Bret Michaels of Poison Pretty Much Just Released the Worst Country Song Ever
Well look what the cat dragged in, it’s Bret Michaels from Poison with his Maybelline eyes giving a new definition to the term “coyote ugly” with his caustic and aggressively-unoriginal song “Girls On Bars.” Congratulations country music, your hair metal phase has just graduated from figurative to literal.
Apparently Mr. Michaels took some malevolent pointers from Trace Adkins on how to screw up country with bad songs while they were both starring on Celebrity Apprentice, and now he’s released a “country” single to share what he’s learned. Stolen right out of the Bro-Country playbook for generic tripe written in Emoji and douchewad speak by Dallas Davidson and Florida Georgia Line, this song is so unconscionably generic I had to slap myself in the face to be convinced it wasn’t parody.
“Hot chicks, cold beer, let’s keep the party rollin’ up in here!”
OH MY GOD KILL ME NOW! DIE! DIE! DIE!
Just what we need, a song to stimulate drunk chicks in $7.98 Wal-Mart straw cowboy hats to get up on precariously-balanced bar tables with cigarette lighters shoved under one leg to stop from wobbling and strut their stuff. I hope that every bikini-topped wench that’s inspired to do an ass whip on the bar top and biffs it like hell on a lime wedge sues Bret Michaels from hell to breakfast, taking every bit of his millions from chemical tan endorsements until he’s forced to record new renditions of old Poison songs and release it through Kidz Bop.
Wait, apparently I spoke too soon. According to my internet research, that’s pretty much what Michaels just did—re-recorded a bunch of Poison crap on a new CD called True Grit, and it apparently includes a duet with Loretta Lynn on “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” Well screw me.
“Girls On Bars” had 72 songwriters, 36 producers, a seven-figure budget, yet the thing just feels so hackneyed and trashy. It’s not as much sick as it is sad, like it’s a musical illustration of the onset of America’s torpid devolution. Even the video looks like it was made by a bunch of grabasstic high school stoners using 20-year-old deprecated public school media lab equipment rented from the public library as a stop gap solution to a local ISD’s budgetary shortfall. When the camera goes all POV and starts twirling round on the top of a bar, I thought I was suffering from motion sickness. Then I figured out that no, it’s just that this song really really blows to the point of causing debilitating gastrointestinal direst.
I can’t say I’ve been paying much attention to the doings of Bret Michaels over the last few years aside from recognizing that he’s gone from someone who is famous for being a musician to someone famous for being famous. It’s a shame because laugh all you want, but when Poison was releasing singles like “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” and “Something To Believe In” it opened the door for bands like The Black Crowes to resurrect rock and roll out of its hair metal doldrums. Hell I’d take either of those tunes in trade for this abominable turd.
“I never ask for a ‘gimme.’ Never,” Michaels told Billboard. “All I ask for is a chance. And that’s what country music does.”
Wait, it “does“?!? Boy the grammatical tense there tells it all. Country for these 50-something rock music washouts is just a safety net for their shitty careers amidst a rapid decline.
Bret Michaels proves that anyone, and I mean anyone, can slop out this Bro-Country bullshit. He should get back to raiding his sister’s cosmetic drawer. Bret Michaels has flames on his guitar and skid marks in his bikini-cut underwear. What sin did country music commit to be saddled with this cruel and unusual punishment?
The CMA will probably give this Song of the Year.
Two guns way down!
Fuzzy TwoShirts
May 6, 2015 @ 6:00 pm
72 songwriters??! did they all get lobotomies from Dr. Zaius before writing this?
Jim Bob
May 6, 2015 @ 8:57 pm
That had to be hyperbole, right?? 72?!
CountryKnight
May 6, 2015 @ 9:12 pm
I doubt there is 72 different words in this song and I am not listening to this song to test my hypothesis.
Jim Bob
May 6, 2015 @ 9:28 pm
I wish I’d been as smart as you…
CountryKnight
May 7, 2015 @ 4:19 am
I ended up listening to this song, not for my hypothesis, but because I felt guilty for judging a song without listening to it, because every song deserves a listen before the sentence.
It had a nice groove, too bad the lyrics wasted a catchy beat.
gator
May 9, 2015 @ 4:38 am
Sounded pretty much like all the new country today. generic…same lines , no soul, beer, girls, pick ups, coolers, same grooves.little rappin…. should do great in todays generic country pop bullshit of today.,where they use the same songwriter and session musician… watch it be a country hi…. listen to BLACKBERRY SMOKE they do good original country rock…
Nickm
May 13, 2015 @ 10:23 pm
This is worse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=74&v=ylq2G24TRMs
grass
June 24, 2015 @ 8:13 pm
No, this is worse.
https://vimeo.com/66601714
JR
May 6, 2015 @ 6:02 pm
ARGGGGH! It burns! It burns!
Mike W.
May 6, 2015 @ 6:04 pm
This is what happens when so many of the most popular artists, producers and record executives don’t even respect the genre of music they make or the history attached to it.
Honestly though, I’m not surprised we see so many of these washed up Rock starts like Steven Tyler or Bret Michaels trying to find new life in the “Country” genre. After all, most if not all of the Bro-Country artists are basically playing 80’s/early 90’s Rock while wearing bedazzled jeans or a Cowboy hat (if they are balding like Aldean). It makes perfect sense when they see no-talent hacks like Jason Aldean basically copying their style of music for them to try and get in on that action.
Whatever, I doubt this makes much, if any impact at Country radio. Same goes for Steven Tyler’s album. The genre has now moved onto trying to integrate EDM and Dance beats into it’s music….so expect to hear Calvin Harris or whoever the hell else is in the EDM/Dance genre to announce they are making a “Country inspired Dance record” in a few years when their star fades and Pop music moved onto the next fad.
Trigger
May 6, 2015 @ 6:22 pm
I have no idea if Steven Tyler will be successful on country radio, but you can be damn sure Big Machine Records will try. I’m not saying it will be good, but I actually expect a better effort than this from Tyler. He may be a joke, but at least he has some self-respect.
Samantha
May 6, 2015 @ 6:54 pm
IF Steven Tyler has self-respect he would just simply move along…
Kelly
May 10, 2015 @ 10:06 pm
You’re obviously not from the 80’s era! Bret Michaels and Steven Tyler have BOTH made it since the 80’s era. Proving their talentand long lasting reputation. Who in this generation can say that!!!! Not one.
Davidmk
May 11, 2015 @ 3:43 pm
ONE of these statements is true , Steven still plays arenas , Bret plays clubs playing the same stale setlists year after year ….
Jack Williams
May 7, 2015 @ 7:10 am
I agree. As tired as I am of him and Aerosmith in general, I do retain some respect and affection for Tyler. And at least they did have some great and real rock and roll songs and maybe a classic album or two (I think Rocks is a classic hard rock album). As far as aging rock stars and level of self respect and dignity go, he’s somewhere in the middle, with the likes of Bret Michaels at one extreme and Robert Plant at the other.
Caroline wildfeuer
May 7, 2015 @ 2:34 pm
Steven has been asked many times to play with the likes of and including Willie Nelson. .his backround is heavy in blues it may crossover nicely
Samantha
May 6, 2015 @ 6:56 pm
I believe Jason Aldean is talented but why he felt he needed to shift his direction somewhat evades me
TheCheapSeats
May 6, 2015 @ 6:04 pm
I know you hate 80s hard rock (Hair Metal), but that’s the stuff I grew up on. There was a lot of “baby thrown out with the bathwater” when Nirvana hit. But this song is an affront to anyone who has a stake in either side.
I heard this a few weeks ago. And while it may not be the worst song ever recorded, it definitely is in the top 10.
And those are just the nice things I have to say about it.
RD
May 6, 2015 @ 7:02 pm
A lot of 80’s hair metal sucked, but in general, it was far better than what followed it. It really can’t be argued that bands like Guns ‘n Roses, Whitesnake, Megadeth, Van Halen, Hanoi Rocks, Tesla, etc. weren’t better musicians and wrote better songs than the shit grunge bands that became popular in the 1990’s. Nirvana is most overblown piece of shit that has ever existed. Kurt Cobain was a worthless, talentless malcontent, and the fact that he “spoke for a generation” just goes to show you the intelligence level we’re dealing with in the gen Xers….
With that being said, I’ve never cared much for Poison. I think that deep down, Brett Michaels is probably a shy, awkward nerd who never had a clue how to deal with stardom, so he invented his Revlon Biker persona, or whatever the hell he has going on. Either way, the song is shit and anything he does in the country genre will be shit.
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 7:48 pm
Most hair metal fans were Xers too, though most of the singers were late Boomers.
TheCheapSeats
May 6, 2015 @ 8:42 pm
I was surprised to see the mention of Hanoi Rocks, because without them there is no GnR, Motley Crue, Poison, etc.
I can’t remember exactly, but I think it was on the VH1Classic series “Metal Evolution” where Cinderella couldn’t sniff a record deal just because of the name after the hair metal implosion. There was an A&R guy saying that he played a demo for the company and everyone liked it. Asked who it was, he said Cinderella. Next. No further discussion.
That’s the crux of my baby with the bathwater quip.
RD
May 7, 2015 @ 4:50 am
Two Steps from the Move is a good album. Michael Monroe, despite the make-up, is a good musician and wrote some good songs.
