January 28, 2023 National Kazoo Day

I haven’t posted much lately, because of the unexpected loss of my brother, who was my best friend and the person I usually went to concerts with. We had so many fun times sharing music together.

I did notice that today is national kazoo day, so I did post a short sample of the 7-foot kazoo I made out of a PVC pipe that my brother had used as a fishing rod :

Robert’s Seven Foot Kazoo

In country music, the kazoo isn’t commonly used, but some of the earliest country stars such as Vernon Dalhart played kazoo. The Mound City Blue Blowers were usually classified as jazz, but their 1929 Vitaphone film short was titled “The Opry House.” A quick search for country kazoo on Discogs shows that kazoo appeared on albums by Johnny Cash, Ricky Skaggs, John Prine, Toby Keith, and Old Crow Medicine Show. Dolly Parton played a bit of “Yakety Sax” on a kazoo on the James Corden show in 2018.

The history of the kazoo can be seen through the timeline of patents at Kazoologist. Unfortunately, a fictional history of the kazoo from the 1970s is treated by many as fact.

The kazoo is typically a very inexpensive and informal instrument, so you’re more likely to hear it in informal settings than on the radio. That said, some of my favorite varieties of country music are in informal settings. If you don’t have an actual kazoo handy, then you can make a simple homemade instrument such as a comb and paper or a cardboard tube with a piece of plastic and a rubber band.

January 13, 2023 National Polka Month

When country charts began in the 1940s, polka songs showed up pretty often. Al Dexter had a sixteen-week number one on the country chart with “Guitar Polka,” which was recorded in 1942 and released in 1946. Henry Whitter recorded “Jennie Lind Polka” in 1924. My “Country Polka” playlist includes entries by country artists such as Hank Williams, Bob Wills, Buck Owens, Roy Clark, Flatt and Scruggs, Willie Nelson, Riders In The Sky, Chet Atkins, Pee Wee King, Slim Whitman, Rosalie Allen, Elton Britt, Light Crust Doughboys, Merle Travis, Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Sons of the Pioneers, and Lonzo and Oscar. I also included a huge number of polka stars. It would be difficult to name a major American polka artist who didn’t play some country songs.

Some of the things I miss about old country and western, like yodeling, accordion, and zither/autoharp, are still used by polka bands today. Many of the historic dance halls in Texas that have nurtured the Texas country music scene for over a century were built by German and Czech immigrants prior to WWI.

Country Polka Playlist

January 12, 2023 The 1978 TV Special “50 Years Of Country Music”

This show is a great “time capsule.” According to the uploader, this show aired on January 22, 1978.

Part 1

Part 2

January 8, 2023 Nashville Trip, Part 2 of 2

On Friday, I saw Joshua Hedley and the Hedliners at Robert’s Western World, followed by Brazilbilly.

Although Joshua Hedley played a few originals from his records, he mostly played classic covers. He is called “Mr. Jukebox” for good reason. Eddie Lange played pedal steel and Joshua Hedley plays fiddle and guitar.

Brazilbilly has been the house band for Robert’s Western World for 27 years. The lead singer is indeed from Brazil and he is also the owner of this revered venue. They dig deep into the classic country catalog. As a fun fact, I also saw fiddle/mandolin/guitar player Paul Kramer the night before in Joelton with Brennen Leigh.

Friday evening, I went to 3rd and Lindsley to see The Cleverlys. Opening act Caleb Christopher Edwards could be fairly described as “grassicana.” He’s a young songwriter and mandolin picker and I’d guess his band is mostly in their twenties, so they’re a young act to watch. The Cleverlys themselves were funny, of course, but they’re also very talented musicians. They specialize in “grassifying” songs from other styles of music. The Cleverlys always deliver a good time.

