Nashville Anthems: Dissecting 80s & 90s Country Music

• Dissecting "Holding Her and Loving You" by Earl Thomas Conley - 1983

  1983 takes us to one of the elite hitmakers of the 1980s, Earl Thomas Conley, and one of his best known hits, "Holding Her and Loving You". As another example of the nuance with which country music talks about cheating, this song delivers some lines that are so unbelievably self-absorbed they have to be true. But how does the musical setting of these eye-popping lyrics reinforce the almost unbearable feeling of tedious stagnation in this classic of the 80s?

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• Dissecting "Slow Hand" by Conway Twitty - 1982

  1982 finally takes us to legendary hitmaker Conway Twitty's cover of the Pointer Sisters' "Slow Hand". Twitty was never shy about mature topics, and this one is no exception, but how does the change in perspective from the original serve to amplify the charismatic delivery of this all-time pro?

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• Dissecting "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool" by Barbara Mandrell (featuring George Jones) - 1981

  1981 takes us to a time when reigning Entertainer of the Year Barbara Mandrell needed to remind us that she had stayed true to her roots. And if you don't believe her, just ask guest vocalist George Jones, as he supports Mandrell in one of her signature hits: "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool". We know this refrain, don't we?, in a genre that is constantly pitting itself against the "evil" forces of Top 40. But was Barbara Mandrell country? Or was country Barbara Mandrell? And what does this song's supremely laid back feel tell us about the way this overall battle was situated in 1981?

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• Dissecting "He Stopped Loving Her Today" by George Jones (featuring Millie Kirkham) - 1980 (Episode #100!)

  For our milestone 100th episode, we take on a song and singer both of whom are in the conversation for Greatest of All-time. And it's no coincidence: in "He Stopped Loving Her Today", the sheer weight of Bobby Braddock & Curly Putman's composition, set in the legendary Billy Sherrill's production (with an assist from unsung hero Millie Kirkham), could have been carried by no other voice than that of George Jones. It's known as the saddest song ever written and the cut that put George Jones forever back on the map, and you won't find any naysaying here. As far as we're concerned, everything works about this piece of country music history. Tune in to see if you agree!

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• Dissecting "I Let Her Lie" by Daryle Singletary

  Daryle Singletary lets life happen to him in this mid-90s gem: 1995's "I Let Her Lie". No one can deny the Randy Travis influence in the vocals, but how does the fruit of that influence align with the passive lyrics and common chord progression, to give us a taste of irrevocable loss due, at least in part, to our own refusal to act?

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