Kevin John Coyne

100 Greatest Men: #74. Sons of the Pioneers

February 21, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 4

Country artists are known for their longevity, but the Sons of the Pioneers make the rest look like flash-in-the-pan newbies.

First formed in 1933, Sons of the Pioneers are the longest-running active vocal group in country music today. The lineup, of course, has changed over the years, but the original group weren’t just sons of the pioneers. They were the pioneers of Western music, that post-ampersand genre that was once an essential half of mainstream country music.

100 Greatest Men: #75. Jim Ed Brown

February 20, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 4

100 Greatest Men: The Complete List

It seems only appropriate that a man whose career was launched by a three act song would himself enjoy a career with three spectacular acts.

Jim Ed Brown, born in 1934, was raised in Arkansas. Like many aspiring country artists of his day, he first sang professionally with his family. Alongside sisters Maxine and Bonnie, they began performing in the early fifties in various combinations.

Retro Single Review: Tim McGraw, “One of These Days”

February 18, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 7

1998 | Peak: #2

What on earth is a tumee, and why is Tim McGraw trying to pull it?

Retro Single Review: Shania Twain, “Honey, I’m Home”

February 18, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 4

1998 | Peak: #1

Come On Over was such a forward-sounding album that by the time the eleventh track played, it sounded like a dated throwback.

Retro Single Review: George Strait, "Nobody in His Right Mind Would've Left Her"

February 18, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 0

1986 | Peak: #1

Dean Dillon and George Strait are one of the finest songwriter and singer matches that country music has ever seen.

Retro Single Review: Alan Jackson, “Chattahoochee”

February 18, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 6

1993 | Peak: #1

This timeless classic won CMA trophies for both Single and Song of the year, and was Jackson’s signature song for the rest of the nineties.

Why did it work so well?

Retro Single Review: Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, “We Found It”

February 18, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 1

1973 | Peak: #30

Though it was their only A-side to miss the top twenty, “We Found It” is one of Porter & Dolly’s most entertaining romps.

Whitney Houston: 1963-2012

February 12, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 13

On the eve of the Grammy Awards, music lost one of its greatest voices, as Whitney Houston died at age 48.

Her only tangential connection to country was a big one. Her cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” is one of the most successful singles in history, spending 14 weeks at #1 and pushing its parent album, The Bodyguard soundtrack, to sales of 44 million worldwide.

Single Review: Jason Aldean, “Fly Over States”

February 7, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 6

This is way better than its title gives it any right to be.

As a native urban dweller, I totally get how the country life can get overlooked. Sure, the country folk can be just as oblivious to our ways of life, but it’s not a fair equivalence. We can overlook them without even knowing we’re doing it, but the fly over states have no way to hide from us.

Album Review: Tim McGraw, Emotional Traffic

January 31, 2012 Kevin John Coyne 17

Tim McGraw
Emotional Traffic

If you had a friend who was a tightrope walker, and you were walking down a sidewalk, and he fell, that would be completely unacceptable. – Mitch Hedberg

~~~

Emotional Traffic is a collection of poor choices.