Red dirt music
Red dirt is a genre of country music that gets its name from the color of soil found in Oklahoma. Many red dirt acts got their start in bars surrounding Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, a city considered to be the center of red dirt music. The genre also extends to music made south of the Red River in Texas. Outlaw country legends Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson have been associated with the distinctive Texas sound, while the late Oklahoma singer-songwriter Bob Childers is widely recognized as the Father of Oklahoma red dirt music. At one time, the distinction between the two genres was sonically obvious, but by 2008, that gap had diminished.[1]
Red dirt
Late 20th century, Oklahoma and North Texas, United States
- Guitar
- fiddle
- steel guitar
- Dobro
- harmonica
- bass guitar
- drums
- mandolin
- banjo
Musicians and festivals[edit]
Stillwater resident Bob Childers, who died in April 2008, was known as the Godfather of Red Dirt Music.[11] Five years prior to his death, Childers was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Awards Red Dirt Hall of Fame along with Steve Ripley and Tom Skinner. The three awardees performed at the ceremony for the First Annual Red Dirt Music Awards held on Sunday, November 9, 2003, at Cain's Ballroom in Tulsa. Other performers at the awards ceremony included the Great Divide, Susan Gibson, Wade Bowen, Brandon Jenkins, Stoney LaRue, the Mike McClure Band, Jason Boland, Cody Canada, Susan Herndon and others.[8]
Many music festivals include representatives of the red dirt sound. These include FarmFest, WoodyFest, Calffry, Shrinefest, and others. In 2007, Cross Canadian Ragweed's Red Dirt Round Up in Fort Worth, Texas had 15,000 in attendance.[12] In August 2008, the 4th annual Red Dirt Festival was held at the Grape Ranch Winery in Okemah, Oklahoma. The festival brings together wine tasting, camping and red dirt music.[13] The winery teamed up with the Red Dirt Rangers to present the festival.[14]
Red dirt has made its way into the heavier side of music. In 2008, Texas-based metal outfit Texas Hippie Coalition released their debut album Pride of Texas showcasing a metal sound combined with red dirt style.
June 21–22, 2013 the 1st Annual Texahomakan Country Music Festival (Caney, Kansas.) had The Great Divide, Cody Canada & The Departed, Brandon Jenkins, and more.
Media[edit]
The Red Dirt Radio Hour debuted on Tulsa radio KVOO (the "Voice of Oklahoma") on January 26, 2003. The show was hosted by Red Dirt Rangers John Cooper and Brad Piccolo, joined by station DJ Eric Wayne. Wayne was voted Oklahoma Red Dirt DJ of the Year in 2004 and again in 2005.[15] Although leaving KVOO in 2008, today Eric Wayne continues writing for one of the top comedians in the country, acting as road/touring manager for another Top Comedian, as well as editing novels from one of the best selling authors in the nation. Although the Sunday evening show enjoyed success for five years, KVOO cancelled the broadcast abruptly in November 2007. Various factors seemed to influence the decision made by station owners.[16] On August 2, 2009, after an absence of nearly two years, the show returned to KVOO and can be heard on Sundays from 9 pm to 10 pm.[17]
In 2007, students at Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma, produced a documentary called North of Austin/West of Nashville: Red Dirt Music which premiered at the University on July 24. The title of the film refers to names often given to the region around Stillwater, Oklahoma. The students traveled more than 4700 miles, interviewing and recording musicians such as the Red Dirt Rangers, Bob Childers, No Justice, Johnny Cooper, Brandon Jenkins, Stoney LaRue, Cross Canadian Ragweed and others. "In this film, the musicians speak openly, honestly and passionately about this unique musical form born in the heartland of the southern plains. Void of the over-polished and superficial influences of today's music marketers, these musicians live the stories that they sing about while remaining true to themselves."[18] A screening of the film also took place at the Crystal Theater in Okemah, Oklahoma, on July 12, 2008, during the 11th Annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival.[19]