Country music is a genre that has been evolutionary since its onset. From oral tradition to mega stars, country has lived many lives. Below, find 15 tracks that help to showcase the story of country music as a world renowned genre. Naturally, this list will not be exhaustive. Many legendary artists will be left out, but the ones that have been included on this list more than did their fair share in making country what we know it as today.
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15 Songs That Showcase the Evolution of Country Music
Early Influences
1. “Swing Low Sweet Chariot” (The Fisk Jubilee Singers) (1909)
The Fisk Jubilee Singers’ rendition of the classic spiritual, “Swing Low Sweet Chariot” became the first commercially viable recording of its kind in 1909. This feat became something country historians look to when discussing the earliest moments of the genre. Check out this haunting early recording, below.
Black spiritual music is one of the foundations of country music. From the themes of Christianity (which still run rampant in country today) to the melodies that early country artists adapted to make their own southerly compositions (one example is The Carter Family’s “Little Darling, Pal of Mine”), country fans have a lot to thank spirituals for.
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
2. “Arkansas Traveler” ( Eck Robertson) (1922)
In the early ’20s, The Victor and Okeh recording companies made the leap to record early country artists, making them trailblazers in the genre. Prior to this time, country was more or less an oral tradition. Country songs were typically passed around from family members and friends in a community. These companies taking notice of them commercially jumpstarted a movement that continues today.
One of the first recordings done within these companies was “Arkansas Traveler” by a fiddler named Eck Robertson. He brought the sounds that were familiar to many people in the U.S. to those that hadn’t had the fortune of hearing them before.
Making Country Stars
2. “Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow Tree” (The Carter Family) (1927)
The Carter Family was an early act that caught the attention of an eager public. Their famous three-part harmony showcased an intrinsic facet of country music that would continue to bolster the genre well into the middle of the century.
Keep on the sunny side, always on the sunny side
Keep on the sunny side of life
It will help us every day, it will brighten all the way
If we keep on the sunny side of life
3. “That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine” (Gene Autry) (1931)
Gene Autry earned his first hit at the beginning of the ’30s with “That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine.” Autry helped to garner country music a wider audience with this track and his many other fan-favorites. Moreover, the narrative aspect of this song is a cornerstone of country music that many songwriters still lean on today.
If God would but grant me the power
Just to turn back the pages of time
I’d give all I own if I could but atone
To that silver haired daddy of mine
Sub-Genres
4. “Blue Moon of Kentucky” (Bill Monroe) (1947)
In the 40s, bluegrass began to become the sound of the times. One main purveyor of that style of country music was Bill Monroe. He, alongside his Blue Grass boys, released “Blue Moon of Kentucky” in 1947. It would be a shining example of this burgeoning sub-genre that was building momentum behind the scenes for a decade.
Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining
Shine on the one that’s gone and proved untrue
Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining
Shine on the one that’s gone and left me blue
5. “Honey Don’t” (Carl Perkins) (1956) / “Ring of Fire” (Johnny Cash) (1963)
There was country music before Elvis Presley and country music after Elvis Presley…The introduction of rock n’ roll to the masses infiltrated every corner of pop culture–even the typically tame corner of country music. Prior to The King, country music was more or less subdued and, notably, primarily acoustic. After Presley shook up the music world, country artists began to plug in, creating a hybrid genre called rockabilly. One of the trailblazers of this double-duty style was Carl Perkins. Check out his “Honey Don’t,” played live in 1956, below.
Though Johnny Cash would prove to be much more than a rockabilly artist, many attribute the sub-genre’s early success to The Man in Black. His titular track, “Ring of Fire” is perhaps his most beloved rockabilly influenced track.
Well, I love you, baby, and you ought to know
I like the way that you wear your clothes
Everything about you is so doggone sweet
You got that sand all over your feet
///////
Love is a burning thing
And it makes a fiery ring
Bound by wild desire
I fell into a ring of fire
6. “Crazy” (Patsy Cline) (1961)
Nashville, Tennessee became a hub of country music in the ’40s. In the following decades, a new “Nashville” style of country music began to develop. Unlike the rough-and-tumble ways of bluegrass, the Nashville sound was polished and pop-leaning. Many artists began to earn mega-stardom off this sonic evolution.
One such artist who earned fame in this era–and became a female trailblazer to boot–was Patsy Cline. “Crazy,” a Willie Nelson-penned track, became one of her biggest hits. Revisit it, below.
Crazy, I’m crazy for feeling so lonely
I’m crazy, crazy for feeling so blue
I knew you’d love me as long as you wanted
And then someday you’d leave me for somebody new
7. “Act Naturally” (Buck Owens) (1963)
In the ’60s and ’70s, the west coast began to stake their claim on country music. One of the main voices in the “Bakersfield Sound” was Buck Owens. Though originally from Texas, his move to California influenced his career greatly. The easy-breezy nature of the Bakersfield Sound can be heard in “Act Naturally,” below.
