I’ve always said I have a wide range in music taste. These past few months, my daily listening has shifted from heavy pop to throwback outlaw country. Outlaw country is different from other eras of country music; it was a movement born out of artist independence. Outlaw country music is rich with storytelling that keeps me coming back every time.
If you aren’t familiar with outlaw country, then you may not have grown up with my grandparents listening to classic rock and country while playing cards before dinner. Or with my mother who loves to listen to music while watching the sun set and recounting family stories I haven’t heard before. Outlaw country music has a special place in my heart. It reminds me of my family and my deep Texas roots. I’ve listened to it driving down I-35 when its 100 degrees in September and in Vienna on my study abroad last summer when I felt far from home.
This was originally going to be one article, but as I looked through my Spotify, I realized there were far too many songs I wanted to dive into for just one article. So, welcome to part one of my deep dive into my love of outlaw country music.
It is important to state that these songs very much capture the time in which they were written and some misrepresent minority groups and women. Environment shapes art, and art can show which groups had privilege at the time. The artists during this era were primarily white men, and that is reflected in their music. Understanding the era in which they were written and released and how our culture has evolved since then is an important part of media literacy.
Before I dive in, I think it’s only right to go over a little bit of history to set the background for this era. Nashville had become the center of country music in the 50s and 60s, but by the end of the 60s, record labels, producers, and publishers controlled much of the music industry. This drove artists like Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings out of Tennessee. Willie Nelson went to Austin Texas, where he found a city alive with young musicians, blending rock and classic country music. Outlaw county was coined by Waylon Jennings, who referred to it as such because it broke the rules Nashville had established for country music.
Now, to jump into some of my recommendations, if you want to jump into this niche country genre. To start, I went with a collaboration between some of outlaw country’s biggest names: Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson, who collaborated to make the band The Highwaymen.
Song 1:
“Highwayman” from The Highwaymen
The themes across songs in this genre include crimes, cowboys, and a lone rider persona. This song captures all of those themes and more.
“I was a highwayman, along the coach roads I did ride
With sword and pistol by my side
Many a young maid lost her baubles to my trade
Many a soldier shed his life blood on my blade
The bastards hung me in the spring of ’25
But I am still alive”
The song continues in these mini stories, switching between the different singers explaining their glorious stories that some claim they died in, but they are still alive like ghosts haunting the land. The song ends with:
“Perhaps I may become a highwayman again
Or I may simply be a single drop of rain
But I will remain
And I’ll be back again and again and again
And again and again and again”
Although they have died wandering and committing crimes, they will return. This song encapsulates the genre as one with songs driven by almost mystical stories of the west.
Song 2:
“Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)” by Waylon Jennings featuring Willie Nelson
This song shows the livelier side of outlaw county. Featuring two of the greats in country music, Waylon and Willie, this song captures the cultural importance of Luckenbach, Texas.
“I don’t need my name in the marquee lights
I got my song and I got you with me tonight
Maybe it’s time we got back to the basics of love
Let’s go to Luckenbach, Texas
With Waylon and Willie and the boys”
If you are unfamiliar with Luckenbach, that’s alright. To summarize, it is a tiny town in central Texas outside of Fredericksburg known for its dancehall and general store. It is a cultural icon in Texas for being a small venue far from larger cities. It is still a spot where big country artists will come to play to be a part of the legacy built by outlaw country.
“Between Hank Williams’ pain songs and
Newberry’s train songs and Blue Eyes Cryin in the Rain
Out in Luckenbach, Texas ain’t nobody feelin’ no pain”
The song references other country songs made by the singer friends. The songs they name are sad county ballads that they wish to escape from to a happy place: the bar and dancehall in Luckenbach. The song continues by naming things the singer and his partner do not need, leaving behind the desire to live in high society and instead take refuge in Luckenbach where they can focus on their love.
Song 3:
“Mama Tried” by Merle Haggard
Similar to the first two songs, this song is all story based. It also explores the tradition in outlaw country to exaggerate stories creating mythos around the artists. Many had stories of arrests and prison, but it is unclear if they really served time or if they just liked the edge it gave to their reputation.
