Outlaw country is a type of American country music developed by a small group of musicians in the 1970s and early 1980s. These artists, known as the outlaw movement, worked to gain creative freedom outside the Nashville music industry, which controlled the style of most country music at the time. Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, David Allan Coe, and Jerry Jeff Walker were among the most successful members of this movement.
Outlaw country music has roots in earlier styles such as Western, honky tonk, rockabilly, and progressive country. It combines rock and folk rhythms, country instruments, and thoughtful lyrics. The outlaw movement began as a response to the polished production and strict rules of the Nashville sound, which was created by producers like Chet Atkins.
History
Outlaw country music is a type of country music that some fans think sounds a bit rougher than progressive country. The outlaw style began with influences from blues music, honky tonk music from the 1940s and 1950s, rockabilly from the 1950s, and the growing rock and roll genre. Early outlaw musicians were inspired by earlier artists like Bob Wills, Hank Williams, Elvis Presley, and Buddy Holly. A major change happened when Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson gained control over their own recordings and started rejecting the "Nashville sound," which was a popular style of country music at the time. According to Michael Streissguth, the author of Outlaw: Waylon, Willie, Kris, and the Renegades of Nashville, Jennings and Nelson became outlaws when they "won the right" to record with the producers and musicians they chose.
The 1960s was a time of big changes, and these changes were shown in the music of the era. Artists like The Beatles, Brian Wilson, Bob Dylan, and The Rolling Stones stopped following traditional rules for musicians. They wrote their own songs, had control over their albums, and refused to follow what society expected of young people. One writer said the Beatnik movement, which happened from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s, was an early version of outlaw country. People in both movements felt they did not fit in with mainstream society.
At the same time, country music was becoming more predictable and focused on what the mainstream wanted. Artists like Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton made music that did not match the growing counterculture. While Nashville remained the center of mainstream country music, cities like Lubbock and Austin became places where outlaw country music was created. Southern rock also influenced outlaw country, and this style of music was centered in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. In the Western United States, the Bakersfield sound offered an alternative to the traditional Nashville sound. The counterculture also led to the creation of country rock, with groups like the Flying Burrito Brothers and The First National Band.
The outlaw country movement was called many names before it was called "outlaw country," including "redneck rock," "progressive country," and "armadillo country," after the animal that became the movement's unofficial symbol. The origin of the term "outlaw" is not clear. Jason Mellard, the author of Progressive Country: How the 1970s Transformed the Texan in Popular Culture, said the term "seems to have developed over time rather than suddenly becoming popular."
The term "outlaw" is often linked to the song "Ladies Love Outlaws," written by Lee Clayton and performed by Waylon Jennings on his 1972 album. Another possible explanation is when publicist Hazel Smith of Glaser Sound Studios used the word to describe the music of Jennings and Tompall Glaser. Art critic Dave Hickey also used the term in a 1974 article in Country Music magazine to describe artists who opposed the control of the Nashville music industry.
In 1976, the outlaw movement officially used the term "outlaw" with the release of Wanted! The Outlaws, a compilation album featuring songs by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter, and Tompall Glaser. This album was the first country album to be certified platinum, selling one million copies.
As Southern rock grew in popularity, older country musicians began adding rock elements to their music. Artists like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Hank Williams, Jr. stopped following the formulaic Nashville sound, grew long hair, and wore leather jackets instead of rhinestone-studded suits. Outlaw country artists openly talked about smoking marijuana. They avoided fancy musical arrangements, focused on the core of country music, and added rock influences. They also brought back older styles like honky tonk songs and "cowboy ballads." Nelson and Jennings also included more R&B and soul music in their songs by working with musicians from Memphis and Muscle Shoals.
Outlaw country artists wanted to resist the powerful Nashville music industry, which set strict rules about how music should sound, look, and be performed. The Grand Ole Opry, a conservative music show in Nashville, controlled who could perform and what songs could be played. Jennings compared working in the Nashville music industry to an assembly line, where records were made quickly and without creativity.
In 1973, Jennings produced an album called Lonesome, On'ry and Mean, which included a song written by Steve Young, a songwriter who never became famous but helped shape the outlaw style. Jennings' next album, Honky Tonk Heroes, featured songs written by Texan Billy Joe Shaver, another artist who never became widely known but is considered a classic in the outlaw genre.
Willie Nelson's career as a songwriter in Nashville reached its peak in the late 1960s. He wrote popular songs for other artists, like "Crazy" for Patsy Cline and "Hello Walls" for Faron Young, but as a singer, he struggled. In 1971, he left Nashville and returned to Texas, where he met musicians in Austin who were creating the folk and rock-influenced music that became outlaw country. Performing with artists like Jerry Jeff Walker, Michael Martin Murphey, and Billy Joe Shaver helped shape his future.
Hank Williams Jr. spent much of his early career trying to live up to his father, Hank Williams Sr., who died when he was three years old. In 1975, Williams was seriously injured in an avalanche, which left scars on his face. He grew a mustache and beard to hide the scars and began working with other outlaw musicians, starting with his album Hank Williams Jr. and Friends.
At the same time, other influential musicians in Texas were creating outlaw music. Butch Hancock, Joe Ely, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore formed a group called the Flatlanders, who did not sell many albums but continued to perform. Each of the three members made important contributions to outlaw country. The Lost Gonzo Band, along with Jerry Jeff Walker and Michael Murphey, also helped create outlaw country music.
Other Texas musicians, like Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, and Guy Clark, helped shape the outlaw style through their songwriting and personal lives.
Although Johnny Cash lived mostly in Arkansas and Tennessee, his career was revived by the outlaw movement, especially after his live albums At Folsom Prison and At San Quentin, which were recorded in prisons. Cash worked with Nelson, Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson, who considered Cash a major influence. They later formed a group called The Highwaymen, which performed together in addition to their solo careers through the late 1990s. Cash also had connections with folk musicians, which made some people in Nashville and on television uncomfortable.
Related genres
The Tulsa sound, which originated in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is similar to outlaw country. The song "Tulsa Time" became a popular hit for Don Williams in 1978 and for Eric Clapton in 1980. Although Eric Clapton is from England, he was closely connected to the Tulsa sound during the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Tulsa sound later influenced red dirt, a music genre that began in Stillwater, Oklahoma.