Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter: A Genre Bending Historical Moment in Country Music

It’s odd to listen to a country record and come away saying that it’s part Dolly Parton, part Beatles, part Lorde, part Mary J Blige and part E.L.O., but that is the vast musical tapestry Beyoncé gave us with Cowboy Carter. This is a genre bending historical country record which both honours country’s pioneers and challenges traditional conventions. It an an incredible artistic expression, but not a perfect one. There are a couple misses on this record, but no one said that redefining a genre like country music would be easy. Like Willie Nelson said “Sometimes you don’t know what you like until someone you trust turns you on to some real good shit.”

First off, I will not go over every track because the record is gigantic. There are roughly 27 tracks, which include spoken word intros, and these songs are both complex and dense…so there is no way to cover all of them adequately. I will do a general thoughts section, some standout tracks, some misses and my final thoughts. For anyone who thought that Beyoncé doing a country record was a gimmick, is badly mistaken. She brought in country pioneers and icons Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Linda Martell to both give the record street cred, but their involvement also shows how seriously Beyoncé took this project. Not only are these heavy country names, but they are also rebels in the genre who challenged tradition and country power structures. Much like Willie, Dolly and Linda, Beyoncé is changing the genre in her won way and paving the way for other artists moving forward.

There are some huge standouts on this record, which blew me away. First of all, I love when Beyoncé goes back to her country roots growing up in Houston and has very traditional arrangements with her soulful vocal. Tracks like 16 Carriages, Texas Hold ‘Em, Alligator Tears, Riverdance and Protector are beautiful examples of how her vocal excels within a traditional country music structure. However, much like Linda Martell, who was an African-American woman country artists in the 1970s, Beyoncé challenges country music structures with some genre breaking bangers. Tracks like American Requiem, Spaghetti, Desert Eagle and Tyrant turn country conventions on their head. In these tracks Beyoncé challenges gender norms, racial issues and what is America. The fact that she is often blending hip hop and country is a political statement on its own, which has put some traditional, largely white male, country radio stations in a bind. Above all, she puts the sexy in country. Tracks like Tyrant, Levi’s Jeans and Bodyguard are as sexy as it gets.

There is a lot to like on this record and the tracks that hit really hit and will blow you away. Having said that, there are a few misses. The covers are not really doing it for me. She does a note perfect cover of Blackbird from the Beatles, which feels very out of place on the record. It is an excellent cover, but it doesn’t really fit with the record and feels more like Beyoncé just really wanted to cover a Beatle’s track. The other cover, Jolene, has the verses changed to be more about Beyoncé kicking anyone’s ass who goes after her man instead of Dolly’s original that subverted the cheating man song and praised Jolene as a capable woman instead of denigrating her. If you are going to change the meaning of the song, why cover it? The other miss is more of a missed opportunity. The guests of Miley Cyrus and Post Malone don’t really work, but you have Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton on the record…and waste them on spoken word tracks? I would much prefer some duets or original tracks with Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton on them as opposed to quick spoken word intros. Now, I will give Beyoncé the benefit of the doubt and maybe it was a booking thing and she wanted to honour them, but couldn’t get everything worked out to have them on tracks. However, hearing Beyoncé sing with Willie and Dolly would have been more powerful than their cameo appearances.

The highs on this record are so high that they make the minor misses seem a bit nit-picky. This record is an artistic expression that comes along very rarely. Her ability to fully breakdown country music structures will pave the way for new music in the genre, which it desperately needs. However, her ability to excel within highly traditional country music structures showcases her talent. This is a record that pushes a lot of boundaries and takes risks, which is why it will be talked about for years to come.

Listen to Cowboy Carter