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Country gets an encore in new books
REVIEWS BY EDWARD MORRIS Didn't we learn everything we needed to about country music during the Garth Brooks tsunami of the '90s? Well, yes and no. Much of the literature about country music—indeed about most manifestations of popular culture—is little more than recycled news stories and repackaged public relations myths, heavy on attitude and light on research. But the three books considered here all make substantial contributions to a musical format that by all logic should have outlived its appeal as America severed itself from its rural roots. Even so, it remains a subject of wide interest.
By Richard Carlin Black Dog & Leventhal, $34.95 340 pages ISBN 1579125840
Backstage pass
Instead of providing a detailed narrative of how the Opry evolved and what the internal politics were, Escott assembles quotations from people who observed or participated in that evolution. He draws primarily on the Opry's own massive archives for material and liberally seeds the printed word with publicity photos and newspaper clippings. The effect is to draw the reader into the warm—and occasionally cantankerous—backstage milieu. Here's how comedienne Minnie Pearl, who joined the Opry in 1940, described the show's rampant informality: "At first, I was horrified by the seeming disorganization. I had come from directing plays. On the Opry, it wasn't unusual for an announcer to say, 'And now we're proud to present so-and-so,' and someone would whisper, 'He ain't here, he's gone to get a sandwich,' which didn't fluster the emcee, who'd say, 'Oh well, he'll be back in a minute. Meanwhile, let's hear from the Fruit Jar Drinkers.'"
By Colin Escott Center Street, $24.99 336 pages ISBN 1931722862
Still the man
To piece together this complex artist, Streissguth interviewed dozens of people who knew him well at every stage of his development—from distant and long-forgotten high school classmates to such inside observers as his daughters Rosanne and Cindy; managers Saul Holiff and Lou Robin; producer Jack Clement; former band members Marshall Grant and Marty Stuart; Bill Walker, the music director for Cash's TV show; and numerous record company executives who witnessed and/or contributed to Cash's rise and fall. Of particular relevance are Streissguth's portraits of two of the most influential figures in Cash life's—his flinty and love-withholding father, Ray, and his second wife, June Carter, who emerges as both self-sacrificing and self-aggrandizing. Obsessed by religion and the desire to live righteously, Cash, nonetheless, was more of a drug addict than he ever admitted and, says the author, a womanizer even as he publicly trumpeted his love for June. This is the best study of Cash to date. To a degree, each of these books reinforces country music's worst stereotypes (which is not surprising considering country's tendency to stereotype itself). But they also illustrate the variety, richness and emotional applicability of this most tenacious of musical styles.
By Michael Streissguth Da Capo, $26 320 pages ISBN 0306813688
Edward Morris is the former country music editor of Billboard and currently a contributor to CMT.com.
More from Music City
—RON WYNN
By Paul Kingsbury and Alanna Nash DK, $40 360 pages ISBN 0756623529
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Thumbing through Richard Carlin's Country Music: The People, Places, and Moments that Shaped the Country Sound is a lot like strolling through the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. The 500 or so photos arrayed on the book's pages are big and bold and cover every aspect of the music: instruments; album, songbook and sheet music covers; candid and promotional shots; and movie and video stills. Carlin is a respected scholar. His text and annotations cover country music from its Civil War prehistory to such current stars as Rascal Flatts, Sugarland and Dierks Bentley (who also happens to be the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry). Spotted throughout the text are delightful thumbnail commentaries—and not always kind ones—on "Country Classics," ranging from "Home on the Range" to "Skin (Sarabeth)." Photographer Raeanne Rubenstein provided many of the more recent photos.
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Colin Escott's The Grand Ole Opry: The Making of an American Icon will find particular favor among those who already know something of the Opry's history but who want some inside glimpses into the venerable radio show, now in its 81st year. Escott, who is best known for his writings on Hank Williams, divides his book by decades, opening each chapter with a list of the performers who joined the Opry during that 10-year period.
Michael Streissguth, who has written extensively about Johnny Cash before, essays a final summation of the singer/songwriter's career and personal struggles in Johnny Cash: The Biography. As the author points out, Cash had a direct hand in shaping his earlier biographies, from which he emerged as a flawed but larger-than-life figure who ultimately had gained control of his demons. While clearly a great admirer of Cash and his music, Streissguth nonetheless chips away at the sanitized version of "The Man in Black." In so doing, he makes Cash more human and, thus, his achievements all the more remarkable.
In the beautifully illustrated and elaborate Will The Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music in America, co-published by The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, editors Paul Kingsbury and Alanna Nash aim for both scope and specificity. Though they devote considerable space to the commercial aspects of the genre, the book's expert contributors (including BookPage reviewer Ed Morris) also evaluate and ponder artistic issues and controversies. They contrast country's broad idiomatic frontiers with the often more rigid tastes, interests and opinions of its core constituency (the white working class) and provide details about country's recording practices, hit records and most popular artists. With stunning photographs and reflections by country superstars, this is a work that won't alienate scholars or intimidate novices or general fans.