Saturday morning, I returned to the Country Music Hall of Fame. There’s a huge exhibit detailing the history of country rock and Los Angeles. Dwight Yoakam appears on some of the videos in this exhibit. Other seasonal exhibits are for Bill Anderson upstairs and Chris Stapleton downstairs in the modern artist short-term feature section where the Kacey Musgraves display was. Donna Ulisse did a “songwriter session” in the theater. Donna is mostly known for bluegrass now, but had a country career before that.

I saw Brazilbilly again at Robert’s Western World. This time, there was someone in the audience from Brazil, so Brazilbilly sang one in Portuguese. The rest of the band is American, but they made it work.

For the month of January, the Grand Ole Opry is in the Ryman. It’s always a special treat to see an Opry show at the Ryman. Since it’s a Saturday, the square dancers were there. The lineup was Mark Wills, Restless Road, Worth The Wait, Jamey Johnson, Bill Anderson, Gary Mule Deer, and Vince Gill. Gary Mule Deer was invited the day before to become an Opry member.

On Sunday, I went to the Bluegrass Hall of Fame and Museum in Owensboro, KY. It’s a quality museum that anyone who likes bluegrass should enjoy. Every Sunday afternoon, the museum hosts an informal picker’s circle. I got the impression that most of the pickers were local regulars. You can hear them playing while you see the museum exhibits.

January 6, 2023 Nashville Trip, Part 1 of 2

Six years ago today, I published my first entry on Robert’s Country Blog. This week, I’m in Nashville. As much as I like Texas, I also know where to find plenty of good music in Nashville.

On Tuesday, I saw Long Jon at The Station Inn. Dierks Bentley has enjoyed this famous bluegrass venue since he was 19, and his bluegrass group Long Jon recently began playing the first Tuesday of every month, featuring a variety of guests. Ronnie McCoury was the featured guest at this week’s show. If you dismiss Dierks Bentley because of his mainstream country career, you’re missing out on some good music from Long Jon. They covered classics from Bill Monroe, Flatt and Scruggs, Jimmy Martin, The Stanley Brothers, The Osborne Brothers, and on and on.

On Wednesday, I saw a solo show from Pork McElhinny at Robert’s Western World. Robert’s is always a great place for a country music fan. Then, I saw Shane Chisholm and his gas tank bass at The Second Fiddle. “Barefoot Fiddler” Merna Lewis was part of his band, and they also served a lot of classic country, plus a countrified version of “Crazy Train.”

Wednesday night, I went to an all-star celebration of songwriter Mac Gayden at 3rd and Lindsley. Although he is best known for writing the pop/R&B megahit “Everlasting Love,” he has also worked with Charlie McCoy and other country greats. In fact, harmonica players Charlie McCoy, Jimmy Hall, and Mickey Raphael all performed. Lee Roy Parnell played slide guitar, as did Mac Gayden himself. The steel player toured with the Dixie Chicks and the keyboard player tours with Margo Price. Shannon McNally released an album of Waylon Jennings covers a couple of years ago. There were many, many more performers.

On Thursday, I saw a solo performance by Dave Cox at Robert’s Western World in the morning and a full band performance by Sarah Gayle Meech in the afternoon. She said she is working on a new album. As always, Robert’s is a good choice for country music and I like the food there, too.

Thursday evening, I saw Brennen Leigh at Joelton Hardware with Vickie Vaughn and Paul Kramer. What a show! The last time I saw Brennen was in Austin about six years ago. We mentioned that we liked old school country, and she gave us a whole block of Roy Acuff songs, then a block of Louvin Brothers songs. She does western and bluegrass and country all, from very old and traditional choices to her own originals.

In addition to seeing all those shows, I visited the Glen Campbell Museum, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the NMAAM, which is free the first Wednesday every month.

I enjoyed talking to singer-songwriter Austin Stambaugh at Robert’s Western World. He recommended places to find good music all around Nashville. He knows a lot about both traditional country and the modern Americana scene. Be sure to check out his music.

I took many phone videos, so this new playlist will grow quickly:

2023 Phone Videos