Monday, June 3, 2024

'80's Torch and Twang - Disc 6

     As I age (and age - just had another birthday), I find myself dwelling on the passage of time a lot more than I used to, particularly the difference in how I perceive events now from 20-30 years ago versus how I perceived them when I was young.  Basically, I think I pretty much perceived everything prior to the mid 1950s as ancient history when I was an adolescent and post-adolescent.  Whereas today, I still think of events that happened 30-35 years ago as, well, relatively recent events.

     And the same kinda goes for music.  There are definitely albums I liked in the 1990s that I don't really listen to anymore and some even sound a bit dated, but it's still different than listening to music in the 1980's that was made in the 1940's.  For one thing, there's very little music from the 1940's that you would have heard in the 1980's unless you actively searched it out or it happened to be in a commercial or popular movie.  Whereas now, when I show my students the top 20 hits from 1983 or 1984, most of them have heard probably half of the most popular songs from the 1980's.  

       Nonetheless, in putting this compilation together, I sometimes wonder how 18-21 year-olds are likely to perceive the music.  It's really less about whether they like it or dislike it, but is it seen as "ancient" or "old-timey"?  So if anyone happens to play this for a young'un that they know, please ask them what they think of it. :) 

      Hope everyone likes the last volume of the compilation.  Was a lot of fun making it and I'm always open to making one more volume if there's enough artists that I forgot to include in the first six volumes.

Download

Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)

Steve Earle

The Rodeo Song

Garry Lee & Showdown

Blanket Of Sorrow

Jason & the Scorchers

That Very First Kiss

Carlene Carter

Lay Down My Old Guitar

The Lonesome Strangers

There's A Guy (Country version)

Kirsty MacColl

Faded Love

Willie Nelson & Ray Price

Back On Your Side

Chris Isaak

Creatures Of Love

Talking Heads

Steel Guitar Rag

John Fahey

Big Big Love

The Eddys

Wheel Hoss

Ricky Skaggs

Stampede

The Raunch Hands

Black Bart

The Johnnys

Six Feet Into the Country

Joe Henry

Lovin' On The Side

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

I Won't Need You Anymore

Randy Travis

Big House Part III

Tex & The Horseheads


4 comments:

aboynamedstew said...

This series is so awesome!! I didn't even know to expect a Vol. 6, so this was a treat. I'll lobby hard for at least one more volume that could include: Rosie Flores, The Screaming Sirens, Pearl Harbor, Alejandro Escovedo solo, post-Plugz projects, Blood On The Saddle (they're not amazing or anything but they do fit the genre)?

Also if you haven't read this article about 80's country, it's absolutely worth a read or at least a skim over the list of albums at the end. The subtitle is "Where's the country music on Pitchfork's Best Albums of the 1980s?"
https://popula.com/2018/09/13/canon-fodder/

Thanks again!

Crab Devil said...

Thanks for this sixth installment. And thanks, aboynamedstew, for linking to that
article on 80s country.

Ishkabibliophile said...

@aboynamedstew,

Great article! It's pretty much what I was trying to say in my earlier post, but a lot more coherent. And I'm definitely going to check out some of the albums - I've heard a lot of them, but not all of them. Could be the start of Volume 7.... As for the ones you mentioned, I included Rosie Flores on my 90s comp and I don't want to repeat, but I would definitely consider the Screaming Sirens and Pearl Harbor. I didn't really love Blood on the Saddle, but I should give them another try. And was Alejandro Escovedo actually in the Plugz?

Ishkabibliophile said...

@CrabDevil,

You're welcome - this was definitely favorite compilations to put together.

Ish