Hair metal is really just an extension of 70’s hard rock. A lot of the 70’s rock bands were teasing their hair and getting all dolled up long before hair metal. Hair metal took it to a new level, but look at Robert Plant’s hair in the mid-1970’s. He didn’t roll off of three groupies looking that way. 70’s hard rock and hair metal are also similar musically, and there was a lot of carry over from older 70’s hard rockers finding new careers in 80’s hair metal bands, like Ted Nugent, David Coverdale, etc.
Punk was supposedly the dissent to all of the excesses of Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, etc. in the same way that Grunge was a response to all the excesses of 80’s hair metal. The problem is that, with very few exceptions, punk and grunge are complete shit. The songwriting and musicianship is mostly horrible. They have nothing worthwhile to say, and many of them, like Nirvana, didn’t even try to put a coherent thought together. They smirked at the people who found meaning in their lyrics, because they knew their lyrics were meaningless. The common threads in punk and grunge are a lot of whining and bitching, a lot of apathy, a lot of heroin, and a lot of screeching and screaming.
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:38 pm
Well, “It’s hard to bargle nawdle zouss”, you know.
Stephen
May 7, 2015 @ 7:37 am
I’m Gen X. Born in December 1974. I grew up on a steady diet of Van Halan/Hagar, Def Leppard, GnR, Bon Jovi, and even Poison. But, I also love the so-called grunge music. Pearl Jam are masters of song writing. So is Soundgarden. And Alice in Chains. Nirvana hitting the scene was game changing. Cobain was a weird, drug-addicted depressed person, but he could write one hell of a song. His documentary out right now called ‘Montage of Heck’ is incredible; I recommend every music lover to watch it.
Alex
May 7, 2015 @ 11:45 am
No doubt, Cobain is a legendary songwriter. Had a firm grasp of pop music and could write a hook with the best of them.
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 6:33 am
This is so on point that it’s uncanny. Excellent observations here, especially the point about Nirvana. Cobain and co. basically played lowest common denominator rock, and were looked upon like they were the saviour of music. After suffering through that era of rock, I’m happy grunge fell by the wayside. Totally useless musical movement.
the pistolero
May 8, 2015 @ 8:44 am
Not sure I’d put Megadeth in the same category as Whitesnake, Poison, and all those, because of the differences in what they sang about. The more weighty topics were what attracted me to bands like them, Metallica, and Iron Maiden when I first discovered them. I never was really keen on the bands that sang about looking for nothing but a good time with girls who gave love a bad name and all that.
Completely agreed on the musicianship, though. I remember what a friend said about Kurt Cobain:
“Cobain was a lot of things. Genius was not one of them. He played a mediocre-to-decent guitar when he was on the upside of a dose, but after that everything sounded like a monkey fucking a Telecaster….”
Jack Williams
May 8, 2015 @ 8:55 am
That reminded me of something I saw on one of those VH-1 shows years go (I Love the ’80’s, maybe). Mustaine was contrasting his band and others in the metal genre to the hair band set. Something about how the metal bands “explored the dark side” and the frivolousness of the other guys. He finished with a dismissive “I mean, Talk Dirty to Me?”
the pistolero
May 8, 2015 @ 9:45 am
Yep, that’s exactly what I was getting at.
(Fun fact: Queensrÿche guitarist Parker Lundgren shared this post on his Facebook page. 😀 )
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 7:33 pm
I’m a huge Megadeth fan, but Mustaine’s an asshole, and these days that’s compounded by his politics. Musically, their old stuff, right up to the recent THE SYSTEM HAS FAILED was great, but Mustaine’s still looking for his “Black Album”, ala Metallica. Hitting it “Metallica Big” has always alluded him, and he still complains about it to this day. No doubt he’d make a country record if it’d be his huge hit.
Not that I really disagree with him about Poison, but he’s no less of a douche than Bret Michaels; in some ways, Bret has got him beat in terms of being a palatable person. And like I said, I’m a huge Megadeth fan.
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 7:39 pm
Pistolero, your friend was right. Cobain was no great shakes, and either was the rest of the band, really. The real surprise of that band has been Dave Grohl, who I respect much more since his time in Nirvana. The guy has really turned into a excellent musician.
Cobain was in the right place at the right time, and turned out to be a reluctant rock star. Make no mistake, however, he was no Jimi Hendrix. He was simply a serviceable guitar player; nothing more, nothing less. There are about a billion better players than he ever was, which I suspect he himself would not have had a problem with as it was part of his deal, but I always find it funny that people look at him like he was in the same ballpark as Lennon.
Reb
May 9, 2015 @ 10:01 am
Yeah. Lennon was a guitar God! Move over Hendrix! Ha ha. Cobain was great- songs like Frances Farmer and Aneurysm got me through high-school. Even then I was aware that his guitar ability only barely outpaced mine, but that was never the point anyway. The point was how you felt when you listened…. Which is always the mark of a good songwriter over a shredder- hell, Malmsteen shreds, but he never made me feel like there was someone out there who understood how much I hated being tormented at Christian School. Isn’t that what music is about, in the end?
Melanie
May 12, 2015 @ 10:34 am
Nobody ever hears about the stratospheric-level guitar players, the ones with true virtuosity, like John Mclaughlin. And to be a virtuoso, he has some really good tunes too, at least in his later years, not just noodling at high speed. Like “Mediterranean Sun Dance” (with Al di Meola and Paco de Lucia)
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:36 pm
Up until a certain point in their career, I didn’t consider Van Halen “hair metal”, because at the time, I despised hair metal (though I have a guilty nostalgic liking for some of it now). But I like my country undiluted, and especially undiluted by washed-up hair band artists from the Eighties.
Tori
May 6, 2015 @ 7:50 pm
What a shame. I liked him and I liked Poison. So, this double or triple sucks. Worse, he can sing and he wasted it. He could have a legit country sound with his voice.
Bummer.
Canuck
May 9, 2015 @ 10:54 am
Reb, I didn’t say Lennon was a guitar god. I said I find it funny that people put Cobain in the same ballpark as Lennon. I introduced a new idea. Try to keep up.
And yes, music is what it’s about on the end. Thanks for that straw man argument throw-in. Pretty hard to dispute that statement, isn’t it?
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:42 pm
Well, for me, for the most part, really good rock is about really good guitar playing.
Zach
May 6, 2015 @ 6:06 pm
I’m surprised FGL didn’t want to get in this one. It’s a shame that country has become a second chance genre for washed up artists.
Mike W.
May 6, 2015 @ 6:13 pm
Eh, it’s been that way for a long, long time though. I think it has gotten slightly worse in recent years, simply because labels and artist management teams see that the Country genre (up until recent years) was one of the few genres that artist fan bases still bought albums and didnt just illegally download it.
That has softened somewhat, I mean the “veteran” artists still move records which is why Reba and Ronnie Dunn are getting NASH Icon contracts. I mean, remember when Jessica Simpson and Jewel were trying to be “Country” artists?
Stephen
May 7, 2015 @ 7:40 am
It’s not really country music, but instead it’s the Nashville country pop crowd. The Austin country music crowd would never allow that type of garbage.
Mike W.
May 7, 2015 @ 10:48 am
True to a point, I mean a number of Austin bands are pretty poppy in their own right–see Josh Abbott Band and Casey Donahew Band. Neither of those bands exude much more than Nashville wanna-be’s a lot of the time.
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 7:41 pm
Indeed. It seems anyone whose career is on the downswing seems to look furtively at country and make a play to have a career resurrection. I’m looking at you, Darius Rucker.
BrettS
May 6, 2015 @ 6:09 pm
Chris Stapleton was a co-writer. Haha just kidding. I have no clue
BrettS
May 6, 2015 @ 6:25 pm
All jokes aside. This sounds like a song penned by Rhett Akins and the Peach Pickers all day long.
Trigger
May 6, 2015 @ 8:16 pm
Bret co-wrote the song with Luke Laird. For the record.
BrettS
May 6, 2015 @ 8:38 pm
Well I was close with the Peach Pickers guess lol. Seriously my next guess would have been Luke Laird, no kidding even almost put it earlier. Weird
Jay
May 6, 2015 @ 10:52 pm
Ok seriously I have to ask, wtf is with all the music industry people having names that start first and last with the same letter? Is it like a trend? think about it, how many people can you list: rick rubin, dallas davidson, luke laird….etc.
Jack Williams
May 7, 2015 @ 6:20 am
Lorretta Lynn, Jamey Johnson, Sturgill Simpson
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:47 pm
Alliteration is memorable, especially alliterative names of one or two syllables. Too many of them though, and they become unmemorable, because they all start sounding the same.
(The experts say to name your dog something with two syllables which end with o or long a, the better to get them to answer when you call. Just thought I’d share that 🙂 )
SMRFGRL
May 9, 2015 @ 10:35 am
And besides his normal cowriters that was the only one.. not 72. Its easy to bash Bret because every cool kid does it but no matter what he does, he will be way more successful than running a crap blog where you are just angry that not all country is Garth. He doesnt need a good review, he has Loretta Lynn on his cd and can wipe his ass with hundreds.. He also gets to do what he loves and doesnt have to be angry on the internet while living in his moms basement.
Davidmk
May 11, 2015 @ 3:49 pm
Really ? Bret plays clubs , if his solo songs are so amazing why is no one buying them ? why does he not play them live in his set ?
