Now that I have been getting into the whole country music genre, I thought that I’d broaden my country music knowledge. Not knowing what music I would like, I thought it would be safest to invest in a Complimation. So, I went out and picked up one that basically looked interesting (and I must have been right because a few weeks after I bought it, it actually made it into the top 30 CD’s). It’s a 2 CD set with a bonus DVD so I think it was a pretty good find!
Before I listened to the CD I viewed the DVD. It’s always better to put a face to the song. I actually found the songs on the DVD to be a little depressing. Even before I really listened to country music I envisioned it to be very positive and upbeat with a sunny disposition, however I really didn’t feel this in the DVD. Songs about growing old and missing your life as it flies by, and loved ones leaving you and wishing you knew what aeroplane they were flying away from your life on, well these don’t exactly scream a positive attitude to me. I could still hear the positive sort of dusty guitar sound that I now recognise with the country genre, but I just felt rather depressed and low after watching the DVD. Even the upbeat songs had a negative or bitter attitude, for example “Red High Heels” by Kellie Pickler caught my ears attention as soon as it started, and at first I thought it was happy and optimistic, but as it went on, it came across as a bit of a bitter revenge stab, about a woman who shows her man what he’s missing.
By this point I was sort of regretting my purchase and was dreading listening to the CD’s. I personally prefer to listen to more upbeat songs, and I thought that country music would provide this for me. To me, country music is 90% happy, sunny music with about 10% really sad songs, but then again I am only relatively new to this genre so I have absolutely nothing to back up my claims. They are just personal ideas from the little radio country music I have heard.
So, with reluctance, I put in CD number 1, and thankfully…happy music! As I went through the CD I heard some of the songs that were on the DVD, but now without the picture behind it the song was not nearly as depressing, plus it was now amongst more upbeat songs so I didn’t really have time to let the song impose a sense of doom onto me before the next song came on. This whole CD had a relatively fast and strong beat. Each song had one of those tempo’s that you really enjoy to bounce your head to. But then, as I put on CD number 2, all this changed. The first song started with the very same upbeat tempo of the previous CD, but then the entire CD slowed down and became more methodical. There were a few of those sunny beats, but the majority was back in that rather sad realm.
The CD was not what I expected, but after the second listen, not only did I respect all the songs, but I actually started to sing along. Not just with the happy ones but the sadder ones too. Sometimes when I personally listen to a CD, the songs with a good strong beat stand out to me, and the slower paced or sadder songs blend in and I find myself skipping them. With this CD though, I didn’t really do that. There were of course a few of those songs that you cant help but skip, but mostly I enjoyed the whole thing. Personally, I prefer CD number 1 mainly because of its attitude, but CD number 2 still has some of the best songs from the whole Complimation.
I was actually a little surprised though, that there was no Keith Urban on here. I know, I know, give up with the Keith Urban already, and I know he is not the only country music singer that exists, but when a CD says ‘38 country hits from the worlds top artists’ I would think that he would at least get a mention, so that was a little disappointing to me. There were a few other artists that I have recently heard of too that didn’t appear, and some of their songs, in my opinion anyway, were better than some of the songs showcased on the CD, so I do wonder who chose the songs and why. Not having and Country Music Radio in my area, I don’t know if these songs are on the top country countdown or anything like that thought.
The CD was definitely a good buy though and there were a few artists on the CD that I am interested in buying more of their CD’s, so that’s one good thing, but I also learnt more about the music that comes from the country genre. So far, to me there really seems like two strong ideas in the music. There is the incredibly upbeat (no matter what the song is about) or the incredibly depressing. Its like the ‘no-worries mate’ Australian attitude verse the farmers in hard times anguish. No matter the emotion of the song though, all country music I have listened to so far has an amazing story. The lyrics are often extremely funny and they are not nearly as repetitive as more of the songs on the typical top 30 countdown. It seems like these people are writing songs for fun rather than just for cash, like they would prefer to be playing them in a bar to a bunch of idiots trying to sing along, rather than in some arena of no-name faces for $300 a ticket. The singers could be your best mate, the kid next door or just a typical local. There are no splashy effects, just the simple voice and a few guitars here and there. Very minimalist and fun.
So, even though at first listen, this CD leaves much to be desired, if you give it a second or third try you might find yourself bouncing away and enjoying the tunes. I don’t know about you, but I’m starting to feel like having a BBQ and a party around a big bomb fire with tequila shots all round. I can tell you, this country attitude definitely starts to rub off after a while.
By Jacki Tipton
