Three Chords and the Truth
I posted this about six years ago as a Facebook “Note,” which is something Facebook disabled shortly after. They apparently decided that long-form text didn’t create enough “engagement.” I thought it was worth reposting here.
Three Chords and the Truth
“Three Chords and the Truth” is a phrase first attributed to country music songwriter Harlan Howard in the nineteen fifties. I has since been spoken by many others, and is now the title of a new album by Van Morrison. Originally, it was the answer to the question “What is country music?”
I have been playing guitar and singing off-and-on since the early nineteen sixties, when at age sixteen I bought my first guitar, a used Stella (aka “finger bleeder”) for $5 from someone at the Apex Book Store in Santa Rosa, California. Shortly thereafter I was brave enough to get up on stage (not really a stage, just a corner with a microphone) at the Apex and sing the old folk song “Careless Love,” which, coincidentally or not, had just three chords. (I still play it occasionally, but I now use about five chords.)
I have never considered myself a musician, but someone blessed with a reasonably pleasant voice that could play well enough to accompany myself on guitar. The songs I’ve mostly played have been of the “folk” genre, but most of them technically weren’t folk songs, they were songs written by singer-songwriters who grew out of the the folk revival of the sixties. This has included people like Bob Dylan, Eric Anderson, Hoyt Axton, Tom Paxton, and others. These were songs that said something to me. In other words, they all spoke a certain kind of truth that I and others could relate to.
I never thought of myself a “country” singer, but more and more I find myself being drawn to classic country music, which has the same roots as the music we call folk music. The best country music, like the best music of every genre, is not written to fill a niche, or to sound like all the other music that is popular at a given time. It is written by people who have something to say about life and the human condition. The best of country music tells stories that at some level most or all of us can relate to. It is also music that people other than the songwriter want to hear and, especially, want to play.
Country music has found its way into many other genres as well. Country singer-songwriter Don Gibson’s “I Can’t Stop Loving You” was one of Ray Charles’ biggest hits.* Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” is the song that made Whitney Houston’s singing career. Jazz vocalist and musician Mose Allison recorded a great rendition of Hank Williams’ “Hey, Good Lookin’.” In other words, the best of country music speaks to everyone. It truly is “three chords and the truth,” even when there is an extra chord or two thrown in.
Ken Burns’ sixteen-and-a-half hour PBS series really brought this home, and although one could quibble over issues like who was included and who wasn’t, or if there was too much narration and not enough music, as a story of the origins and history of the music I personally think he did an excellent job. For me, it has helped me focus on what I want out of the music I sing and play, and ultimately it comes down to those five words--three chords and the truth, even when a few extra chords are thrown in.
* Charles also recorded Hank Williams’ “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” along with other country songs When asked why he liked country music, he said it was because of the stories.