Post by erik on Mar 13, 2021 21:02:35 GMT -5
Arguably the most popular of all the winners of TV's biggest "vocal competition" show American Idol, Carrie Underwood is in this week's Pop Music Hits Spotlight with a C&W/pop crossover hit from 2012.
BLOWN AWAY (Carrie Underwood; Arista Nashville; 2012)—For better or worse (and credible arguments could be made both ways), American Idol changed the course of 21st century popular music in the United States, by truly making instant stars out of once unknowns. Two of the biggest stars to emerge from that show were women. Kelly Clarkson was the first winner, in 2002. Three years later, in 2005, the winner was one Carrie Underwood. Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma (the town immortalized by Merle Haggard is his seemingly hippie-bashing 1969 C&W anthem “Okie From Muskogee”) on March 10, 1983, Carrie has since gone on to become arguably the biggest female country music star of the present era, with songs that stayed inside the country format, but with enough pop and rock influences to result in significant crossover success. Although this has resulted in some of the same kind of resentment towards her as had been directed at Olivia Newton-John back in the mid-1970’s, Carrie has remained resolute in her approach, Her hits have ranged from “revenge anthems” like 2006’s “Before He Cheats” to neo-traditional country songs like 2008’s “All American Girl”. The title track of her 2012 album Blown Away became particularly noteworthy. The song is very much a study of fatherly neglect, in which a daughter locks herself in a storm cellar while her abusive father lies passed out on the couch as a violent Oklahoma twister bears down on their house. Similar to several of Carrie’s previous hits over her first seven years of recording, this one struck a nerve with audiences, in that it not only became her thirteenth #1 Billboard Country Airplay hit upon its release in July 2012, but it also reached #20 on the overall Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending October 27, 2012. The song won Carrie a Grammy (her sixth up to that point) in early 2013 for Best Solo Country Vocal Performance. Although she would continue to collaborate with her fellow Nashville heavyweights, including fellow Oklahoman Miranda Lambert, Carrie would also perform at the 2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony and the 2019 Kennedy Center Honors, both times in honor of Linda Ronstadt (who, ironically enough, was never a fan of American Idol or like-minded TV voice competition shows, but who also greatly appreciated Carrie’s contributions).
BLOWN AWAY (Carrie Underwood; Arista Nashville; 2012)—For better or worse (and credible arguments could be made both ways), American Idol changed the course of 21st century popular music in the United States, by truly making instant stars out of once unknowns. Two of the biggest stars to emerge from that show were women. Kelly Clarkson was the first winner, in 2002. Three years later, in 2005, the winner was one Carrie Underwood. Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma (the town immortalized by Merle Haggard is his seemingly hippie-bashing 1969 C&W anthem “Okie From Muskogee”) on March 10, 1983, Carrie has since gone on to become arguably the biggest female country music star of the present era, with songs that stayed inside the country format, but with enough pop and rock influences to result in significant crossover success. Although this has resulted in some of the same kind of resentment towards her as had been directed at Olivia Newton-John back in the mid-1970’s, Carrie has remained resolute in her approach, Her hits have ranged from “revenge anthems” like 2006’s “Before He Cheats” to neo-traditional country songs like 2008’s “All American Girl”. The title track of her 2012 album Blown Away became particularly noteworthy. The song is very much a study of fatherly neglect, in which a daughter locks herself in a storm cellar while her abusive father lies passed out on the couch as a violent Oklahoma twister bears down on their house. Similar to several of Carrie’s previous hits over her first seven years of recording, this one struck a nerve with audiences, in that it not only became her thirteenth #1 Billboard Country Airplay hit upon its release in July 2012, but it also reached #20 on the overall Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending October 27, 2012. The song won Carrie a Grammy (her sixth up to that point) in early 2013 for Best Solo Country Vocal Performance. Although she would continue to collaborate with her fellow Nashville heavyweights, including fellow Oklahoman Miranda Lambert, Carrie would also perform at the 2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony and the 2019 Kennedy Center Honors, both times in honor of Linda Ronstadt (who, ironically enough, was never a fan of American Idol or like-minded TV voice competition shows, but who also greatly appreciated Carrie’s contributions).