A Country Music Conversation: Introduction and Index
Previous Entry: Day 15: “Love, Me” to “Mean”
Day 16 features tracks from SHeDaisy, Emerson Drive, Charlie Rich, K.T. Oslin, and Joe Diffie.
“Mine All Mine”
SHeDaisy
Written by Kristyn Osborn and Hollie Poole
Another casualty of the “misogynist shutdown of female artists masquerading as a traditionalist movement backlash of 2002.” Knock On the Sky was a bold, ambitious album that found fresh ways to present classic country themes of heartbreak and betrayal, and it kicked off with this melancholy ballad of regret and self-recrimination. If radio was able to play “I Will…But” just a year earlier, there was no good reason for overlooking this gem.
Other Favorites: “In Terms of Love,” “Get Over Yourself,” “Passenger Seat”
“Moments”
Emerson Drive
Written by Dave Berg, Annie Tate, and Sam Tate
Sometimes an artist just gets that one song. Emerson Drive’s one song was “Moments,” which has a totally contrived setup that still pays off, thanks mostly to the way that is grounded in the small details that keep it from going over the top.
Other Favorites: None
“The Most Beautiful Girl”
Charlie Rich
Written by Rory Michael Bourke, Billy Sherrill, and Norro Wilson
The genius of “The Most Beautiful Girl” is that it doesn’t use a single descriptor that would eliminate any girl from being the one he’s singing about, making it the quintessential country apology song.
Other Favorites: “I Take it On Home,” “Behind Closed Doors,” “Life’s Little Ups and Downs”
“New Way Home”
K.T. Oslin
Written by K.T. Oslin
K.T. Oslin has recorded “New Way Home” three times. Her 1993 re-recording of it for her Greatest Hits album replaces Oslin’s synthesizer sound with a more robust production, and it allows her to let loose as a singer more than she did on her trio of hit studio albums that preceded it. I loved the sound of the four new tracks on that collection, all of which stand tall alongside the eighties hits that accompany them.
(Ignore the video title below. This is the second version, not the original, which appeared on Love in a Small Town.)
Other Favorites: “Hold Me,” “Come Next Monday,” “Get Back in the Saddle”
“A Night to Remember”
Joe Diffie
Written by Max T. Barnes and T. W. Hale
By the time this ballad came out, he’d already been known as “Joe Ditty” around town. Which is a shame, because he could sing a substantive ballad better than anyone else in town. “A Night to Remember” was one of his last hits, and I think it was his best.
Other Favorites: “Is it Cold in Here,” “Good Brown Gravy,” “In My Own Backyard”
Up Next: Day 17: “9 to 5” to “Now I Know”
What happened to Shedaisy was almost criminal. I don’t think there was any other band in country music that got shunned like they did, or at least hit the scene at the worst possible time. I mean you had Shania hit it big and then there were the Dixie Chicks and Shedaisy was looked at as copycats. The thing was they had some of the best harmonies you would hear in country music and the idea that they were dropped from their music label and never picked up again was sad. It’s a shame Story to Tell will never see the light of day because it could have been a great album. Also this year was the 10th anniversary of what probably was their best album, fortunetellers Melody.
Also this is the holiday season and I always think about their holiday album, which was really unique. Name another artist that would write a song (and a catchy song) about New Years Day like they did with Brand New Year.
Some of my favorite Shedaisy Tracks.
Little Goodbyes
Brand New Year
Deck the Halls
Without a Sound
Kickin In
I wish I were the rain
SheDaisy never really struck me as anything more than average but I do have “This Woman Needs” and “Come Home Soon” in my library.
I enjoy a lot of Oslin’s songs. It looks like my most played are “80s Ladies” and “Silver Tongue and Gold Plated Lies”.
My most played (and favorite) Diffie track is “Ships That Don’t Come In”.
Love “Moments”. Other Emerson Drive favorites:
“A Good Man”, “November” and “Good Hurt” (a single from last year)
Joe Diffie: Thanks to Michael A for mentioning “Ships That Don’t Come In”. I also like “Not Too Much to Ask” (duet w Mary Chapin Carpenter) and “If the Devil Danced in Empty Pockets”. I like funny songs and there are not that many good ones around. They’re probably harder to write. Devil was written by Kim E. Williams (who died earlier this year) and Ken Spooner.
@ Greg M:
Yes, I agree that SheDaisy got the Shaft from country radio. I am inclined to believe that the misogynistic shift that caused it was also to some, if not indeed to a large, extent caused by the macho patriotic fervor that swept country music in the aftermath of 9/11.
In terms of Charlie Rich, here are some of my other favorites from The Silver Fox: “A Very Special Love Song”; “I Love My Friend”; “Every Time You Touch Me (I Get High)”. I know these were also sizeable pop crossover hits as well, but there were more than a few back then in the 70s.
It is hard for me to pick a favorite Charlie Rich song – I’d probably go with “Life’s Little Ups and Downs” , ‘Mohair Sam” or “I Take It On Home”
For Joe Diffie, I really liked “Ships That Don’t COme In”
SheDaisy, Emerson Road and K.T. Oslin were never of much interest to me