“On a freight train leavin’ town
Not knowin’ where I’m bound
And no one could change my mind but Mama tried
One and only rebel child
From a family, meek and mild
My Mama seemed to know what lay in store”
Merle Haggard is not one such artist. He served time in prison in San Quentin before he became a country music icon. That stint in prison is said to have inspired this song.
“And I turned twenty-one in prison doin’ life without parole
No one could steer me right but Mama tried, Mama tried
Mama tried to raise me better, but her pleading, I denied
That leaves only me to blame ’cause Mama tried”
Song 4:
“You Never Even Called Me by My Name” by David Allan Coe
This song is a family favorite on my mom’s side. We tend to play it every evening we are all together while we watch the sunset on the lake. It has become just as nostalgic for me as it is for them. My mother recalls watching her parents dance around the living room as a child to this song.
“Well, it was all
That I could do to keep from crying’
Sometimes it seemed so useless to remain
But you don’t have to call me darlin’, darlin’
You never even called me by my name”
The opening of this song is somber: it takes a lover staying with their partner despite not being appreciated by them. It also doubles at David Allan Coe saying he is not found memorable by his audience as he goes on to name other artists he’s been mistake for. But then, a few minutes into the song, it changes into a speech by the singer.
“Well, a friend of mine named Steve Goodman wrote that song
And he told me it was the perfect country & western song
I wrote him back a letter and I told him it was not the perfect country & western song
Because he hadn’t said anything at all about mama
Or trains, or trucks, or prison, or getting’ drunk
Well, he sat down and wrote another verse to the song and he sent it to me
And after reading it I realized that my friend had written the perfect country & western song
And I felt obliged to include it on this album
The last verse goes like this here”
The song becomes a parody of the whole genre, making fun of the topics country singers often focus on. David Allan Coe goes on to sing the verse in a much more upbeat way then the start of the song. This has always been my favorite part because everyone in my family takes it as a chance to dramatically sing along to the silly verses. The song takes the audience on the journey of how it was made and makes for a memorable song.
Song 5:
“The Road Goes On Forever” by Robert Earl Keen
Similar to “Mama Tried,” this song is a story, but unlike it, the story truly unfolds throughout the song. This song is like a short film with its detail, which creates vivid visuals, and the story unwinds as the song continues. The song begins by introducing the two main characters in the story: Sherry, a waitress, and Sonny, a loner.
“Sonny’s playing eight-ball at the joint where Sherry works
When some drunken out-of-towner put his hand up Sherry’s skirt
Sonny took his pool cue, laid the drunk out on the floor
Stuffed a dollar in her tip jar, walked on out the door
She’s runnin’ right behind him, reaching for his hand
The road goes on forever and the party never ends”
The story introduces how they met and decided to leave town together to move to Miami Beach. The couple’s money eventually runs out, and Sonny decides to deal in contraband with Cuban refugees when he is caught by the police. Sherry kills the cop arresting Sonny, and they drive away.
“Sonny gave her all the money and he blew a little kiss
“If they ask you how this happened, say I forced you into this”
She watched him as his tail lights disappeared around the bend
The road goes on forever and the party never ends”
The song jumps twenty-one months to when Sherry goes back to their hometown and at the grocery store sees a newspaper that says that Sonny was caught. Sonny was not only caught but convicted for killing the cop and is facing the death penalty. Sherry is off free in her brand-new Mercedes Benz spending the money Sonny got from his dealings before going on the run.
This song is truly a story with twists and turns and captures the craziness of the tales told in country songs.
These five songs only capture bits and pieces of these artists and this era of country music. These songs are community based. They tell stories of communities and lives outside of the societal expectations of the time. The same can be said of the artists finding success outside of the record companies in Nashville. These artists’ songs have rippled out beyond their original recording. Many songs have been covered by artists over the decades and have taken on new life. Part of the mythology of these artists comes from their live performances. Although less often now, Willie Nelson and Robert Earl Keen continue to perform live, and their shows are not quiet affairs. Many of Robert Earl Keen’s songs have call outs that go with them, and Willie Nelson’s shows have everyone singing along with the aging singer. The audience they built at the beginning of their careers has passed on their music and continued to foster new fans.
I can’t wait to continue this series and dive deeper!