Brian Hinton - Country Roads: How Country Came to Nashville

Copyright 2000 Brian Hinton
This edition 2012 Bobcat Books
(A Division of Music Sales Limited, 14-15 Berners Street, London W1T 3LJ)

ISBN: 978-0-85712-844-7

Photographs courtesy of the author unless stated otherwise.

The Author hereby asserts his / her right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with Sections 77 to 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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For Dave Eyre, who told me about The Alabama 3,
and for Neil and Emma,
who helped with the soundtrack

T he primary acknowledgment is to Jeff Hudson, my editor at Sanctuary, who put to me his idea that someone should write a book on the Celtic roots of country music. I have merely filled in the gaps. Also to Alan, Dan, Eddie and Michelle, and most of all Penny, who offered sanctuary to an apprentice rock critic.

We all pick up the enthusiasms of our friends, and much of what follows is the result of recommendations, suggestions and arguments with (among others) Julian Bell, Dave Caddy, Martin Carthy, Alan Clayson, Mike Cole, Mark Cooper, Neil Gammie, Amanda Hemingway, Jim Hanlon, David Harris, Stephen Hayward, Chris Heasman, Tom Jeffery, Bruce Laker, Ellie McCarthy, David McKee, Eileen McManus, Neil Philip, Neil Sowerby, and the priceless Geoff Wall, whose archive I have plundered but given it all back, honest. Special thanks also go to Nicky Dabbs, who read the entire manuscript and made extremely helpful and constructive comments throughout. Any follies are of my own making.

Particular thanks go to three musician friends, who have all been crucially involved in the English side of country and its roots: Ashley Hutchings, Martin Stone and Dick Taylor.

Any music promoter deserves a medal, so fond regards to the Isle Of Wight Three Vic King, Pete Turner and Mike Plumbley and those anonymous souls responsible for fine gigs Ive taken in at the Brook, the Joiners and the Gantry in Southampton, the Tower in Winchester, the New Forest Arts Centre, the Town And Country Club, the Mean Fiddler, the Rainbow, the Hope And Anchor, the Marquee, the Angel Islington, the Irish Centre in Leeds and many other homes for country wayfarers.

I owe a particular debt (literally!) to Jeff Lewis, whose musical emporium in the Victorian Arcade, Union Street, Ryde, has provided all kinds of vinyl rarities, and is well worth a visit from any collector. Roger Careless from Glastonbury is my premier source for alt country CDs in England, and his expertise has been a great help, as have similar contributions from John Delaney.

One-man record shops like Snu-Peas in Bournemouth, Roger in Bristol, Spillers in Cardiff, Ferrets in Southampton and corporate enterprises like Tower Records, Record And Tape Exchange and Reckless in London have all helped me in tracking down some extremely rare items. Theres nothing to beat a knowledgeable bloke (as they usually tend to be) behind the counter.

In exchange, I have blown my advance, and more, on country music but thats the point, isnt it? Some of the most exciting discoveries, however, have come from riffling through the LP racks in charity shops and second-hand emporia. Country music especially on vinyl forms a kind of cultural slick which slops around the roots of our culture. It needs an archaeologist like me with time on his hands and determination in his heart to dig down and sift through these rich deposits.

In terms of print, Backnumbers has provided its usual excellent service in digging back into a barnful of old music mags. Heiter Skelter, just off Londons Charing Cross Road, has kept me up to date with No Depression and much else, so thanks to Sean Body for all of his help. I have plundered with due acknowledgements my own copious archive of back issues of the peerless Zigzag, as well as such other pathfinders as Comstock Lode, Dark Star, Liquorice, Strange Things Are Happening, and Unhinged. Most of those are long gone, but the totally unique Ptolemaic Terrascope continues as a benchmark of excellence.

Folk Roots has been a wonderful source of material, right back to its earlier incarnation as Southern Rag, although that estimable magazine also has the regular power to infuriate. Respect also is due to Folk On Tap (for whom I reviewed some of the CDs discussed here), No Depression and the ever-impressive Bucketfull Of Brains.

Cecil Sharp House is an invaluable source of material on the British folk traditions, the Bodleian has been a place of last resort, and nearer to home the Isle Of Wight Library Service in particular the special music collection at Ventnor has proved extremely helpful, both for books and CDs.

Thanks for technical help go to Dave Griffin and Kenneth Matthews of Solent PCW Services of Waterlooville, who provided invaluable technical assistance and serviced my trusty old Amstrad.

Last of all, apologies to my neighbours, as various strange sounds have drifted out over the cliff-top at all times of the day and night, most with a country twang. If those sounds continue due west, they will eventually hit America (theres nothing between me and the Appalachians but cool, cool water). At least it has replaced the more usual sounds of psychedelic rock and electric folk, or even worse my own free-form meanderings on the electric piano.

Even while you wept there by your fallen harp by the grave,
What you wept for was translated, passd from the grave,
The winds favord and the sea saild it,
And now with rosy and new blood,
Moves to-day in a new country.

Walt Whitman, Old Ireland, Leaves Of Grass.

Violence was all: our day-glo badges winked a constellation as we goggled at Kimo Sabbi, Davy Crockett, the Caped Pretender.

They went down blazing, but lit a mighty conflagration in our souls playground wars were flints struck on dry tinder:

I wore a coon-skin cap, shot the world with my Winchester Repeater such times are gone.

Brian Hinton, Flints, The Hearts Clockwork, Enitharmon, 1989.

Country is the last authentic goddamed shit left for us to rip off.

Bob Neuwirth.

T his book is a rock fans voyage of discovery into the worlds of country and traditional folk. To further skew the balance, I have taken a British viewpoint on what is usually perceived as a purely American form of music in order to show how closely intertwined the two actually are. The journey ahead will take us through many strange byways and musical backwaters before the full pattern emerges. Nothing is quite as it seems.