From the Archives: Bad-Ass-o-Meter 2

ORIGINALLY POSTED MAR 25, 2009

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YouTube Gems: Charlie Robison

Charlie's new album High Life is out now and very, very good. Since I couldn't find any video of songs from that album, here's one of his classics, "My Hometown."

A Few Words from the Late Robert Earl Reed

Photo from oxfordmusicsnob.com

As most of you have probably heard by now, a great friend to me personally, FTM as a whole, and underground country music passed away on October 5th. Robert Earl Reed had big plans for his music over the next few months and one of the most exciting for him was being booked on the Moonrunners Fest 2014 bill. He was so excited by this opportunity he actually had written lyrics for a song just to open up his set at the festival. His plan was to find volunteers at the event from other bands to play with him and for each person on stage to sing one verse of his special song. He wanted it to have a very strong classic twang sound and he told me he believed it would blow the roof off the place. To the best of my knowledge he was going to do the song this one time and then retire it. Just a little something special for all of his friends in the crowd. Unfortunately that special moment will never come but we at FTM would like to offer to you the original lyrics to "Fuck The Bling" by Reverend Robert Earl Reed.    

                                                                                                                -Jeremy Harris

Fuck the Bling
©Robert Earl Reed

Well it makes me sick
To turn on the radio
When  tuning in  a real country station
Is impossible to find

Paycheck Cash and Jones
Have been preempted
By wanna be country boys
and Autotuned popsong rhymes

They all sing like one another
They all caught up trying to be real stars
They all drive muddy trucks and cruise back roads filled with lust
the focus group products of the sell out country times

They ain't filling no shoes
They ain't singing the high lonesome blues
They couldn't hold a candle to
Waylon Willie or Merle

And though the legends are almost gone
A wild breed of country will carry it  on
When the true Independents  hit the stage

It ain't about money or girls
It's about real things that happen in a real fucked up world
It about telling it like it is
not how THEY say it should be

It's about three chords and the truth
It's about raising the rafters on the old tin roof
And Playing Songs from our hearts
For folks to dance and sing

Yeah Playing Country Music from the Heart

Fuck the Bling !

3 Up, 3 Down: October '13

3 Up

Miranda Lambert - All Kinds of Kinds

Quirky… no, downright strange for country radio, this is a song only someone with an established track record like Miranda Lambert could get away with (and she's only managed to barely crack the top 20 with it). It's weird and warm and has hopefully prepared listeners for the next big ode to open-mindedness to hopefully grace the charts, Kacey Musgraves' "Follow Your Arrow."

B

Zac Brown Band - Sweet Annie

Reminiscent of their earlier earthy smash "Colder Weather," "Sweet Annie" is a slow rolling vocally driven gem. It's not pure country, but it's right there in the pocket of what pop-country should sound like in a natural evolution of genre. It's a low-key, high-quality song that hopefully won't be hurt by any higher ups trying to serve out "justice" for Zac's comments about genre cash-cow Puke Bryan.

A

Jason Aldean - Night Train

Yes, I'm serious. No, I'm not testing you. No, please don't shun me. Sure, this isn't traditional-sounding and it's not particularly deep… but it sounds good and isn't a generic party/listing song. There's only a passing mention of a truck. And no cut-off jeans. Aldean usually puts out one single per album that I genuinely enjoy and this is it for the album of the same name. I'll probably never care for Aldean as an artist or person due to his attitude and tendency to put out crap like "1994," but "Night Train" shows that he's got a little more appeal behind the bluster than some of his compadres.

B+

3 Down

Cole Swindell - Chillin' It

An unmemorable voice singing an unremarkable song that sounds like a Florida-Georgia Line album cut. There aren't any particularly embarrassing lyrics in the song, but certainly nothing to hang your new vintage trucker cap on. Oh, and did I mention he used to be Luke Bryan's merch guy? That's got nothing to do with the song sucking but... who am I kidding? Yes it does.

D-

Chris Young - Aw Naw

Thankfully this is one of the 2 or 3 worst songs on his new album. Unfortunately, he'll probably release all of those as singles. Chris wasn't making enough money to keep up with the Aldeans putting out critical favorites like "Neon," so he became a follower of the less talented but more successful members of his genre, and this was the result. A bone-headed partyin' drinkin' anthem that he yells instead of sings.

D (Originally given a C+)

Parmalee - Carolina

These guys switched from mainstream rock to mainstream country without even changing their sound or even remixing this song (not even a token fiddle or steel) and nobody said a word about it. DJ's just bent over and said "put it right here." It's not that this is a terrible song; it's one of the better songs I've heard from Daughtry… I'm just saying it doesn't belong on country radio. Why does country have to be the collection bin of failed pop singers and fake alt-rock bands?

C-

Stagecoach Announces Lineup + Name Change

Kindly disregard the good artists on the list in relation to the "name change." You get the point...