Why is Every rose has it’s thorn on EVERY solo cd ……..
Why does he play the same stale setlist , year after year if he’s such a great writer ?
Anyone can get Loretta lynn on their cd , pay he what her fee is & she’s in ……
burt
July 13, 2015 @ 1:44 pm
What everyone is forgetting bo one told any of you to listen to this song and also how many of you people get to have fun doing what you love to do which is music he’s getting paid weither or not you like it or not.
Im sure to him it beats sitting in a chair thinking hes all washed up.
Sam Jimenez
May 6, 2015 @ 6:17 pm
This paragraph alone makes me happy that he released this song:
“Just what we need, a song to stimulate drunk chicks in $7.98 Wal-Mart straw cowboy hats to get up on precariously-balanced bar tables with cigarette lighters shoved under one leg to stop from wobbling and strut their stuff. I hope that every bikini-topped wench that”™s inspired to do an ass whip on the bar top and biffs it like hell on a lime wedge sues Bret Michaels from hell to breakfast, taking every bit of his millions from chemical tan endorsements until he”™s forced to record new renditions of old Poison songs and release it through Kidz Bop.”
You don’t get that kind of literary gold out of good music reviews…
BrettS
May 7, 2015 @ 6:11 am
If they use the same letter it’s less confusing for them. We’re not talking about Ivy League grads here.
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:49 pm
LOL
BigJaker
May 6, 2015 @ 6:19 pm
Sadly this will get more radio airplay that anything off Chris Stapleton’s album
Harrison
May 6, 2015 @ 6:20 pm
My favorite part is when he said “both feel good when they hit your lips” for the last time because then the song was over
the pistolero
May 6, 2015 @ 6:27 pm
I am going to guess BM burned through his Poison money. That is the ONLY logical explanation for this.
damn skippy
May 6, 2015 @ 8:32 pm
haha … you called him B.M.
pete marshall
May 6, 2015 @ 6:30 pm
This song is awful. This song is not country at all man this song makes Florida Georgia Line and Sam Hunt country. Trigger: I just read on country standard time that Reba “Going out like that” EDM mix this week. why they do that to Reba.
D
May 11, 2015 @ 5:48 pm
I did notice that FGL used a real 18 wheeler for their garbage song”¦I forget the name, “party all night, grab ass and have another shot” song. And old BM faked the fast car driving”¦ retro? And I assume Trig was being sarcastic when he asked what did country music do to deserve this”¦.the list of atrocities has us gathered here today.
Bill Goodman
May 6, 2015 @ 6:38 pm
I could record me flushing the toilet with my iPhone and it would sound better than this turd of an excuse for a country song. This is a fine example of cuntry music.
Adrian
May 7, 2015 @ 10:38 pm
Cuntry music is bad 1980s pop music, repackaged with belly buttons, boobs, and big hair, and marketed as “country”. A sexy woman from Canada with a below average voice popularized the subgenre around 1995.
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 7:43 pm
I’d rather stare at Shania Twain all day than listen to this. Really, who wouldn’t?!
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:57 pm
Stare at, sure (if you’re a guy)- listen to if you want to hear some country music? No way on God’s green earth. Same with Garth (or Chris Gaines, whichever he feels like at the time).
Eric
May 8, 2015 @ 10:16 pm
This is a pretty huge insult to 1980s pop music…
Derek
May 6, 2015 @ 6:39 pm
The video looks like crap because the whole budget went to airbrushing Bret Michaels to look 25 years younger than he actually is.
Kevin Davis
May 6, 2015 @ 6:47 pm
On the plus side, Bret is far too old for the youth-saturated market of country today. This song will die a quick and much-deserved death. I could not listen past the first minute. It’s atrocious — somehow worse than anything FGL has done.
Acca Dacca
May 6, 2015 @ 6:51 pm
Haha! I feel like I’ve contributed to Saving Country Music by telling you about this atrocity, Trigger. When they played this turd on the Bobby Bones Show this morning I literally could NOT believe what I was hearing. I mean, I’m starting to miss when Bro-country actually pretended to be somewhat country instead of just saying “screw it, these idiots call everything country” and doing whatever they want.
“Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” isn’t quite the dark spot it used to be, eh? I’m thinking that the “Worst Country Songs of All Time” list needs an update…
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 6:53 pm
This is truly pathetic. I miss the Poison that released “Every Rose Has Its Thorn”. That song was WAY more country (and of immeasurably higher quality) than this garbage.
There is an interesting parallel here to other singers who deliberately dumbed down their songs to jump genres. The question is which genre does a singer view as worthy of respect, and which does the singer view as a proverbial dumpster?
Many female artists, such as Taylor Swift and the current iteration of Madonna, view pop as the dumpster and release their worst songs there. On the other hand, male singers increasingly view country music as the ultimate dumpster. Brett Michaels might just serve as the most extreme example of that attitude.
marky mark
May 7, 2015 @ 2:56 am
Trigger addressed this nicely. Michaels did pen a few good songs, including Every Rose and Something to Believe In. Although way down on the skill and quality scale of 80s bands (paling next to Tesla, G’n’R and Cinderella), Poison had some good second tier pop rock songs (although i would actually argue Every Rose was good enough to be first tier). Following Michaels “evolution” (if i can call it that without getting toilet papered by you people on this site), Michaels was adding better written songs on each album just as 80s hair metal was getting thrown into the dumpster. Since then, i have always listened to snippets of things he puts out, waiting, hoping, praying he might tap into that inner solid singer songwriter i believe he has in him. …but nope, this song is a great example of all he has done for the past 20 years (which is nothing of note, in case my point was not clear). Personally, i believe a guy like Michaels, Tom Keifer from Cinderella or Jeff Keith from Tesla could each make a great country album (or do a good country song [lets not tax them]). Every one of those bands flirted with country songs on their day job albums (especially Cinderella on their heartbreak Station LP) and their voices had a nice sound for country. but i would want to hear them do it for the love of that sound, and not to make a cash grab as michaels is so failingly doing here. Actually, i have heard that Jeff Keith released a country album under his own name several years ago, and it was done, from what i can gather, just for his own satisfaction and with little attempt at fanfare (though who knows if he would have asked a label for fanfare if it had been done now, maybe his timing was off [he was an early adopter!]). I have never heard his album, but would happily give that a fair spin as it is something he did for love based on what i read. Not sure if i made a point other than to say, that under the right circumstances, i believe certain members of the Hair Band alumni could have made a solid contribution in to the country genre, but this aint it.
marky mark
May 7, 2015 @ 3:03 am
…and meanwhile, Rolling Stone gives michaels POSITIVE coverage of his song with Loretta Lynn (“Hear Brett Michaels Go Country with Loretta Lynn”) in their online news section yesterday! i have read RS since i was 15 (25 years ago), and their recent attempts to jump on the country bandwagon are more hollow and pathetic probably than Michaels attempt. This, coupled with their failure to cover anything rock in the magazine for years (other than geriatric rock – Tom Petty’s new album IS great, but he did not need the support, the new, young bands do) has left the magazine meaningless. Rival Sons are keeping rock alive, with four highly regarded albums and a growing cult fan base and RS has never even uttered their name, but their writers spend page after page of the mag covering EDM. Oh well, just as you mourn the passing of true county, i mourn the loss of true rock, hard rock and heavy metal as well.
RD
May 7, 2015 @ 5:47 am
Tesla is a very good band. Its a shame that they got lumped in with the hair metal / glam genre. They had long hair, but they were really just a good hard rock band. I have seen them live many times and they have covered a lot of country or country influence songs. Jeff Keith is from Arkansas and grew up in Oklahoma. From what I’ve read, former lead guitarist, Tommy Skeoch, grew up with country music and was really influenced by it. I think you can hear it in a lot of his playing. On their live album, they did a song called “Tommy’s Down Home.” Its more of a joke, but its more country than Brantley Gilbert…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tn4ifvn3uHI
RD
May 7, 2015 @ 5:59 am
Mark,
Here are some clips of the album you’re talking about:
http://www.reverbnation.com/jeffkeithcountry/songs
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 3:02 pm
Now I’m in the mood to YouTube Ratt’s “Round And Round”. Milton Berle was hilarious in that video.
Cole
May 6, 2015 @ 7:32 pm
“I’ve had plenty of big hits and plenty of big misses.” – Bret Michaels.
Let’s just hope it’s obvious which column this belongs in.
Major Gunns
May 6, 2015 @ 7:36 pm
I couldn’t make it past the first minute either. One of the worst songs I’ve ever heard. Who listens to this garbage?
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 7:45 pm
For all of the CMA’s faults, its Song of the Year choices are pretty consistently solid. Its Album and Vocalist choices, on the other hand…
pete marshall
May 6, 2015 @ 8:09 pm
The song sucks and so does his music video.
JC Eldredge
May 6, 2015 @ 8:21 pm
That video is even more stale then his stupid effin do rag. It looks like one of those jibjab pieces of shit Toby Keith loves.
Also, not disrespecting her at all, but I feel like Loretta Lynn may be losing a few cards in her deck. I thought she seemed a bit out of it singing with Kacey. Maybe her team is trying to milk every last drop, hence the Michael’s duet.
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 3:05 pm
Regarding Miss Loretta-I’ve always respected her integrity so much that I couldn’t bring myself to say it-so I’m glad you had the courage 🙂
JC Eldredge
May 6, 2015 @ 8:34 pm
Wait didn’t he have a reality dating show on VH1? Rock My Love or Rockin Love….
