Country music had changed a lot over the years, and the transition between the 1960s and 1970s was particularly packed full of genre-changing tunes. Let’s take a look at a few country songs released in 1969 that had a major impact on the genre as we know it.
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“A Boy Named Sue” by Johnny Cash
Story songs, novelty tunes, and comedic country tracks were all in existence before 1969. However, “A Boy Named Sue” by Johnny Cash really put this kind of country styling on the map. Cash incorporated the talking blues style into this country tune in a way that hadn’t quite been done before. And it remains a pretty hilarious and fun song to enjoy today. Fans at the time certainly loved it. The song peaked at No. 1 on the Hot Country Singles chart and No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Fun fact: “A Boy Named Sue” was written by children’s author Shel Silverstein.
“Okie From Muskogee” by Merle Haggard
In the 1960s, there was a sort of divide between the countercultural movement and country music. Traditional country music had more or less dominated the country charts during that decade, with some country pop and early country rock songs mixed in. Outlaw country music came to be in that decade, bridging the gap between counterculture and country, and giving a stiff middle finger to the pop-centric, clean-cut image of the Nashville sound of the time. “Okie From Muskogee” was one of many outlaw-leaning country songs from 1969 to mark a very special change for country music in that fashion. It’s also a somewhat controversial patriotic song that was written during the Vietnam War era.
“Galveston” by Glen Campbell
Orchestral arrangements weren’t exactly uncommon in traditional country and western music in the 1960s. But there’s something about adding a modern edge to a very not-modern country sound that just made all the difference. That’s what Glen Campbell did with one of the most vulnerable and beautiful country songs of 1969, “Galveston”. It was a country-pop soft rock crossover hit for Campbell. The tune reached No. 4 on the Hot 100 chart, as well as No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart in the US. Everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Faron Young has covered this tune. Honestly, this gem proves that there might be something to having nearly two-dozen musicians on a song.
Photo by ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
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