My country music starting XI

When we lived in southeastern Oregon, we met some real cowboys. How were they "real?" They didn't just become cowboys when they went to the bar on Saturday night. They became cowboys when they woke up, got on a horse, and herded cattle across miles of empty, sagebrush- and juniper-covered land. I gained a great appreciation of these authentic cowboys and their near-existential lives.
I feel the same about country music: I love "authentic" country music.
So, what makes country music authentic? Well, I know a lot of people who don't appreciate country music because the only "country" they know is the overly produced, overtly pop, safely conservative music on the radio.
Except for very few songs, I don't think rock or jazz fans are going to find much to like on a country music radio station.
So, as a public service, here are 11 song recommendations that just might open your hearts and minds to a wonderful world of authentic twang...
1. Rodney Crowell -- "Above and Beyond" (1988)
Try not to sing along to this Harlan Howard-penned classic (originally from the 1950s). It is impossible!
2. Waylon Jennings -- "I Ain't Living Long Like This" (1979)
My jazz-loving dad adored Waylon Jennings, I think because he appreciated the individuality of a performer who didn't give a damn about the dictates of the Nashville establishment. Here, Jennings sings an outlaw anthem by then-little known songsmith Rodney Crowell!
3. Steve Earle -- "My Old Friend the Blues" (1986)
An outlaw in the finest Waylon Jennings tradition, Steve Earle usually sings topical songs. Here, he sings a timeless song about sadness.
4. Johnny Cash and Anita Carter -- "Another Man Done Gone" (1963)
The only instruments on this haunting ballad -- two of the greatest voices in the annals of recorded music.
5. Buck Owens -- "Cryin' Time" (1964)
Too many people associate Buck Owens with corny jokes on "Hee Haw." Want to gauge Owens' songwriting genius? Well, Ray Charles covered this song. That ain't bad.
6. George Jones -- "Why Baby Why" (1955)
George Jones wrote this classic with Darrell Edwards. Webb Pierce got ahold of it and rode his cover version to the top of the country charts. Jones' version of his own song landed at No. 4 on the charts. You can almost never go wrong with George Jones.
7. The Byrds -- "You're Still on My Mind" (1968)
Gram Parsons might be the best thing that ever happened to country music: He was a hippy in love with the songs of George Jones -- like this song from The Byrds' revolutionary "Sweetheart of the Rodeo." Sadly, Parsons' proto-typical rock lifestyle (flashy clothes, copious drugs, early death in a motel room, friends burned his body in the desert) unfairly overshadows his musical achievements.
8. Old 97's -- "Barrier Reef" (1997)
Without Gram Parsons, there would be no alt.country movement. Here, singer/songwriter Rhett Miller revels in an amped-up country classicism. Bless him!
9. The Louvin Brothers -- "I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby" (1955)
Ira Louvin's impossible high tenor voice is the closest I have heard to a voice from heaven. Ironic, then, that Ira himself was filled with such hellfire.
10. Lefty Frizzell -- "Always Late (With Your Kisses)" (1951)
Possessing one of the most beautiful voices in music, Lefty Frizzell also wrote a litany of unfairly wonderful songs -- "If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time" and "I Love You a Thousand Ways" are just two others from his incredible canon.
11. Ray Price -- "Heartache by the Number" (1959)
Eventually, Price became the embodiment of everything I hate about country music (awash in overtly pop, syrupy orchestration). Here, however, he croons another classic tune by Harlan Howard.
Tomorrow: I'll write about my favorite country music performer of all... The "Young Sheriff."
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