Oh and WTF with that red bandana picture?? Is he trying out for Pirates of the Caribbean?
Dan H
May 7, 2015 @ 7:28 am
Yeah Rock of Love or some shit, pretty much a sorry excuse for a show, just like this song is. At least he’s following the same trend lol.
GA Brown
May 6, 2015 @ 8:46 pm
Good God! This is why I will never make a dime playing music…. I believe I just got dummer. And lost a lot of respect for my fellow man.
Jim Bob
May 6, 2015 @ 9:03 pm
What in the actual fuck?!
Beyond him and “country” and this song, what the hell happened to Loretta Lynn?! It might be weird, but that’s the part of this post I keyed in on more than anything else.
Also, as terrible as I know it sounds, this song is probably better that any mainstream shit that’s come out in the last few months. To be VERY freaking clear-I HATE this song-but it is, objectively, better than this EDM, R&B-wannabe, Sam Cunt bullshit
CountryKnight
May 6, 2015 @ 9:17 pm
Songs like this make me wish the Puritans were still around.
CountryKnight
May 6, 2015 @ 9:19 pm
What happened to the southern gentleman and the southern belle?
Jim Bob
May 6, 2015 @ 9:56 pm
100% off topic-anyone wanna give me a couple Isbell songs to start with? It seems like I should love him, but the songs I’ve heard are only ok at best. Granted, it’s only been random song selection on YouTube, so for all I know I’ve pretty much only heard the songs that barely made the cut.
Someone please point me in the right direction and make something good come out of the terrible news in this post!!
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 10:13 pm
Here’s one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUqHEzgFRoA
Richard
May 7, 2015 @ 11:06 am
Isbell is awesome live. And I say that having probably seen a lot of rock, classic rock, and country artists over the years (going to Fogerty on Sunday).
This is probably one of my favorites. Although I think he sang this with DBTs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3BPUkpbh5s
Jack Williams
May 7, 2015 @ 11:40 am
I saw DBT for the first time when they were touring on Southern Rock Opera in 2002. Jason Isbell was fairly new to the band. As I recall, he was a very pudgy country boy guitarslinger who looked much younger than the rest of the band (which of course, he was). About a year later, their Decoration Day album came out. This song and the title track were his songwriting contributions. I thought “damn, that pudgy country boy can write and sing like that?” Still love those songs.
Richard
May 7, 2015 @ 8:35 pm
I have a friend who went to high school with Isbell. I feel like he once referred to Isbell as “that chubby kid I sang in the choir with…”
He definitely wasn’t just that young looking pudgy guy the last time I saw him. Like I said, I’ve seen a ton of amazing acts, many multiple times. Guys I consider legends. I’d put that Isbell show in the top 5. It probably helped that it was in Birmingham. He’s pretty big here, being from Alabama. But he really amps up those slow Americana songs when he wants to rock them.
Jack Williams
May 8, 2015 @ 9:32 am
The band picture on the inside sleeve for Decoration Day shows him as I remember. Trucker hat, overdue for a haircut and very pudgy.
I saw him in February in Charlottesville, VA and a couple of other times before that. I live in Northern Virgina, about a half hour from DC and 2 hours from Charlottesville. The February show in DC sold out 4 months in advance! I thought for sure I had some time to get tickets. Anyway, a couple of months later, I saw that there were still tickets available for the Charlottesville show, so I went for it. So glad I did. He and his band are not to be missed live.
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 10:16 pm
Sorry, the comment below was meant as a response to you.
This is one which has slightly less interesting music, but extremely sad and powerful lyrics. It was a top contender for SCM Song of the Year in 2013:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHJhyrrUTgc
Richard
May 7, 2015 @ 11:09 am
I accidentally responded to you on Eric’s post below.
But I’ve learned with Isbell that its the type of music that grows on you. Which is not a bad thing. I started listening to him when I just came across Alabama Pines on itunes. And then after I caught one of his live shows I was pretty well a fan.
D
May 15, 2015 @ 1:33 pm
Hey, I think I can point you a better direction for Isbell”¦.the newer stuff (mostly what was suggested) is a little more tame and while, good, you should check out some of the following tunes on Youtube or other places to get a taste: Outfit was already suggested. Look up Decoration Day (Name of a Drive-By Truckers album), and Goddamned lonely love, Dress Blues, Cigarettes and Wine, Go it alone, Never Gonna Change, Danko/Manuel, Grown, and Try. If you listen to these 10 songs and don’t like what you hear, then Isbell is definitely not for you. He had a band called the 400 Unit and a band called Sirens of the Ditch. The guy is a great writer and I think his older stuff is more enjoyable but glad he is getting the attention he deserves.
Eric
May 6, 2015 @ 10:15 pm
Another one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdwnGG29Upw
Blackwater
May 6, 2015 @ 10:23 pm
Bret, you’re about 5 years late to the party.
Eric
May 8, 2015 @ 10:33 pm
More like 3-4 years late. Country music 5 years ago was of far higher quality.
pete marshall
May 6, 2015 @ 10:46 pm
Play some Harry Luge, Brandy Clark, Aaron Watson, and Randy & Wade.
Jay Edwards
May 6, 2015 @ 11:33 pm
Bret michaels is trying to sound like kid rock trying to sound like country music. He was one of the biggest tools in the 80’s and needed to stay relevant in the 2000’s so he did that awful rock of love tripe. He’s been irrelevant for so long he needed some inspiration somewhere and instead of putting out crappy rock music he looked to the worst music trends of today and released even crappier country music. At least his awful solo albums could have a little respect because that is what he does, but this is something else. He’s even doing all the little hand motions that these “country singers” copied from the rappers. So in the end we have an aging rocker trying to sing country, making rappers motions while looking like a pirate.
Unknown Shredder
May 7, 2015 @ 12:01 am
Soooooo, I had the unfortunate opportunity to hear this the other day via my facebook page.
Im friends with the mother of his kids and her many friends so Im always seeing what this guy
is up to. Of course I cant comment and give my honest opinion on facebook or I would be pummeled from a good many people so I just zip it.
However, since this topic came up on SCM, its game on.
Upon the first and last listen of this tune, I just couldn’t believe what I was hearing …I just couldn’t.
A totally mailed in laundry list of all the crap songs picked apart and put together by Bret and whoever this Luke Laird is…I prob don’t want to know either cuz Im sure I would not listen to his work.
Anyway, this song is atrocious !!!! Its so bad I wanted to cry almost. Was all I could do not to comment on FB when all the positive comments were going up….I just cant believe what crap people think is actually music. But, Im not the least bit surprised to see this guy try his hand at country either. I think I heard that tune he did with Loretta and pretty much fell over laughing so this really isn’t a stretch.
I don’t know if Trig was serious about the money spent on this tune but when I first heard it all I could think was how a guy with money, connections to a studio, musicians etc etc etc can put something out that sounds THis bad!!!! But, when you cant actually sing, will do whatever to be in the spotlight and then try your hand at a genre you have no business in,,this is what you get I suppose.
I never cared for Poison back in the 80’s either, thought their tunes were awful and cheesy….But that Every Rose tune is seeming like a complete masterpiece compared to anything he does now.
Again, not surprised hes trying to jump on the Douche country bandwagon, but he should just stick to doing the Poison thing till that well totally runs dry.
Second to his lousy singing, I reeeeeeeeeeally want to comment on FB about his freakin makeup and how he hasn’t been seen without a bandana and Rocker cowboy hat in Forever!!!!! We get it, you don’t have hair under there so quit trying to fool us lol
I feel better now that I finally got to vent 🙂
JC Eldredge
May 7, 2015 @ 10:36 am
“Now, in an interview with the Associated Press, Michaels has come clean”¦ almost:”
AP: What are you hiding under that bandanna?
Michaels: My hair is combined of my hair and the finest extensions Europe has to offer. I do [Rock of Love] without it on all the time and they won”™t film me. They are like, “Put your bandanna back on. It is your image.” It is my signature thing.
Dude, just go bald already. You’re like 55, it’s ok now.
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 3:12 pm
You are the second or third person I’ve read who referred to “douche country”, and I think that that term is right on the dime and should be an actual genre of music, for what is termed “country” in the last few years. I’m not sure that the bros would even have a problem with that, other than how it might affect their money-making potential (conning real country fans until they actually catch on, not needing to con younger “country” fans who like this mess and want this to be what “country” music is). If we could fix those little problems, it would the perfect name for what’s passing as “country” music these days.
Sam Jimenez
May 7, 2015 @ 12:51 am
Wow. Just watched the video/heard the song. What a piece of shit, and wouldn’t you be embarrassed to have all your granddaughters dancing in your video like that?
Noah Eaton
May 7, 2015 @ 1:17 am
II refuse to share the linkback to the actual source in that I refuse to dignify one of several tabloid fodder sites masquerading as country music journalism with any more of a response, but I’m going to quote an actual quote Brett Michaels uttered in explaining the inspiration for this song:
*
“When I was writing ”˜Girls on Bars”™ [with] Luke Laird ”¦ I said, ”˜I need a summer feel,”™” he tells Alex. “When I wrote this song, I wrote it to be, you know, play in the country format and also the rock format. It”™s a very Americana song, but I said, ”˜Luke, I wanna write a song that reminds me of summer.”™”
Adds Michaels, “What do we wanna see? We wanna see girls dancing on bars, partying, having fun. When I say that, it”™s more of just an image of you work hard all week, then have a great time.”
