The chicks have a monopoly on the mainstream country stations. You know the type - Faith Hill, Shania Twain, Kenny Chesney...

Seriously, though -- I'm racking my brain for a good outlaw chick crooner. Most of the ones I can think of are in full-on bands and not identified as a girl necessarily. But I know (after practically a month of living here and listening full time) that they've played Lucinda Williams, Kelly Willis, a few others that I don't know...and I'm pretty sure I heard Marcia Ball the other day, but maybe not.

But yeah...beer-drinking songs = greatness. I just happened to get out of the truck about the time you posted this, and the last song was Kevin Fowler's "Beer, Bait and Ammo." [giggle]

Scott, while I'm glad to hear that it's not completely misogynistic, the fact that you've listened for a month and can name only three for sure...well, that's pretty telling. Telling what, I'm not sure. Like you say, maybe just the state of Texas music.

OTOH, it could be worse. They could be playing Dixie Chicks (yeah, I've heard that promo). ;-)

Kenny Chesney

Heh.

It's pretty cool that we were listeningn to "Beer, Bait and Ammo" at the same time, 300 miles apart.

Distaff?

I'm in awe of you lexicographic versatility.

Hey, even Texas redneks own dicshuneries.

This post is reminiscent of my rides to and from college with my dad, who will only listen to country radio, during which time (14 hours of excruciating pain to the eardrums) I discovered that there are only actually 12 country songs in circulation on the radio at any one point in time, thus, statistically it's unlikely that any would performed by women. After all, what woman wants to be propped up by a jukebox when she dies?

Telling what, I'm not sure.

Probably that chicks don't sing about drinking beer or robbing banks or sitting in saloons or checking fence lines or riding bulls or drinking beer. Which, if they did, I'd give 'em a spin.

there are only actually 12 country songs in circulation on the radio

Thus explaining the existence of the Texas outlaw musical movement.

Thus explaining the existence of the Texas outlaw musical movement.

Heh. That pretty much sums it up.

Back in the day, when I was first a DJ in '73-'75, we played both kinds of music: Country AND Western. The playlist was distaff-lite, and the rotation clock we used didn't allow more than one female singer per half-hour.

When I returned to that station after college in early '79, the "Nashville Sound" sort of country had taken hold, and we were allowed more females in the mix -- though none back-to-back in the rotation clock.

If memory serves me, KAFM in Dallas, a progressive country outlet in the mid- to late-'70s didn't play much in the way of female singers, either. In fact, I can only remember Jessie Coulter off the top of my head, and she's considered only tangentally "outlaw" due to her association with Waylon Jennings.

Emmilou Harris was also in the mix at times, and we musn't forget Linda Ronstadt. Beyond that, I can't remember too many.

John, my DJ days pre-date you by a few years, but I can think of a bunch of female country singers who we spun: Kitty Wells, Loretta Lynn, Dolly (partnered with Porter Waggoner, of course), Brenda Lee (the first crossover artist?), Tammy Wynette, Joanie Mosby (partnered with husband Johnny).

I don't recall that our little AM station had any rules about how often women singers were to be played.

I remember a lot of C&W female singers we played; we just had some restrictions as to how many per hour.

The ones I listed were the ones I kinda remember being played on progressive country formatted stations in the 70s.

Yeah, I remember watching Porter and Dolly quite a bit back in the day. Funny, we never got those towels that came in boxes of Breeze.

And how could you forget Patsy Cline? Now there was the crossover artist.....

Well, Patsy was dead by that time, and even though her legacy lives on, she didn't get all that much airplay in the late 60s, in that part of west Texas, anyway.

'Course, we still played Jim Reeves (and were obligated to refer to him as "the late, great Jim Reeves")...

Do Julie Miller (I've never heard her, but I think her songs are the best ones that Lee Ann Womack sings) or Shelby Lynne (I know nothing about her except that her songs are definitely not Nashville)count as outlaws?

Well, Miller's got the requisite Texas heritage, but her music's too girlie and Judy-Collinsesque. Lynne's done some outlaw-friendly recording and has teamed up with Willie Nelson, but she's not a Texan, and her politics are probably too Dixie Chickish to let her across the border of Outlaw Country.

Reasonable folks may may have different opinions, though, and it's not a test of fellowship with me.