Americana music
Americana is an amalgam of roots music fused by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, rhythm & blues, rock & roll and other external influential styles.[1] Americana is popularly referred to, especially in print, as alt-country or sometimes alt.country.
Americana as a radio format
Americana, as once defined by the Americana Music Association, is "American roots music based on the traditions of country. While the musical model can be traced back to the Elvis Presley marriage of 'hillbilly music' and R&B that birthed rock 'n roll, Americana as a radio format developed during the 1990s as a reaction to the highly polished sound that defined the mainstream music of that decade."[1] Because of listener interest in the artists who do not fit as comfortably in the Country or Rock genres, a radio format called "Americana" has been developed by the Americana Music Association and reported by R&R. Born out of the "Triple A", "Non-Commercial", "Country" and other varied formats, the Americana format is the sum of the parts that have showcased Americana music since its inception.
The "Americana" radio format was not actually developed by the Americana Music Association (AMA).[citation needed] Rather the AMA grew out of the radio format as an effort to bring all of the Americana Music supporters, performers, and professionals together in an organization designed to provide a platform for all artists and professionals working in that musical genre in order to further expand the visibility and viability of the music. The radio format, including the term "Americana" for it, actually began in early 1995 thru efforts of Rob Bleetstein of San Francisco, and Jon Grimson of Nashville. Rob became the first Americana chart editor as Gavin (a former radio trade publication) magazine created the first Americana radio chart which was published on Jan. 20, 1995. Jon became the first Americana radio promoter after having promoted the music previously as an employee of Warner Brothers Records Nashville, and promoting those releases that WB worked to radio formats outside the mainstream country stations. The AMA was later established to expand the musical format outside of strictly radio, but still including the radio aspect as well. The non profit AMA now runs the Americana radio chart that is published in R&R (Radio & Records, a radio trade publication).
Notable Americana artists
Some of the significant artists in the genre are The Band of Heathens, Johnny Cash, Gram Parsons, Over the Rhine, Bill Malonee, Vigilanties Of Love (V.O.L.), Lucinda Williams, Bottle Rockets, Uncle Tupelo, BR549, Mavis Staples, John Prine, Rodney Crowell, The Band, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Elvis Presley, Steve Earle, Alison Krauss, June Carter Cash, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Radney Foster, Wilco, Jay Farrar, Grateful Dead, The Jayhawks, Jim Lauderdale, The Derailers, Loretta Lynn, Ryan Adams, Kelly Willis, Son Volt, Patty Griffin, Marty Stuart, Joe Ely, Buffalo, The Subdudes, Gurf Morlix, Jimmy LaFave, Neil Young, Bobby Bare, The Greencards, Kathleen Edwards, Adrienne Young, Peter Case, Joan Osborne, Sunny Sweeney, Old Crow Medicine Show, Whiskeytown, Gillian Welch, Alejandro Escovedo, Golden Smog, Freakwater, The Gourds, Lyle Lovett, Chris Castle, Ricky Skaggs, Bruce Hornsby, Eilen Jewell, Bill Kirchen, Amy LaVere, Blue Mountain, Rita Hosking, The Handsome Family, J.J. Cale, Uncle Earl, Bob Dylan, Buddy Miller, Dale Watson, Ruthie Foster, Tangletown, Southern Culture on the Skids, Guy Clark, Hackensaw Boys, Mindy Smith, Porter Wagoner, Stoll Vaughan, Robbie Fulks, Mary Chapin Carpenter, John Fogerty, Buddy Knox, Jimmy Bowen, Gene Summers, Billy Lee Riley, Lew Williams, Jack Scott, Johnny Carroll, Gene Vincent, Glen Glenn, Dale Hawkins, William Elliott Whitmore, Drive By Truckers, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Reckless Kelly, Stoney LaRue, Wade Bowen, Randy Rogers Band, Brandon Rhyder, Jason Boland & the Stragglers, Micky and the Motorcars, Bruce Robison, Hayes Carll, Ryan Bingham, Murder By Death, Van Dyke Parks, John Hiatt, Van Morrison, etc.
Notes and references
- ^ a b >Pete Knapp (2008-10-06). "What is Americana Music?".
Andrew James Robison