*
Firstly, you’re in luck, Brett! Welcome to the home of endless summer: where ballads (except from a few male A-list artists) are eternally fated to perish below #15 on the airplay chart and anything resembling a human emotion (unless you count being horny or having an erecti…………uh, I mean, “going crazy”………..as an emotion! 😉 ) is killed with pyrotechnics! So let me show you arou………….wait, what’s this? You’re above age 40? YOU GET YOUR ONE SINGLE OUT OF THE WAY AND THEN YOU BE ON YOUR WAY, OLD FART!” =P
Secondly………………..a “very Americana song”? Are you frickin’ kidding me? If this does so happen to epitomize everything quintessentially dear to America, then call me Benedict Arnold! 😉
Thirdly…………….wow! I sure wish I could remember what summer looks like…………….what summer feels like……………but I just can’t quite put my finger on it. Remind me: is summer that time of year I should expect to rummage through the catacombs of my closet, pull out my Canada Goose Branta Windmere Down-Filled Coat and layer up? Should I anticipate a peculiar white gold ball of light in the sky that is blinding if I try gazing at it? Do they serve hot cocoa and apple cider? What will the snowpack be like on the ridge? ENLIGHTEN ME!!!
Finally, damn right I want to have a good time after a hard week’s work. Shouldn’t I have the right to decide how I want to have fun? Did it occur to you that, perhaps, I sometimes want to play laser tag instead of watch others dance? Or jump on mattresses in furniture stores with a couple friends just for fun? Or go to a Silent Disco Flash Mob? You know…………something called “expanding my horizons”? Care for me to define that phrase for you, Brett? 😉
*
As lame as Nickelback’s stab at radio country, “This Afternoon”, was………..at least that foray 1) preceded the actual boom of “bro-country” and 2) they were willingly laughing at themselves, especially in the video, so they did that with some self-awareness.
So yeah, Brett Michael’s stab at country is much worse than Nickelback’s stab at country.
Kev
May 7, 2015 @ 3:54 am
I haven’t listened to the song (and I’m not going to). The picture at the top of the article was enough for me to think, “Wanker”, and not play it!
Charlie
May 7, 2015 @ 4:20 am
They are not even human fucking beings. Unorganized pieces of amphibian shit.
Mike
May 7, 2015 @ 5:30 pm
Yelling at Bret….WHAT’S YOUR EXCUSE!!
gtrman86
May 7, 2015 @ 5:09 am
Luckily I live in Canada and cannot open the link. What the fuck is going on lately, its a fucking nightmare! Mr Michael’s better watch out, im sure looking as feminine as he does he’s bound to get boinked from behind from a drunk Jadon Aldean fans at one of those shit show “Country” concerts!
Zach
May 7, 2015 @ 6:04 am
Lol! Sampled a few tracks the other day. My fist thought was, this is pretty bad. My second thought, God I hope Trigger reviews this! So thank you! While authentic country is my go to, I will say I do like some hair metal. Poison included. Disappointed he released something like this, but given the past few years, can’t say I’m surprised.
Allen
May 7, 2015 @ 6:14 am
It’s to the point now where not a single person should be surprised at the trash that is coming out or an old artist who has always “loved” country and wanted to put out a record. On a daily basis, i find myself distancing further and further from any mainstream country. Living in DFW, I am almost to the point of removing 96.3 from my presets, strictly cause if by some chance I put it on that station, I quickly change it. I’m over the mainstream stuff and almost over radio itself. If it wasn’t for 95.9 and 95.3 and occasionally 92.1, I would never tune in to a country station in my truck.
Randy
May 7, 2015 @ 6:45 am
I kept pinching myself as I listened, hoping I’d wake up from this nightmare. I kept listening because I didn’t think it could get worse but it did. I kept hoping this article was a satirical / joke piece…but it wasn’t. How much lower can all of this go? I find more pleasure in listening to my dogs howl than this. Hank 3’s dog Trooper has more musical talent than this washed up 80s leftover…
T. Hopkins
May 7, 2015 @ 6:49 am
Trigger, I LOVE YOU.
You said everything I wanted to say, and tears–of laughter–are rolling down my cheeks. Way to tell it like it is.
Brett
May 7, 2015 @ 6:54 am
Bret Michaels is a tough guy to figure out. He was recently in our area for a juvenile diabetes fundraiser (he’s a diabetic who has gone through some major health issues), and he demonstrated that he is capable of speaking earnestly and honestly about things. People here in PA where he’s from have generally positive feelings toward him.
That said, most aspects of his public persona — the makeup, the attire, that TV show, this awful, awful song — make it seem like he’s been at a total loss of what to do since hair metal ended.
Dogit
May 7, 2015 @ 8:11 am
Nobody saw them running
From 16th Avenue
They never found the fingerprints
Or the weapon that was used
But someone killed country music
Cut out its heart and soul
They got away with murder
Down on music row
The almight dollar
And the lust for worldwide fame
Slowly killed tradition
And for that, someone shouldhang (“Ahh, you tell ’em Alan”)
They all say “Not Guilty!”
But the evidence will show
That murder was committed
Down on music row
For the steel guitars no longer cry
And the fiddles barely play
But drums and rock ‘n’ roll guitars
Are mixed up in your face
Ol’ Hank wouldn’t have a chance
On today’s radio
Since they committed murder
Down on music row
They thought no one would miss it
Once it was dead and gone
They said no one would buy them ol’
Drinkin’ and cheatin’ songs (“Oh, but I still buy ’em”)
Well there ain’t no justice in it
And the hard facts are cold
Murder’s been committed
Down on music row
For the steel guitars no longer cry
And you can’t hear fiddles play
With drums and rock ‘n’ roll guitars
Mixed right up in your face
Why the Hag wouldn’t have a chance
On today’s radio
Since they committed murder
Down on music row
Why they even tell the Possum
To pack up and go back home
There’s been an awful murder
Down on music row
Albert
May 7, 2015 @ 8:30 am
One of THE best lyrics ever written . Hard to believe it’s over 15 years old already . Good news is that George and AJ are still around 15 years later . Anyone else would never have gotten to sing that on the awards program ….and if so would be selling cars in Kansas today . Y’know …a respectable career with integrity and a future .
Dogit
May 7, 2015 @ 8:12 am
I am glad my grandfather is dead between this shit and last month’s AMCs he would have died.
Dogit
May 7, 2015 @ 8:14 am
Why are these mother fuckers killing country music? Brett should release this as a rock cut. Oh, yeah rock is dead and country music is next.
Albert
May 7, 2015 @ 8:15 am
You need to buy a few more guns , Trigger . I mean ……..for your ratings system , of course . Then again …..
I’ve said it before …but any culture obsessed with ‘ reality ‘ shows and celebrities is the PERFECT target for what labels and artists continue to throw at the wall and call music ….more specifically modern ‘ country’ music . OF COURSE there’s a market for that shit . I can’t wait for Jennifer Aniston’s new CD . Apparently Ellen does a guest dance and Jenny gives birth ( finally ) on track 4
CAH
May 7, 2015 @ 8:17 am
I like a lot of hard rock (including old hard rock) and metal, but, with few exceptions, I’m not interested in genre crossover.
It sounds like this won’t be one of those exceptions, particularly with the banality of the song.
As an aside, I have 3,000 – 4,000 CDs and not one Poison or Arrowsmith CD.
Albert
May 7, 2015 @ 8:25 am
The ACM’s just announced their list of performers . Kid Rock will kick things off followed by two songs from Arianna Grande , Bret Michaels in a duet with a homeless guy , Steven Tyler doing Van Halen’s ” Jump” ( the bluegrass version , of course ) Sam Hunt and Dwight Yoakum because their last get together was soooo perfect ,and a reunited Dixie Chicks with Kimberly Perry in a tribute to Dylan’s new ” American Songbook ” release . Apparently the only actual ‘ country’ artist on the program will be Aldean singing Burnin’ It Down with the LA Philharmonic all wearing chaps . MUST SEE TV , friends !!
The Ghost of Buckshot Jones
May 7, 2015 @ 8:49 am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ruwc2c23E8I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t83H5FzOQzE
I’m honestly not sure which is the parody and which is the song in earnest.
Shastacatfish
May 7, 2015 @ 8:59 am
I am going to be the voice of dissent here. I really don’t think the song is THAT bad. Is the song lame? Yes. Are the lyrics puerile? Yes, very. Is it country? Nope. And that is the point. This is Bret Michaels being Bret Michaels and if that is the schtick you like, then whatever. At least here, I think Michaels knows he is just a facade, as the scenes of him driving the fake car against the green screen might indicate. There is the impression that he is there/is country, but he is just being superimposed and not authentic. He is basically doing what he did with Poison but selling it to a different format. There is not much difference between what he is doing here and Sheryl Crow releasing a country album.
Would I listen to this song? Maybe, if I was still going to school in Chico and living above Rileys. Especially on Saint Patty’s Day, but I’m not and I know the song sucks. Still, it is not as bad as the likes of Truck Yeah, Donkey, and 1994. Hell, this is more country than 1994 and it is not even remotely country.