Well, I hope you come to see me in the movie
Then I know that you will plainly see
The biggest fool that’s ever hit the big time
And all I gotta do is act naturally
8. “Just Between You and Me” (Charley Pride) (1967)
Charley Pride became one of the first black performers to become a country star. Though many black artists contributed to the rise of country, few earned the same prestige as their white counterparts. Pride not only became a shining example of what the genre could be if it widened its scope, but earned the genre cross-over success in pop and gospel.
But just between you and me
I’m not so sure about it
Cause just between you and me
You’re too much to forget
You’re too much to forget
9. “Me and Paul” (Willie Nelson) (1971)
Willie Nelson, along with a fair few friends, began to give country its edge back in the ’70s with the outlaw movement. The outlaw sound was characterized by gritty instrumentation and lyrics about living life hard and fast. It stood in stark contrast to the prim and proper Nashville sound that had reined supreme for decades. Though many Nelson songs could end up on this list, we’ve chosen an early outlaw cut, “Me and Paul.”
Well, it’s been rough and rocky traveling
But I’m finally standing upright on the ground
And after taking several readings
I’m surprised to find my mind’s still fairly sound
[RELATED: Willie Nelson’s Activism: How Music Became a Tool for Social Change]
Pop Cross-Over
10. “Amarillo by Morning” (George Strait) (1982)
In the ’80s, the Urban Cowboy-fication of country music began to take full swing. Country began to take center stage in popular music, earning a wider audience than ever before. One artist who certainly capitalized off that trend was George Strait.
Strait’s deep, syrupy vocals earned him his fair share of hits, including “Amarillo by Morning.” Revisit this classic, below.
When that Sun is high
In that Texas sky
I’ll be buckin’ at the county fair
Amarillo by mornin’
Amarillo I’ll be there
11. “Honey, I’m Home” (Shania Twain) (1997)
The ’90s saw country music encroach even further into the pop world. Artists like Shania Twain earned significant cross-over success, blurring the lines between what is country and what is a stellar pop song with a western-tinge. “Honey, I’m Home” is not only an example of a country track with immense appeal across genres, but also is emblematic of the stance female country singers would take in the modern era: unapologetic feminism, wit, and powerful vignettes of womanhood.
Honey, I’m home and I had a hard day
Pour me a cold one and oh, by the way
Rub my feet, gimme something to eat
Fix me up my favorite treat
12. “How Do You Like Me Now?!” (Toby Keith)
Toby Keith was the highest grossing country artist from 2000-2009. He started to build the foundation for that legendary run in 1999 with “How Do You Like Me Now?!” This vengeful track–which remains one of his calling cards–further helped country’s spotlight grow. Many contemporary country artists have Keith to thank for opening doors for them to gain international success.
How do you like me now?
How do you like me now?
Now that I’m on my way
Do you still think I’m crazy standing here today?
I couldn’t make you love me but I always dreamed about livin’ in your radio
How do you like me now?
13. “Jesus, Take the Wheel” (Carrie Underwood) (2005) / “Tim McGraw” (Taylor Swift) (2009)
The mid-to-late ’00s saw a crop of country stars become successful from listeners who previously didn’t want anything to do with the genre. Artists like Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift transcended country music on a massive scale. Perhaps more so than ever before, these artists didn’t need the vehicle of the country machine. Their songs were beloved for what they were, not because country fans were consuming anything and everything that had a twang.
Jesus, take the wheel
Take it from my hands
‘Cause I can’t do this on my own
I’m letting go
///////
But when you think Tim McGraw
I hope you think my favorite song
The one we danced to all night long
The moon like a spotlight on the lake
14. “Cruise” (Florida Georgia Line) (2012)
The 2010s saw country begin to incorporate hip-hop elements to create what has affectionally (more or less) become known as “bro-country.” Florida George Line were early adopters of this unique brand of country. “Cruise” gave the movement validity, becoming the first country song to be certified Diamond by the RIAA. Looking back at the massive artists on this list who failed to grasp that achievement, you have to give credit where credit is due.
Baby you’re a song
You make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise
Down a back road blowin’ stop signs through the middle
Every little farm town with you
In this brand new Chevy with a lift kit
Would look a hell lot better with you up in it
15. “Heart Like a Truck” (Lainey Wilson) (2022)
The western way of life has been gaining traction in the zeitgeist for the last decade or so. Lainey Wilson has helped to proliferate that movement. Wilson’s catalog has brought back the western style of music that has mostly been lost in the genre. “Heart Like a Truck” is one of many Wilson tunes that is aiding country’s rise to the top of the pop world in the modern era.
I got a heart like a truck
It’s been drug through the mud
Runs on dreams and gasoline
And that ole highway holds the key
(Photo by Gary Miller/Getty Images)
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