Driver Lifestyles

What is it about Country & Western?

If music is an international language, Country & Western music is easily the "America" part of that language.  Whether you're a bona fide fan, a passing listener, or can't bring yourself to listen to it, it's difficult to deny that there's just something about it--and that can be applied in either direction. 

Country music as we know it today became popular in the 1920's, and has its roots in traditional Celtic music, along with gospel, folk, and old-time musics brought over with the immigrants in the late 1800's.  This is, of course, about as international as it gets; the thing that gets us, though, isn't this history so much as it is C&W's subject matter.  What are the songs about?  That's what's important--and that's what the draw is. 

More than perhaps any other type of music, country music seems to be written primarily for, well, everyone.  When your target market is an entire country, you're doing something right.  Its broad appeal (just look at the yearly Country Music Awards ratings), combined with its rich history (find me one person who has a genuine distaste for Johnny, Willie, or Hank) means that like it or not, country's probably here to stay. 

The fact of its popularity aside, let's not forget the more trucking-community-specific country artists out there.  Granted, you've probably (maybe?) heard of them before, but they're certainly worth another listen.  The 60's and 70's saw an influx of truck and trucker-inspired country music, much of which combined those common themes of work and love with a fondness for the open road and the freedom that comes with that. 

Dave Dudley is the "father" of truck-driving country music.  His first major hit, which later became his "On the Road Again" was the 1963 single "Six Days on the Road."  It's a song representative of the work typical of the transport industry, from the fun stuff to the not-so-fun stuff.  Despite the obvious changes in driving a truck in the 60's and 70's to driving today, the music still holds up, and is easy to identify with.  Which, of course, is a good, solid sign that you've got a great song on your hands.  Dudley had other hits you may have heard of with "Truck Drivin' Son of a Gun," "Trucker's Prayer," and "Anything Leaving Town Today." 

Dick Curless is another trucking-centric country man.  Known for wearing an eyepatch, he scored hits in the 60's and 70's with "Truck Stop," "Hard, Hard Traveling Man," and "A Tombstone Every Mile."

A third artist, and perhaps most notable, is Red Simpson.  Like his counterparts, he scored hits in the 60's and 70's with "Roll, Truck, Roll," "I'm a Truck," and "Awful Lot to Learn About Truck Drivin'."  Simpson is notable primarily because he's got connections to country giants Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, as well as the fact that he still performs on a regular basis in his hometown of Bakersfield, CA. 

While Dudley, Curless, and Simpson sing about trucking, that's just one aspect of the "it" factor for country music.  Its broad appeal comes from the commonality of its lyrics--there's so much that we can identify with in those songs.  We just know where the song is coming from, and that's what can be so great about it. 

Of course, detractors may say, "Why listen to a song about how the guy's truck is broken down, or how he lost his job, or how his lady left him?  I've already got enough of that in my life."  It's a valid point, to be sure, but that's also the draw.  We seek out things that we can identify with so that we can add meaning to our own experiences.  This is true in just about all forms of music, but you'd be hard pressed to find something that connects as closely with its listener as country music does. 

So, who's up for a little honky tonk?  No?  That's okay; the rest of us will sit back and enjoy ourselves.