Jack Williams
May 7, 2015 @ 9:44 am
STILL more country than Sam Hunt!
I would agree that if taken in a vacuum, this song is not as bad as the ones you listed. There are some extenuating circumstances, though. For one, he is a interloper propping up a trend that almost all of us want to see die.
I’ll mildly disagree with your point about Sheryl Crow. She has at least some country/roots credibility with me. For example:
(1) She did a nice job on Hank Sr.’s Long Gone Lonesome Blues, complete with yodel.
(2) Ditto on a duet with Emmylou Harris on the Flying Burrito Brothers song Juanita.
(3) Levon Helm seemed to enjoy sharing the same stage with her.
Still though, like with Steven Tyler, I’m tired of her.
tommy grant
May 7, 2015 @ 9:41 am
If it’s not rock and roll music…It sucks anyway.unless you are a hot chick singing country,country music sucks and has sucked with the exception of Johnny Cash.
tommy grant
May 7, 2015 @ 10:06 am
At least Brett is a fan of country music.Billy Currington doesn’t.t even like country music according to his bus driver who happens to be my little brother.
Eric
May 7, 2015 @ 11:23 am
Then why are you here? In case you haven’t noticed, the name of the site is Saving COUNTRY Music.
Or are you being sarcastic?
susan t
May 7, 2015 @ 10:10 am
you write really good articles.
Scott
May 7, 2015 @ 10:25 am
Somebody pass the poison to Brett. Please?
Jason Wilding
May 7, 2015 @ 10:49 am
It’s so rubbish the way you block viewing outside the US. This is the 21st century and EXACTLY the reason the entire world thinks that Country Music is controlled by business execs and have little interest in music.
Trigger
May 7, 2015 @ 11:14 am
That’s CMT. I’m sure the video will be on YouTube soon. What sucks is a lot of the content CMT Canada creates is actually stuff I’d enjoy watching, but you get the same out-of-country blockade.
Canuck
May 9, 2015 @ 2:49 pm
I’ve commented here before about the sad state of a lot of Canadian Country Music. There’s some good stuff, but there’s a lot of crap, with guys like Paul Brandt and the abysmal Dean Brody, plus washed-up Terri Clark.
In summation, you’re not missing much in most instances, except mediocre artists that ape what they see going on South of the Border. You really, really have to dig deep to get guys like Corb Lund, who actually has some pedigree (even though he was a rock singer first). Dean Brody and his gimmicky songs are some of the worst examples. The guy’s music just sucks.
Coty
May 7, 2015 @ 10:55 am
It always annoyed me how artists from other genres think they can just hop on into the country pool and be accepted as a country artist. You don’t see Eric Church or Jason Isbell trying to put out hip hop songs and if they did they’d be made fun of endlessly. Yet for some reason these 80s rock douches can just come and go as they please.
T
May 7, 2015 @ 11:13 am
42 seconds is all I could handle
Jimbo
May 7, 2015 @ 11:51 am
I can’t get past the orange tone of his skin and all the make-up. He looks ridiculous.
WORST. SONG. EVER.
one_time
May 7, 2015 @ 12:25 pm
One of two things needs to happen…1. Please someone face shoot me. 2. Send Brett, his duck face, taut skin, and this shit song to receive his 72 virgins. Headed to stick my finger down my throat.
Bear
May 7, 2015 @ 12:37 pm
Dude Bret you haven’t worked a 9 to 5 in years! Who you tellin’ off bro?
Mo Crawford
May 7, 2015 @ 1:24 pm
Yet this would be a #1 hit for Aldean,Blake,or Luke, more proof that country is over
Banner
May 7, 2015 @ 1:28 pm
Lmfao…. I saw part of this video already, but with the sound turned off. I thought it was an ad for the forthcoming Joe Dirt 2. The dude looks like Joe Dirt.
Banner
May 7, 2015 @ 1:39 pm
Oh, wait. I just tried it with the sound on. it’s even funnier. He says y’all and even tries to drawl it the best he can. This is priceless, if they can’t make a hit out of it they should sell it to funny or die.
Phil
May 7, 2015 @ 1:50 pm
Some times it feels like Country music has become a swirling toilet bowl and we’re all holding our breath and waiting for the flush so we can start over.
Hawkeye
May 7, 2015 @ 2:49 pm
Wow
Just freaking wow
Off topic
Has anyone else heard the I Prevail cover of Blank Space? It’s freaking awesome, a lot better then ole t-swizes version!
If you haven’t had the chance to hear it, take a listen here:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=czb_CZfWko8
Eric
May 9, 2015 @ 10:09 pm
Wow, I Prevail actually managed to make that song sound worse, complete with weak vocals and deafeningly loud music.
Here’s a genuinely nice cover:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mx_0LK1DfrE
Mike
May 7, 2015 @ 3:25 pm
Jesus what is next? Thomas Fischer of Celtic Frost making a country album???? Then again, I would rather hear a country music version of To Megatherion or Ain Elohim than drown my ears in this shit by Bret Michaels.
Rancher17
May 7, 2015 @ 3:42 pm
Yes. This is horrible. Terrible. Will say I respect this guy. Was overseas (Iraq) in a hot spot in 08 and learned he was thirty miles away givin a concert for our guys. Never listened to him or poison but I respect him for that. He didn’t have to
JT
May 7, 2015 @ 4:26 pm
:30 of that crap was all I could take!!
DraftRider
May 7, 2015 @ 4:51 pm
It’s really difficult to articulate just how bad this song really is. Obviously it will be a huge hit.
Strait Country 81
May 7, 2015 @ 5:36 pm
The women in the video are sexy.
That’s the only positive i can come up with.
Kevin Darveaux
May 7, 2015 @ 6:31 pm
Perhaps, Bret hasn’t gotten’ over his stoke yet . .
Carla
May 7, 2015 @ 10:14 pm
‘Sorry, this video is unavailable from your location. I tried five different websites. Damn, this always happens when I try to listen to anything other than the Lord of The Rings soundtrack!
Summer Jam
May 7, 2015 @ 10:31 pm
I certainly hope that you aren’t calling Trace Adkins a bad country music artist, Trigger. I just really hope that is not what you meant………I’m serious….
Tanya Reardon
May 8, 2015 @ 5:08 am
Bret is awsome no matter what he sangs I will love him and his music no matter what thats what a true fan is a number 1 true fan the rest can kiss my ass !!!! And kiss his ass to stop hating on him Real Talk !!!
ChrisNSC
May 8, 2015 @ 6:00 am
“generic tripe written in Emoji and douchewad speak” This line just made me laugh out loud in the office and everyone give me a confused look. Hilarious!!!
Chase
May 8, 2015 @ 10:06 am
This song is not the worst song that I have heard. That honor goes to the song Michael Ray “Kiss You in the Morning” (which my girlfriend was listening to when I came to her house). It even has these lyrics “Oh you little outlaw, Stealing my heart and all, When you drop it down low, Touch your toes girl, You know you just show it off, That little tattoo on your tan line, oh man, Pretty little butterfly,What else have you got to hide”.
Instead of releasing these songs to the public we should play these for the prisoners at Gitmo for our enhanced interrogation techniques. At least they would serve one purpose.
Timothy Ready
May 8, 2015 @ 11:10 am
That first paragraph is ABSOLUTELY EFFING HILARIOUS. I mean PERFECT. I will now follow this blog FOREVER, based on that one paragraph alone…superb writing…
John Haring
May 8, 2015 @ 12:51 pm
Calling it a turd was kind.
Sean Grimes
May 8, 2015 @ 1:11 pm
Yes. The world was a better place before this song was made. Why was it made? Why?
Kyle Reese
May 8, 2015 @ 5:56 pm
LISTEN! AND UNDERSTAND!!!!!
Those bro country singers and fans are out there! They can’t be bargained with….THEY CAN’T BE REASONED WITH!! THEY DON’T KNOW WAYLON…OR CASH!!! THEY DON’T KNOW SHAME!!! AND THEY ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT STOP!!!!!
EVER!!!!!
UNTIL COUNTRY MUSIC…IS…DEAD!!!!!
Tyler Gaines
May 8, 2015 @ 10:51 pm
Have you ever pondered that maybe there are just fans of “bro country” who would like it whatever it’s called because it’s upbeat, carefree and makes them feel good, and they know and like Waylon, Willie, Cash, Kris, Prine and the rest of them and listen to those a lot as well (as well as Alabama et al who got as much hate thirty plus years ago as “bro country” does now)? I’m sure you know as well as anyone the grief that Waylon and all them other boys (or Willie after he made that crazy for that time transition) got for their type of music, production, lyrical content and the like when they started up from “classic” country fans.
This BM song is absolutely horrific (I do agree with whomever posted above they had the makings of a decent groove at the beginning and then just ripped it to shreds) but not everything that’s come out in the past five years and been uniformly characterized as “pop country”/”bro country”/etc. is. Genres change because artists get older while listener profile stay the same and sounds of the years past are built upon because artists want to show a new sound and listeners don’t want a bunch of monotonous releases from multiple eras of artists. Each time it happens people make a lot of noise about it and then eventually the masses get their way, those become the classics and we start the cycle all over again.
