Country Music in a Changing Society

As the 19th century turned into the 20th century a modern America emerged. This change came just in time. As the end of the second decade of the 20th century was approaching, the United States found itself engulfed in a world war. This was followed by a decade of unrestrained technological and economic development that quickly crashed into a deep economic depression that was intensified when the dust bowl struck the nation’s breadbasket. In this lesson, students will explore, through art and music, how country music evolved alongside the nation.

Charley Pride became the first American American artist to record a #1 country record, and he overcame significant social and political barriers in order to do so.

Though minstrel songs and blackface minstrelsy offered an inaccurate portrayal of life in the south, the genre was widely popular among white audiences in the 19th and 20th centuries.

John Carson was a factory worker during the week, and a neighborhood fiddle player on the weekends. In 1922, when the first radio station in the south, WSB, opened, John Carson’s music was made available to large audiences and his career grew quickly.

While the phonograph had already been around for a few decades, it became much more popular with the help of music producer Ralph Peer. Peer expanded the market for the phonograph by recruiting musical talents including John Carson, who was known for his relatable songs.

The Carters, a small family from rural Virginia, created music history in 1927 when they became the first group to record commercially-produced country music. The Carter's music formed the bedrock of country music as a genre.

Learn about the story of artist DeFord Bailey: his beginnings, early passion and talent for music, and his journey to the Grand Ole Opry — where he became the first African American artist to take the stage. A 1941 "copyright war" between the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and Broadcast Media Incorporated (BMI) shook up the music industry and contributed to Bailey’s dismissal from the Opry.

The Maddoxes, a poor family from the American south, fled the Dust Bowl to settle in Northern California, where they built a successful music career and became known as the “most colorful hillbilly band in the world.”

How did early country musicians get started in an industry that did not yet exist? Students will examine the personal and broader historical circumstances in which select country artists of the period 1920-1945 got their starts.  The story of DeFord Bailey’s tumultuous tenure with the Grand Ole Opry offers an opportunity to examine race relations in the era through the lens of the music industry. Students will understand how the genre’s first stars, the Carter Family, produced their 1927 landmark recordings and became famous, despite facing poverty and personal struggle and despite there being no precedent for making a living by selling records. Finally, Students will be introduced to the Maddox Family, whose trek from the rural south to California during the Dust Bowl offers a framework to further explore the workings of the industry in the context of 1930s mass migration, economic hardship, and marginalization.  An historical overview of this era, included in the support materials, provides additional historical context about the period to offer a broader perspective about these artists’ circumstances. These artists’ stories can be explored individually or as a gallery. The discussion questions and historical context included support either approach.

Students will examine the personal and broader historical circumstances in which country stars Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson rose to fame during the 1950s and 60s. Through exploration of the artists' early lives, students will have the opportunity to reflect on the lingering effects of personal tragedy, and how certain life events can shape an individual’s choices and career. Students will consider how the social trends of the postwar era during which Cash and Nelson rose to fame shaped their career trajectories and music.  An historical overview of this period, included in the support materials, provides broader context about the period to offer additional perspective about these artists’ circumstances.

The 1960s and 70s provide a backdrop for students to explore the workings of the country music industry during an era defined by protest. Students will learn about Buck Owens, who helped define country’s Bakersfield sound and made creative and professional decisions on his own terms. During the same period, musician Charley Pride faced significant racial discimination and ultimately overcame both personal and much broader social and political adversity to make music history. And Dolly Parton’s career path has been defined by her tenacity, song-writing talent, and feminist ethos in combination. Students will consider how the social and political trends of the tumultuous period during which Owens, Pride, and Parton rose to fame helped to shap their career trajectories and music. An historical overview of this period, included in the support materials, provides broader context about the period to offer additional perspective about these artists’ circumstances.

Students will examine the personal and broader political circumstances in which country stars Marty Stuart, Emmylou Harris, and Reba McEntire rose to fame during the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. At the same time as the United States was coming out of the Vietnam War and later the Cold War, country music and music technology more broadly  were changing. Newer musical influences out of California mixed with traditional southern roots and pushed country music’s boundaries. In this activity, students will encounter the genre's ongoing tension between old and new, and learn from working musicians about the struggle to stay true to one’s roots while simultaneously forging a new path. Some historical overview of this period, included in the support materials, provides additional context about the period to offer perspective about these artists’ circumstances.

Dolly Parton grew up in small-town Tennessee. After high school, she moved to Nashville to pursue music, and went to auditions between jobs in her spare time. Parton first found fame on television, most significantly through her partnership with Porter Wagoner.

Buck Owens was inspired by his poor Dust Bowl upbringing to work towards country music success in California, where he eventually helped define and popularize the Bakersfield Sound. Owens was known for making creative decisions on his own terms, and he found unlikely collaborators in the Beatles.