Rhythm of the Road by Kris Rutherford
It’s not often you’ll hear me talk about a Jewish native of Philadelphia carved out his mark as one of the most noted western swing
In the 1970s, Northern New England was a virtual country music desert. I should know; I lived there at the time. Sure, we had a
A number of young fans of legendary western actors and singing cowboys grew up in Roxton, Texas, in the mid-20th century — my parents among
Guy Clark (1941-2016) hailed from the West Texas town of Monahans, about midway between two other West Texas towns, Odessa and Pecos. According to Guy,
She might not be the most recognizable country star today, but at one time Wanda Jackson was a pioneer on the country music scene, particularly
Phil Vassar first appeared on the country music scene in the late 1990s. That doesn’t exactly place him in my category of “classic” country. However,
When discussing the names of legendary country performers of the mid-20th century, chances are the name Leroy Van Dyke doesn’t immediately come to mind. Van
I love Reba McEntire. As far as I’m concerned, she bests Patsy Cline as the greatest female country artist of all time. “When Whoever in
“If it sounds country, that’s what it is. It’s a country song.” Truer words than Kris Kristofferson’s introduction to his recording of “Me and Bobby
It’s generally accepted that Bob Wills, along with his Texas Playboys, remains the “King of Western Swing.” But in the 1940s and early 1950s, a
During the 1970s, as country music artists gradually crossed over to pop, one casualty of the genre’s evolution was the cowboy hat. While some artists
Only one performing artist can lay claim to having the No. 1 disco single in the U.S. and Europe one year and following it up
If you followed the neo-traditionalist movement in 1980s and 1990s country music, no doubt you remember Randy Travis’ debut single, “1982.” The song hit the
“Grandma’s maiden name was Zona Villines….” Hardcore Merle Haggard fans will remember the opening line of his 1972 single, “Grandma Harp.” The song rose all
A couple of weeks back, I was chatting with a fellow classic country music enthusiast, and the subject of early 1980s female artists came up.
Cliff Abbott is a storyteller who thumps an upright bass and strums an acoustic guitar. This combination, along with the words to the self-penned stories
Mel Tillis started stuttering following a bout with malaria at 3 years of age … but he didn’t realize it until he entered first grade.
In last month’s Rhythm of the Road, I began a countdown of the Top 10 songs recorded by the Oak Ridge Boys (ORB) that, in
The Oak Ridge Boys (ORB) have announced their retirement and farewell tour. It’s been a long, 50+ year career for the current quartet — and
Last month, I shared the first of a two-part series about one of America’s cowboy heroes — Gene Autry. When we left off, Texas-born Autry