No ones out to kill country music or music in general. Music develops like any other art form and creativity focuses on innovation by new artists (even those like a Mo Pitney hailed as bringing it back), not regurgitating the same thing for decades on end. In the meantime, we can let the labels decide if FGL, Sam Hunt, Chris Stapleton, and whomever else is country or not but if it’s not good and it’s not appealing to some subset of the 300+ million people living across the U.S., then it’s gonna fade, just like I assume this miserable song will. And if it’s for a different genre, then it’ll naturally take a course there. But in the mean time, let’s stop pretending certain “fans” and “people” own country music and can tell millions of others when it stops being fit for “their interpretation” of the genre.
Mike
May 9, 2015 @ 1:59 pm
Tyler:
Let me ask you a question. Why are we, the fans of country music, not allowed to determine what country music is. But the corporate music machine is? Why? Just because they have money, that automatically makes them right?
Eric
May 9, 2015 @ 10:12 pm
Tyler,
What I and others here miss the most in country music are the emotionally deep story-based lyrics and the instrumentally soft music that used to characterize the format as recently as 4 years ago. Without those two elements, country music is just not country.
Tyler Gaines
May 10, 2015 @ 10:59 am
Mike – I think there’s an important distinction you’re missing, which is you are one of many fans of country music, and those fans speak by having songs go up both the play and purchase charts (just going up the play chart might indicate there’s just corporate promotion dollars being thrown behind it without it resonating at listeners, but purchase stats are real). So I say the fans of country music are speaking – whether those fans are the same as the ones you identify with is another question, but that’s been the phenomenon that we’ve seen every decade since the 50s in all types of music.
Eric – I get it, and I love those songs that hit on both those nowadays. But a Sam Hunt for instance has some of those stories wrapped in today’s language and today’s sound – and that change of sound has always been something that’s happened in this and every other genre. As a percentage of all songs, are there more in your face party songs with no other message than there were 30 years ago? I think so. Are there any more than the 10 or 15 years ago? I’m not sure there are. The production is different which I think accentuates the difference between then then and now. And just like then, a ton of those are horrible and some are good, and it feels like listener opinion follows those trends. It’s different, I’m just not sure the best songs are any worse than the best songs back then and the worst are any worse than the worst ones back then in their thought, creativity and execution.
Eric
May 11, 2015 @ 12:07 am
I think it’s pretty clear that the percentage of party songs is much higher than even 4 or 5 years ago. Look at the list of #1 country singles from 2010, for example:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_number-one_country_singles_of_2010_(U.S.)
A majority of these songs involve emotionally deep storytelling, whereas basically all of today’s top country songs feature a party theme. What’s worse is that the party lyrics are more repetitive (cold beer, trucks, hot chicks) and immature than ever.
Can you imagine a song like “The House That Built Me” hitting #1 at all, let alone for 4 weeks, on today’s country radio?
Tyler Gaines
May 14, 2015 @ 5:44 am
Sure, but by the same token there hasn’t been one party song yet on the 2015 charts, and it feels like we won’t have one for at least another month based on what’s rising up the charts right now.
I think the tides are starting to turn on the lyrical repetition a bit but realistically there will always be songs about girls, and they’ll get sung in whatever the current hot metaphor of today is (whether its trucks, beer, weed, fire, etc.). And then you’ll always have guys that are way behind the curve i.e. this song where BM is just straight up faking it. The words feel very played out coming out of his mouth in this song, as opposed to an FGL when they released their first album.
Canuck
May 9, 2015 @ 2:50 pm
Because Bret’s not satisfied with the trickle of Poison Profit any longer, and needs a payday, that’s why.
Sahara
May 8, 2015 @ 1:55 pm
This is no different than anything else out right now. Sounds about the same as what’s considered “country” in the past 10yrs..County music hasn’t been true country music since the late 90’s. Anything since is just over produced “pop country” garbage. Toby Keith, little big town, florida georgia line, etc..all the same.. *goes back to listening to willie nelson*
Eric
May 9, 2015 @ 10:13 pm
There is a fairly drastic difference in the country sound between the pre-2011 and post-2011 era. 2011 is when the bro-country trend began.
Jewelsbyjules
May 8, 2015 @ 5:27 pm
Seems most of the comments come from men…… Well, seems there is jealous envy going on if you have to drivel about a man that has so much going for him and not afraid to do what he loves. He has success with his music, has partnerships with PetSmart, Overstock.com, Snapple to name a few AND RUNS AND OWNS his own business. He has a head for business where from comments I read your vocab stops at douchebag…. Have you tried to better yourself and do what he does? He is living life to the fullest and banking money AND gives so much to charities he has founded charities and does shows to raise money for other charities and for our troops Where were you when he and his band had a day off and they could of been home with loved ones but chose to volunteer in Pilger? You guys keep on hating, cause he’s still smiling and helping those in need. I’m proud of all he does and has inspired me to reach out and help those in need and gives me the passion for what I do. He’s a genuine man and what you say doesn’t hurt him it helps him grow and do more good for the world. Are you doing that? Think about it
Academic Decathlon Referee
May 8, 2015 @ 5:58 pm
Mrs. Jewels:
What you have just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard.
At no point in your rambling, incoherent response, was there anything that was even CLOSE to what can be considered a rational thought. And everyone on this message board is now dumber for having read it.
I award you no points…..and may God have mercy on your soul.
Jewelsbyjules
May 9, 2015 @ 5:12 am
Awe, did I hurt your feelings cause I told the truth not like the writer of this article? …. There were only 2 writers not 27. The two writers were Bret Michaels and Luke Laird The video itself is amazing and the song was produced and mixed with great talent from Bret’s guitarist and good friend Pete Evick. Rolling Stones…….Fucking Rolling Stones gave it an awesome review. The writer of this article doesn’t realize Bret’s wrote country before and it’s a cross over mix. It’s a feel good song but you can’t get past the jealousy to really grab the beat and fun times and words that were put in this song. Haters going to hate but you needed to be educated on how the writer was wrong with inaccurate information
Mike
May 9, 2015 @ 8:25 am
“Awe, did I hurt your feelings cause I told the truth not like the writer of this article?”
Not at all. I actually find your lack of independent thought rather humorous.
“Rolling Stones”¦”¦.Fucking Rolling Stones gave it an awesome review.”
I think you mean “Rolling Stone,” Ma’am. And of course they are going to give it an awesome review because they toe the party line. The music oligarchy is one where one hand washes the other and all dissent and independent thought is crushed. And I am pretty sure that Bret’s record company gave Rolling Stone a ton of cash to give it an awesome review. Payola, despite what people say….DOES exist.
“The writer of this article doesn”™t realize Bret”™s wrote country before and it”™s a cross over mix.”
Bret has NEVER written a country music song before. He was only on Nashville Star and realized that country was the next cash cow, and he was gonna milk it for all it’s worth.
“It”™s a feel good song but you can”™t get past the jealousy to really grab the beat and fun times and words that were put in this song. Haters going to hate but you needed to be educated on how the writer was wrong with inaccurate information.”
You accuse the writer of inaccurate information, yet you produce nothing but personal opinions. And no, we are not “jealous.” People like me are sick and tired of seeing country music being bastardized, shaken down, and made in to a joke for nothing more than pure profit.
Nice try, Mrs. Jewels. But you are going to have to do a hell of a lot better than that.
[Vote]
JewelsByJules
May 9, 2015 @ 3:37 pm
Bastardized ? Bret has many country music friends. Girls on Bars is a cross over mix. Bret and his group made it on their own Bret works hard at all that he does and paying anyone to advertise is part of business. He didn’t have to pay Rolling Stone anything If they didn’t put an article out Bret would still be winning in all that he does. It was an honor and proud moment for him and his group AND he has a lot of fans who support him in all that he does as he gives so much back in way of charities, fundraisers, etc. including giving his own personal money to charities and fundraisers. I do have personal opinions as you do but I also tell truth where you insinuate
Plus his songs are great but since you seem to feel all these people are trying to steal the spotlight. Keep on your hate trip At least Bret is a man of integrity. Your dribble is useless to me. Have a great weekend
Fuzzy TwoShirts
May 11, 2015 @ 11:20 am
Jewels: You can talk about Petsmart and try feebly to insult our beloved Triggerman all you want, but that kind of rhetoric won’t change the fact that this song is awful, and I think you know it’s awful because you used petsmart and insults instead of providing any evidence to the contrary. Also, instead of insulting online music critics, shouldn’t you be more concerned with passing the sixth grade?
Canuck
May 8, 2015 @ 7:45 pm
Could be worse, I suppose. The abysmal and non-talented C.C. Deville could be on guitar.
Talia X
May 9, 2015 @ 1:37 am
Holy shit Brett what the hell were you thinking? You are sooo much better than this! Write a kick ass hard rock song and rock it the fuck out like I know you CAN! You still have the looks, the voice and the talent, but you seem to have forgotten your roots .. ya might want to find them and hook back up with them … dont forget where you came from! Get back there and make some MUSIC!!
Does Not Matter
May 9, 2015 @ 6:00 am
I am not a fan of any particular genre of music. I listen to and support, my idea, of quality music. In my opinion this is not quality music.. and not country music.
This song is a sad attempt to make money. Even sadder, it probably will bring in some cash for Bret. Why? Bret writes current songs for one group of people, the now much older groupie women he had while in Poison. This is most of his fan base today.
The song will run it’s course in music history. Being played in bars everywhere, because nothing brings in money (men) like women (and sports). And nothing brings in women like the opportunity for these women to show off their stripper pole classes then a song like this. Bret knows this.. he had a good business sense. Would of rather seen the women doin quality line dancing up on that bar.
