Country Music Reclamation Project: Once A Day

I’ve been picking fairly poetic songs for this series of posts, and have so far ignored some of the tightly written hit songs that drew the attention of both country and pop music fans. Among the most-successful of these was “Once A Day,” recorded by Connie Smith on her debut LP for RCA in 1965. The song spent eight weeks at #1 in the Country charts, longer than any other single. Once A Day (recorded by Connie Smith) Written by Bill Anderson When you found somebody new I thought I never would forget you For I thought then I never …

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Country Music Reclamation Project: Lonely Tombs

As it’s Sunday morning, and much of America is at church, allowing another human being explain God to them, it’s a good opportunity to spotlight one of the thousands of great country gospel songs. There are so many — and none that I’m aware of have prosperity theology as its subject. Most of these country gospel songs address the concerns of regular people: what will become of loved ones who die, will the afterlife be less painful than life on earth, will I be accepted into Heaven despite being a relentless sinner. There are few country gospel songs that are …

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Country Music Reclamation Project: The Life You’ve Lived

Eddie Noack wrote and recorded some great songs: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Shake Hands With The Blues, and A Thinkin’ Man’s Woman among them. I think The Life You’ve Lived is his best, and it should be standard issue with every jukebox. The Life You’ve Lived is a song of profound regret, and something about this song tells me it was written from first-hand experience — Noack died at age 47 and was reputed to be a hard drinker to the end. The lyrics don’t waste a word in describing a man who realizes too late what he’s about to lose. …

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Country Music Reclamation Project: When I Stop Dreaming

There’s an old, sort of funny joke that asks “What happens when you play a country song backwards?” The punchline has something to do with having your dog come back to life, uncrashing your pickup and getting let back into the trailer park. I admit — I couldn’t find the actual joke anywhere on the internets, but I did see that some awful “hot new country” band did record a song loosely based on the joke. It’s appropriate that a new country act idiotically enforce the stereotype. After all, it’s new country artists and their fans who have trashed this …

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