Evolution Of Country Music

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Country music: one of the very first genres of modern popular American music. Country music has a lot of history in it, being that it is epitome of early American music. Parts of this history include the evolution of instruments, where it came from, and where it got influence and how it influenced other music; all of which had great effects on what the genre is today.

Country music began in the southern states of the U.S.A. It was a mix of British, African, and church sounds. Most people may believe Nashville was the origin of country music, they are wrong. While Nashville is a huge capital of country music now, the genre actually began around Bristol Tennessee. Back then, most people went to New York City to record music, however, a man named Ralph Peer brought Victor Records to Bristol and recorded local artists deemed ‘hillbilly’ musicians. One of the first recording artists he worked with there was a man named Jimmie Rodgers who sang in a style called yodeling. His 1928 album “Blue Yodel”, was one of the first country records to sell over a million copies. Even though it was not expected, it was a great, big step in the evolution of country music.
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It started with things like guitar, mandolin, autoharp, fiddle and the banjo. From 1930-1960 beats similar to those of a horse walking. In the same time period Western Swing artists would use different instruments like a pedal steel guitar. All of those instruments are still widely used in country music, however, much is now more upbeat with more drums and bass. This is because country music artists need to keep up with what people want and music trends. To do this, they may take influence from other