For years and years I was one of those people who would say “Mark I listen to all genres except country. “I think that’s what most people would say they love all genres of music except country and I think that country gets an unfair bad rap Most people’s exposure to country is what a lot of people would dub post 9/11 country. Which is an era when country music became really heavily patriotic and it’s the kind of country that’s about truck beer women and that kind of stuff. Which is frustrating. Country is so much more than this super macho crap. My favorite era of country I like to call cowboy country. Also known as storytelling country or at least that’s how I like to describe it I think a lot of people forget that country music is a very vast genre despite what it seems. Much like folk music which is a very similar genre a lot of people have a lot of opinions on it usually based on a very narrow minded view and that’s what I take issue with when it comes to country. Now I’m not saying you have to love country . I’m not saying that every single country song is a great song because there are some really terrible country songs but what I’m at least saying is give country a second chance. Maybe listen to a couple of the songs on this list and maybe you’ll change your mind.

The reason why most people don’t like the country is like I said a lot of people’s exposure has been to that super southern down home patriotic American country and it’s boring. At its roots, country is a storytelling genre. My favorite era of country is probably in the 50’s to 70’s because a lot of that country music is telling stories about cowboys and bandits and working on trains and despite the fact that I am definitely not a rail worker nor have I ever worked in coal mines nor have I ever ridden a horse across the wild west there is an element of comfort in these songs that I think anybody can find. 

My favorite example of this kind of storytelling cowboy country would probably be the legend Marty Robbins. I think everyone by now has heard the song big iron and if you haven’t, stop what you’re doing, go listen to it, then come back to this article. Big Iron is probably one of the best examples of storytelling. Big Iron is about a stranger coming to a small town (Agua Fria) in pursuit of an outlaw by the name of Texas Red and the ensuing shootout. The lyrics are incredibly memorable with their rhyme scheme and with just how vivid of a picture Robbins paints. What I love is that this is a completely fabricated story but it feels like some sort of wild west tale that’s been recreated time and time again. This song manages to fit an entire story within only 4 minutes and it doesn’t feel like it was cut short.. With his storytelling abilities, skillful guitar playing and sweeping voice, Marty Robbins is a staple of country music. If you’re going to check out Marty Robbins, the best introduction to him is either Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs or The Drifter.

Next up we have the living legend herself, Dolly Parton. I love Dolly Parton. She’s a country icon. You can’t bring up country without bringing up Dolly Parton. She has an incredibly unique voice and her songs have made their mark in music and pop culture. Obviously, she wrote Jolene. I love Jolene. I will sit for hours and listen to it on repeat and with good reason. It’s a beautifully tragic song. It’s about a woman begging that the titular Jolene doesn’t take her man. What’s so unique about Jolene is that the unnamed woman doesn’t insult Jolene, she doesn’t speak ill of her. She knows Jolene is beautiful, she compliments Jolene. But she’s saying that “you can have any man you want, please don’t take mine”. It hits hard. But Dolly Parton doesn’t just tear out your heart. She also has some incredibly fun upbeat songs that make me want to get up and try to remember what I learned in high school square dancing class. Why’d You Come In Here Lookin’ Like That is a prime example of that. Again with Parton’s masterful songwriting. She has this unique way of phrasing things. Why’d You Come In Here amounts to “You’re a good looking guy but you have terrible fashion sense” and I love it. Dolly Parton is a legend in country music. She has a distinct fashion sense and voice and she even has her own theme park. If you’re looking to get into Dolly Parton, I would go with Jolene for a more classic country feeling as it has the titular Jolene and I Will Always Love you and 9 to 5 And Odd Jobs for a really rounded listening experience as it has the classic 9 to 5 and a few cover songs.

I hope that this article has opened you up to country music. Obviously, this is only a small snapshot of the vast and diverse country genre. There’s folk country, rock country, pop country, there’s even a handful of artists I didn’t cover like the legendary Johnny Cash and John Denver. But this article is less of a complete compilation of the best country artists and more of a delicate shove towards the country genre. Despite that country had a huge shift towards a patriotic, macho sound, there are some artists who are reviving that classic country sound like Canadian artist Colter Wall and even comedian Tim Heidecker releasing his album Fear Of Death (that despite being labeled as pop rock, feels right at home as a country album). Country is finally having it’s revival moment. It’s going back to it’s downhome, story rich roots and I for one welcome this new era.