Anyway.. wait for the influx of Bret fans to swarm you. His guartist, Pete, was crying on Facebook because his friends told him about this article, but no one was supporting or defending the song on this site.
Pete is a longtime friend, from middle school. I just can’t support this song.
Jewelsbyjules
May 10, 2015 @ 9:38 am
If Pete is a longtime friend you would have his back
He wasn’t “crying” on Facebook. He was questioning He has that right. He is curious how people act in certain situations.
Pete, Bret and Luke Laird did an awesome job with this song. A friend would never put another friend down as you have done
Fuzzy TwoShirts
May 11, 2015 @ 11:24 am
Jewels: “did an awesome job on this song.” You obviously judge songs differently than we do. If the goal was to make something stupid, useless, and completely offensive to anyone with taste, then yes, they “did an awesome job.”
Does Not Matter
May 14, 2015 @ 9:06 am
Just because I have known him since middle school… does not mean I have to like music choices.
the stuff he does with Evick is much better than this crap.
and yes he was crying.. put it off as a curiosity of why people are sending him this article.. but when you say you don’t understand why people are sending him this link and not vocally supporting the song on this site m he was crying for people to comment for him here.
if he wanted to know.. he should of asked these good friends directly.
but again.. song is crap.. regardless of who wrote it and who produced it.
Mike
May 9, 2015 @ 8:28 am
Trigger, it is my opinion that you need to stop labeling songs the “Worst Country Song Ever.”
Scott Borschetta and Corporate Nashville are taking it as a challenge to make something progressively worse. I am betting Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line are reading this and saying, “Worst song ever, huh? Challenge accepted. Let’s make a song with Lil’ Jon having a rap verse, and the obligatory “support the troops” line sang by some guy or girl who just ETS’ed and wants to have a “music career.”
Dave
May 9, 2015 @ 1:22 pm
Since I’m never watching that video again I can’t confirm this, but I don’t recall seeing one single “cold beer” with which to “keep the party rolling up in here.” Lots of liquor bottles, though. Maybe someone else can confirm. What total garbage.
Chris
May 9, 2015 @ 1:38 pm
not only a bad song but what a piece of crap guitar solo. At least get a real country picker.
Mike
May 10, 2015 @ 2:22 pm
It is kind of Ironic that Bret Michaels, formerly one of the mainstays of the hair metal bands, is trying to do a country music album. I say this because I see the same paralells between country music now and heavy metal in the 80s. Big Record Companies did this when they discovered the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) around 1979-1982. But the sound was too raw and too hard for mass audiences. So they had to dumb it down in order to make it appeal to the masses. Thus, we got “hair metal.”
But in the mid 1980s, there was a backlash headed by thrash metal (with pre-sellout Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax) and black/death metal (Mayhem, Celtic Frost/Hellhammer, Bathory). So hopefully in the coming years, we will see a backlash in country music too, headed by groups who have no use for dumbed down glamourized music.
Tanya
May 12, 2015 @ 9:57 am
Yall need shut the hell up I am his biggest fan if he wants country let him go country the only thing I dis agree with is he needs to be with his Band Poison as well stop talking trash about it suck it up and get over it he is awsome stop hating on him
Melanie
May 12, 2015 @ 10:27 am
I’m not ever disappointed by anything Bret would do, as I never expect anything from him-but…Loretta, why? Just why? You didn’t need to do this!
Shelly
May 16, 2015 @ 7:29 am
Why? Because Loretta and Bret are long-time friends and they love music. You may not like the re-mix or maybe you didn’t even bother to listen to the song they recorded together. Bret is the most genuine and generous rock legends you will ever meet. He is doing what he LOVES. I am a huge fan and although, I don’t think the new music he has put out in the last few years has been his best work but I am going to be the last person to criticize him. If you knew how much money and time this guy gives to charities, it would make your head spin. He is on the road every single day of the year, making people happy and helping out the less fortunate. He hardly knows me, other than the fact that I attend most shows he does in Minnesota. When I told him that my daughter developed Type 1 Diabetes at the age of 16, he arranged and sent her to Diabetes Camp. When she met and thanked him a few months ago, he had his road manager give her his number and told her that if she ever needed to talk to him, to call Sarge and he would call her back. Take your judgement of Bret, Loretta and everyone else somewhere else.
anne
May 16, 2015 @ 8:32 am
He has NEVER had any respect as an artist or businessman. He’s probably one of the most giving people there is and very talented, but BC he wears eyeliner and a do rag, he’s never taken seriously…
Trigger
May 16, 2015 @ 8:47 am
Every single popular music artist gives to charity. Every one of them. Some give more, some give less, but it doesn’t make any of them special or exceptional. It just makes sound financial sense with the way the tax code is structured in the United States to take some of the money you’ve earned and give back. I don’t know if Bret Michaels is in the top percentiles or bottom percentiles when it comes to giving money to charity per capita, but it doesn’t make his music sound better either way. Nobody is judging Bet Michaels as a human being. I’m sure he’s a great guy. But this song is dumb, in my opinion. Hats off for his charitable work.
kristy
May 12, 2015 @ 9:30 pm
Bret has been in entertainment for a long time. I loved him in the 80’s and I love him now. He CLEARLY knows what he is doing. What he is not doing….. Sitting on a computer, tablet, phone criticizing you… I would have to agree with someone else that posted a jealousy issue. A lot of men in my area seem to be jealous when his name comes up. They have every right to be. Gonna change the situation, Shania Twain had a big part in that change of country music. Men didn’t have a problem with her at all. And a lot of women were jealous. Enjoy the music you like, don’t criticize what you don’t like. Why bother? Nothing better to do? Then put down the computer, tablet, phone and go spend some time with your family.
Mike
December 13, 2015 @ 1:49 pm
Wow. I thought all the Poison groupies settled down and got actual jobs after the band fell apart. Guess I was wrong.
bobbie lawson
May 16, 2015 @ 6:07 am
all you haters dont need to look or listen to anything bret put out if you dont have anything nice to say then shut the hell up dont like dont look dont be a hater cause hes doing better than you
anne
May 16, 2015 @ 8:24 am
I’ve been a fan of Bret and poison my whole life. He is extremely talented and a very nice guy, buy I agree the song is terrible and the video is worse. I think it is time for him to delve in to some new projects. Having said that, country music has been crap for the last ten years. Half of the current country artists are awful. Taylor Swift changed country music,for the worse…I feel bad for Bret. No matter what he does, the majority of people don’t like him BC of his hair, makeup, etc… They don’t know how much talent he has or what a giving person he is. It’s too bad…
anne
May 16, 2015 @ 8:30 am
By the way, after rereading this article. The person that wrote it sounds like a huge, judgmental, insecure, and hateful jerk!!
MOreb
November 22, 2015 @ 9:13 pm
Why does it have golden locks!
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:07 pm
Trigger Trigger Trigger-this has to be the most hilarious review from you I’ve read, I am LMAO for real! It’s almost worth it to have insulted my ears with this dog’s dinner just to read your review of it! And what makes it even funnier is that every word is true!
And now I know that it’s not only silly girls who do that duck face thing in their photos, I can’t recall ever seeing a guy do it, now I have, don’t know if it disgusts me or makes me want to laugh harder, the most!
But I am highly insulted that he called it “True Grit” when that’s my favorite John Wayne movie tied with “Stagecoach”..
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:22 pm
Dang I just read the review again just so I could laugh all over again (I need laughs in my life right now really bad), and the line about it getting CMA’s SOTY just kills me, because it’s not completely beyond the realm of possibility!
Wait-did I just read that Loretta Lynn did a remake of “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” with this dude-looks-like-a-lady? Oh well, how old is Miss Loretta these days anyway?
And if my country music heroine Tammy Wynette could have the bad taste to do that video “Justified And Ancient”, then I guess I can let Miss Loretta slide. My idea of pushing the envelope (in a good way, musically) in teaming old country/new country was kd lang with Kitty Wells, Loretta, and Brenda Lee on the “Honky Tonk Angels” medley.
I guess Tawny Kitaen is too old now to do back walkovers on car hoods, or we might *shudder* see Whitesnake doing as “country” album.
Please tell me Motley Crue hasn’t done a country song, or I’m going to just give up and go listen to math rock.
Melanie
December 11, 2015 @ 2:28 pm
More and more I respect Bobby Gentry for just leaving the limelight-just walking away at her creative peak-and refusing to let herself be found for all these decades, after leaving behind a solid body of work (there was a lot more to her than OTBJ). Google her-there’s not much to be found about her post-music private life, but I did learn that when she learned that a dancer and his partner from her Vegas show were about to lose their home from medical bills (this is when the AIDS crisis first came to attention and people were afraid to even be near a person with AIDS), she moved them into a guesthouse on her property, paid their bills, and nursed the guy until he passed. No matter what anyone thinks of her music (and I love every thing I’ve heard of hers), she’s something more than a classy music artist-she’s one classy human.
Kay_L
December 13, 2015 @ 12:28 pm
Check out the band 7Horse, it will restore your faith!
Kay_L
December 13, 2015 @ 12:31 pm
Also, check out an absolutely fab country style artist Jeanne Jolly from Raleigh. She should be singing at the Grand Ol Opry.