Pop Goes Country
When Did Pop Go to Country?
There are many opinions regarding when Pop went to Country. Some say the British invasion of the fifties was the trigger point, while others tag the sixties or seventies as the beginning of the pop movement.
During the week of September 28, 1974, the Hot 100 listed seven of the 100 charted records as rejuvenated versions of songs that made it before on the pop charts. At the time, Glen Campbell, Ronnie Milsap, Barbara Mandrell and David Houston were already blending pop oriented songs into their routine.
That year (1974), Glen Campbell charted his rendition of the pop classic, Bonaparte’s Retread. Prior to that, Billy Grammer charted his version of the song in 1959. Ronnie Milsap was riding the airwaves with Please Don’t Tell Me How the Story Ends. The Kris Kristofferson penned tuned reached number eight on the country charts for Bobby bare in 1971. Willie and Tracy Nelson rode a crest of success with the single, After the Fire is Gone. The song hit number one three years earlier for Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn.
Another duo doing well at the time with pop influences were Barbara Mandrell and David Houston, who broke onto the charts with Ten Commandments of Love. That tune had been on the pop charts four times in the past, with the Moonglows (1958) James McArthur (1963), Peaches & Herb (1968) and Little Anthony & the Imperials (1969).
Also in 1974, Donnie & Marie Osmond cut their rendition of the single, I’m Leaving It All Up To You. That song hit number one on the Hot 100 chart for Dale & Grace in 1963. Tony Booth charted Working at the Car Wash Blues. The song was a pop hit for Jim Croce a few months earlier. Narvell Felts was riding the charts with Raindrops, a number two pop hit for Dee Clark in 1961.
At a time when many of Nashville’s old guard was already complaining that pop trends were invading their territory and stealing valuable airtime, from traditional country music singers, Olivia Newton-John popped her voice onto the country charts. Newton-John’s music had already been successful in multiple formats including pop and adult contemporary. She co-starred with John Travolta in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical, Grease, which became one of the most successful films and movie soundtracks in Hollywood history. When Olivia Newton-John won the coveted “Female Vocalist of the Year” award in 1974, the Country Music Association (CMA) was widely criticized by many sectors of the country music industry for handing her that award.
What all this all suggests, obviously, is that pop oriented music began forcefully infiltrating the country music arena by the mid-1970s. There were many reasons for the movement. A new brand of producers and songwriters invaded Nashville and a wave of new artists were willing to go with the flow in order to notch a hit and break into the business.
As country music began to drift away from its traditional roots and transition toward a soft pop sound (commonly referred to as alternative country), a flurry of new artists such as Kenny Rogers, Ronnie Milasp, Dave & Sugar, Emmylou Harris, Billy Crash Craddock, Anne Murray and John Denver were among several artists who helped transform country music beyond its original identity. Most of those singers had indistinguishable voices, which changed country music forever.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------Researched and written by Richard Bell, Roots of Country Music, Nov. 22, 2011.
