Michelle Casey, "Country Sunshine", Collage in progress, June 2011
Today I’d like to share some thoughts with you about another one of my latest journal pages, “Country Sunshine”, which was named in part by the cheerful country tune made popular by Dottie West. Late last year while taking a workshop in Arnprior, I enjoyed trading stories with another student about country music’s role in shaping our lives. Although we didn’t know each other, I thought it was cool how we both felt we were force fed country music as kids. As a result, while brainstorming ideas for journaling topics, I enthusiastically added country music to my list. While skimming through magazine pages, the image of an “Indian” Cow Girl caught my eye – she made me think of an old Merle Haggard song I’d listened to as a kid. I just knew she had to be the main character of my page and that’s how “Country Sunshine” was born. Making it took me for a fun walk down memory lane, country style…
Now many have assumed, because I’m of South Asian descent, that East Indian music must have surely filled my family home, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, my parents, Catholics of mixed European and Asian descent from India, had been raised solely on western music like: jazz (swing) and rock and roll. When we moved to Canada, my mom, a real conservative at heart, carried on the tradition of listening to good, clean music. That meant hard rock, heavy metal, even some pop and just about everything else was ruled out of our audio range – the “devil’s music”, I think she called it. She surrounded us with music, like country, that held values similar to the ones she was raised with “back home”. Not to say that we didn’t resist… in their bedrooms my sisters tuned into AM rock and pop stations while I listened to all French radio … anything but country! On TV we watched country music shows like: The Family Brown, Hee Haw, The Tommy Hunter Show and our all-time favourite family drama series: The Waltons (NOT!) Okay, okay, I’ll admit John-Boy’s heart-felt writing kinda grew on me! Over the years, country hits became engrained in my head. Songs like: Johnny Cash’s hilarious “A Boy Named Sue”; Merle Haggard’s “Cherokee Maiden”; Dolly Parton’s “Coat of Many Colors” and Tammy Wynette’s “D-I-V-O-R-C-E” – real tearjerkers! I also remember really disliking Slim Whitman’s yodelling in “Indian Love Call”… later I learned to appreciate his music and love his rendition of “I Remember You”… plus I have to admit, he was quite a spiffy dresser, too. I thought it sooo hilarious when director Steven Spielberg used Whitman’s yodelling from “Indian Love Call” to kill off the aliens in his film: Mars Attacks. I don’t think anyone laughed harder than me in the movie theatre seeing those ET heads explode! I thought Spielberg and I had to be real kindred spirits to make that deadly musical connection. 🙂
In hindsight, making this page and listening to a whole host of other favourite country songs made me realize there was so much tied to those seemingly “simple” country tunes. Through their music, Parton and Wynette relayed important life lessons about economic class, fitting in and women’s issues in society; while Cash and Haggard brought topics of race and interracial* romance into the open. I loved “Cherokee Maiden” so much precisely because it was about a white cowboy professing his undying love for a beautiful “Indian” lady – if there was hope for her, then there was hope for me! Unlike today, in the 1970’s, interracial relationships were not as prevalent. Anyway, I hope these thoughts and music spur some good country music memories in you too. If they do, I’d sure love to hear about them.
* I have great respect for aboriginal cultures, if you have other views about “Cherokee Maiden” or any other songs I’ve mentioned please write; I’d be interested to hear your comments.
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