3 Country Songs From 1979 That Every Small-Town Kid Still Knows by Heart

If you’re from a small town in America, I bet you’ve heard these three country songs from 1979 at least once. And I bet at least one of them still gets carried around in your heart today.

“Blue Kentucky Girl” by Emmylou Harris from ‘Blue Kentucky Girl’

“Don’t wait to bring great riches home to me / I need no diamond rings or fancy pearls / Just bring yourself, you’re all I’ll ever need / That’s good enough for this blue Kentucky girl.”

This song is actually a cover of a Loretta Lynn classic from 1965. But there’s just something about the way Emmylou Harris sings this song that just wiggles its way into one’s heart. Especially if one is from a small town in the great state of Kentucky. “Blue Kentucky Girl” is about a small-town girl whose object of her affection leaves to experience the hustle and bustle of the city. It’s a heartbreaker for sure, but a subtle ode to small-town life and love all the same.

“The Devil Went Down To Georgia” by The Charlie Daniels Band from ‘Million Mile Reflections’

“Johnny, rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard / ‘Cause Hell’s broke loose in Georgia and the Devil deals the cards / And if you win you get this shiny fiddle made of gold / But if you lose the Devil gets your soul.”

Even if you weren’t a small-town kid or from Georgia, you probably know this song all too well. It’s a Southern Gothic odyssey of sorts. The tune tells the story of a young man with a violin that bests the actual Devil in a duel down in the state of Georgia. “The Devil Went Down To Georgia” by The Charlie Daniels Band isn’t exactly an “ode” to small-town living. But it’s a song that is tightly connected to Southern culture and music in a very beautiful way. Just about every small-town kid out there can appreciate it.

“Whiskey Bent And Hell Bound” by Hank Williams Jr. from ‘Whiskey Bent And Hell Bound’

“Play me the songs about ramblin man / Put old Jim Beam in my hand / Cause you know I still love to get drunk / And hear country sounds.”

Remember sitting around in your small-town bar, drinking whiskey, listening to Hank Williams, and enjoying the simple pleasures of life? This entry on our list of country songs from 1979 captures that unique vibe quite beautifully. Allegedly, Hank Williams Jr. wrote “Whiskey Bent And Hell Bound” while hanging out with The Allman Brothers.

(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)