Class Politics, Country Music and Hillbilly Humanism
"Anything but country," is a not uncommon response to the question, "What kind of music do you like?" But, according to historian Nadine Hubbs, author of "Rednecks, Queers and Country Music," the phrase represents much more than a simple statement of musical preference. Rather, Hubbs argues it is an attempt to distance oneself from a group seen as unacceptable: a white working class assumed to be reactionary, hyper-patriotic and bigoted.
Hubbs explains to Bob how we can only understand country music, and our assumptions about country music, in the context of America's relationship to class. She puts country music in what she says is the necessary context, offers examples of country songs that buck the generic assumptions and explains two consistent themes in the genre: what Steve Goodson has dubbed "hillbilly humanism" and the anti-bourgeois spirit.
Songs:
"Watching You" by Rodney Atkins
"Courtesy of the Red, White and blue (The Angry American)" by Toby Keith
"Pictures from Life's Other Side" by Hank Williams, Sr.
"Friends In Low Places" by Garth Brooks
"Redneck Woman" by Gretchen Wilson
"Take This Job and Shove It" by Johnny Paycheck
“F— Aneta Briant” by David Allan Coe**
"Irma Jackson" by Merle Haggard
"They Don't Know" by Jason Aldean
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Professor Hubbs provided two playlists for listeners interested in hearing more examples of the themes she highlighted. They can be found on our Spotify page as well.
Selected "Hillbilly Humanism” songs, 1951–2006
“Blackbird (Hold Your Head High)” (Stoney Edwards)
“Coat of Many Colors” (Dolly Parton)
“Fancy” (Bobbie Gentry; Reba McEntire)
“Friends in Low Places” (Garth Brooks)
“Harper Valley P.T.A.” (Jeannie C. Riley)
“Irma Jackson” (Merle Haggard)
“Man in Black” (Johnny Cash)
“Men with Broken Hearts” (Hank Williams)
“Pictures from Life’s Other Side” (Hank Williams)
“We Shall Be Free” (Garth Brooks)
“What Do Ya Think about That” (Montgomery Gentry)
Selected anti-bourgeois songs (from the angry to the humorous to the melancholy) 1970–2017
“Amarillo Sky” (Jason Aldean)
“F— Aneta Briant” (David Allan Coe)** (Extremely Explicit)***
“How ’Bout You” (Eric Church)
“Hungry Eyes” (Merle Haggard)
“Lifestyles of the Not So Rich and Famous” (Tracy Byrd)
“Oney” (Johnny Cash)
“Only Prettier” (Miranda Lambert)
“Poor Folks Stick Together” (Stoney Edwards)
“Redneck Woman” (Gretchen Wilson)
“Something to Be Proud Of” (Montgomery Gentry)
“Streets of Bakersfield” (Dwight Yoakam and Buck Owens)
“Take This Job and Shove It” (Johnny Paycheck)
“They Don’t Know” (Jason Aldean)
“(We’re Not) the Jet Set” (George Jones and Tammy Wynette)
“What Do Ya Think about That” (Montgomery Gentry)
“(What This World Needs Is) A Few More Rednecks” (Charlie Daniels)
“Working Man’s Ph.D.” (Aaron Tippin)
**Note: there is no typo in “F-- Aneta Briant.” David Allan Coe misspelled both of her names, possibly trying to avoid a libel suit.
***Note: We do not necessarily endorse or recommend the greater works of David Allan Coe who, while a complex figure, penned many songs on his "X-rated" underground albums that feature vulgar language and both racial and sexual epithets. Coe, for his part, has insisted that he is not racist.
