This might be worth checking out. Jim N. >>> "Joe Cline" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 03/24 3:18 PM >>> CBS, TNN Combine of Documentary .c The Associated Press By JIM PATTERSON NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Minutes into the 13-part ``Century of Country'' documentary, it's clear how broad an undertaking it is to even define country music, much less tell its story. ``Country music is the same thing as the blues,'' Waylon Jennings opines. ``Country music is contemporary jazz,'' singer Ray Price declares. Harlan Howard, the great country music songwriter (``Busted,'' ``I Fall to Pieces''), offers this: ``Basically, it's the people's music. We really do deal with divorces and tragedies and so forth. And sometimes people think we're kind of hokey. But country music is here and it always will be.'' Based on previews of two episodes -- one covering pioneers like Jimmie Rodgers and The Carter Family and the other on bluegrass and Western swing -- ``Century of Country'' captures the wide scope of country music and celebrates it. The documentary touches on women in country music, rockabilly, bluegrass, Western swing, the Grand Ole Opry and honky-tonk music. Many current stars are interviewed, and the lives of greats like Hank Williams Sr., Jimmie Rodgers and Patsy Cline are covered. The Nashville Network will air the first of 13 weekly one-hour segments of ``Century of Country'' at 8 p.m. EST Wednesday (March 31). The host is actor James Garner and CBS newsman Bob Schieffer narrates. ``Century of Country'' marks the first collaboration between TNN and CBS News. Westinghouse Electric Corp., which owns CBS, bought TNN in 1997. ``I had more fun,'' said Schieffer, host of the weekly news show ``Face the Nation'' on CBS. ``Maybe because it was such a break after covering Monica Lewinsky and Ken Starr. It was like a vacation to me. ``I really learned a lot. They have gone out and interviewed everybody that you ever heard of, and some that you've never heard of.'' Among the things Schieffer learned: ``Apparently Jimmie Rodgers, who was The Singing Brakeman, was the first person to yodel,'' he said. ``You would think it came from ranches or something Western. ``But apparently he heard some Swedish guy yodel,'' Schieffer said with a laugh. The series is a step forward for TNN, whose claim to be THE country music cable station has slipped since it started showing a new version of ``Roller Derby'' and reruns of ``The Waltons'' and ``Dukes of Hazzard.'' But if you're looking for a critical viewpoint of country music, wait until the Bravo cable channel reruns the three episodes of its excellent ``Naked Nashville.'' TNN has always been a Nashville booster rather than a critic, and ``Century of Country'' sidesteps anything that could dampen the party. The shows still are a lot of fun, however. For example, it's hard to resist the enthusiasm of singer Marty Stuart. ``You can wear cool clothes,'' Stuart says in the opening episode, ``Celebration of Country.'' ``You can wear your hair goofy. Girls like you. You get applause. You get to live this nomad lifestyle. And you get paid for it.'' During the segment on bluegrass, 18-year-old mandolin player Chris Thile pays tribute to late bluegrass founder Bill Monroe, then reveals he's working on combining bluegrass and classical music. ``I find there's an amazing energy in Bach that is kind of like some of the stuff that Bill Monroe was coming out with,'' Thile said. ``I wrote a song where I try to get some of that same energy with the bluegrass background in it -- sort of a `grassical' song.'' Ricky Skaggs tries to explain how exciting Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys were in their heyday. ``When they were on the stage it sounded like the Beatles were on stage,'' Skaggs said. ``I hear these country people screaming at the top of their voices hearing this new music that no one had ever heard before. It was a new sound, it was a new day for this music.'' Schieffer said he came into the assignment thinking he knew something about country music from a lifetime of listening. He saw Ernest Tubb perform when he was a boy in Fort Worth, Texas, then became a fan of Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. The assignment showed him he had much to learn. ``If you have just the vaguest interest in country music, you'll find this 13 hours just fascinating,'' Schieffer said. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Joe Cline ( [EMAIL PROTECTED] ) Charlotte Jack-of-all-trades; unemployed in all of them ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
