Country band

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A country band is a band that plays exclusively or predominantly country music .

History of origin

Gid Tanner and his Skillet Lickers (around 1926), one of the great country bands of their time

Country bands are as old as country music itself. The need for a country band arose with the establishment of the first dance halls after Fiddler had entertained their listeners with old-time music in their footsteps . When not presented as a solo , string bands equipped with a fiddle and other stringed instruments provided the instrumentation for the old-time music. The first known string bands were Charlie Poole 's North Carolina Ramblers with the line-up Norman Woodlieff (guitar), Charlie Poole (vocals / banjo) and Posie Rorer (fiddle), they made their first recordings on July 27, 1925, or Dr. Humphrey Bate and his Possum Hunters (from March 3, 1928).

Hillbilly dates back to Uncle Dave Macon's Hill Billie Blues (July 8, 1924). The first hillbilly “supergroup” were the Gid Tanner and his Skillet Lickers, founded in 1924 with Riley Puckett (guitar), Gideon Tanner / Clayton McMichen (fiddles), who recorded for the first time from March 7, 1924. Just because of their unique teamwork, they were one of the greatest country bands of all time, a role model for the father of modern western swing ( Bob Wills ) and the father of bluegrass ( Bill Monroe ). Milton Brown & His Musical Brownies are generally considered to be the first western swing band (recorded since February 9, 1932). Its member Bob Dunn (since January 1935) in turn used an amplifier for his steel guitar for the first time. "Uncle" Eck Robertson recorded the first old-time music on June 30, 1922 with his partner Henry C. Gilliand (both fiddle). In the same year, the WSM (Georgia) radio station broadcast folk music with string bands for the first time . On June 14, 1923, Fiddlin 'John Carson recorded the first hillbilly songs as a soloist, and from March 1924 he was accompanied by a country band.

Otto Gray & His Oklahoma Cowboys were the first cowboy band to appear on the cover of Billboard magazine on June 6, 1931. Sun Records , turned towards rockabilly and rock & roll , brought together session musicians from October 25, 1954 , whose line-up is identical to a country band. The line-up consisted of Stan Kesler (steel guitar), Quinton Claunch (guitar), Bill Cantrell (fiddle), Marcus Van Story / Wayne Deal (bass) and Johnny Bernero / Clyde Leoppard (drums). The later rock 'n' roll musician Bill Haley began with a country band, the Four Aces of Western Swing. On January 27, 1946, he made his first recordings in Detroit with his Down Homers Kenny Roberts (vocals), Bob Mason (rhythm guitar), Shorty Cook (steel), and Guy Campbell (fiddle).

With the concentration of country music on Nashville from 1946 onwards, session musicians came together who shaped country music with the Nashville sound developed by them and music producers such as Chet Atkins . Special mention should be made of the Nashville A-Team , which from December 1953 found a stable composition and consisted of about 50 mutually interchangeable musicians.

instrumentation

A traditional country band differs from other bands, especially pop, beat or rock bands , by a completely different instrumentation in the line- up . Richard Walton Tully's play Bird of Paradise (premiered January 8, 1912) popularized the ukulele and pedal steel guitar in the United States. The steel guitar in particular developed into the key instrument of a classic country band. In the early days, drums were despised as too loud and unsuitable for country music. It was not until Bob Wills introduced it to his Texas Cowboys in September 1935, as did the electric steel guitar in November 1938. The drums were not wanted at official appearances, in the Grand Ole Opry they had to be placed behind the curtain. Even the less conservative Louisiana Hayride banned the drums behind the curtain until 1956. In addition to the banjo and steel guitar, dobro , western guitar , mandolin or fiddle are common components of a country band. Guitars were acoustic for a long time, electric guitars were not used until 1938.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ David Dicaire, The First Generation of Country Music Stars , 2007, p. 18
  2. ^ David Dicaire, The First Generation of Country Music Stars , 2007, p. 26
  3. ^ David Dicaire, The First Generation of Country Music Stars , 2007, p. 7
  4. ^ David Dicaire, The First Generation of Country Music Stars , 2007, p. 14
  5. ^ Tony Russell, Country Music Originals , 2007, p. 143
  6. ^ Paul Kingsbury, The Encyclopedia of Country Music , 2012, p. 14
  7. ^ Ralph G. Giordano, Country & Western Dance , 2010, p. 37