song writer, & his words are sheer poetry.

You can be an excellent musician and still play rubbish. I don't know anything about John Prine but I do know that the lyrics of most country music is over sentimental and false.

-- Updated February 19th, 2015, 10:01 pm to add the following --

I believe in love and God and babies and Mom's apple pie.

Country music lyrics can seem false because of the extraordinary lives of the people who wrote them. To a middle-class, cynical, English, atheist, arty-farty, namby-pamby liberal type like me whose never really done a proper day's hard graft in his life they seem like they couldn't be anything other than the most gooey, sentimental, schmaltzy pap. That's what proves that they're real.

Dolly Parton looks so ridiculously, obviously false that she couldn't possibly be anything but genuine.

Steve3007 wrote:Country music lyrics can seem false because of the extraordinary lives of the people who wrote them. To a middle-class, cynical, English, atheist, arty-farty, namby-pamby liberal type like me whose never really done a proper day's hard graft in his life they seem like they couldn't be anything other than the most gooey, sentimental, schmaltzy pap. That's what proves that they're real.

Dolly Parton looks so ridiculously, obviously false that she couldn't possibly be anything but genuine.

Well, I suppose so, if you look at it that way.