Including original interviews with: Big & Rich Bobby Braddock Brooks & Dunn Rosanne Cash Mark Chesnutt Rodney Crowell Charlie Daniels the Dixie Chicks Drive-by Truckers Steve Earle Sara Evans Nanci Griffith Merle Haggard Marcus Hummon Alan Jackson Toby Keith Kris Kristofferson Loretta Lynn Raul Malo Tim McGraw James McMurtry Buddy Miller Allison Moorer Craig Morgan Willie Nelson Joe Nichols Bruce Robison Linda Ronstadt SheDaisy Ricky Skaggs Todd Snider Travis Tritt Gretchen Wilson Lee Ann Womack Chely Wright Adrienne Young  On the eve of America's invasion of Iraq, the Dixie Chicks went from being the leading lights of country music to heartland pariahs almost overnight, thanks to one Bush-bashing aside on a London stage. A year later, the list of entertainers stumping for the president’s reelection consisted almost exclusively of country stars such as Brooks & Dunn, Lee Ann Womack, and Travis Tritt. Post-9/11 ballads like Toby Keith’s "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue" and Darryl Worley’s "Have You Forgotten?" were taken up as rallying anthems by a nation at war. Had country always been as politicized—and almost unilaterally conservative—as it was suddenly made to appear? REDNECKS & BLUENECKS: THE POLITICS OF COUNTRY MUSIC, a provocative new book from Entertainment Weekly senior writer Chris Willman, looks at America’s culture war through the prism of country artists, executives, and fans. The reality, Willman finds, is complex. On Music Row, there are at least as many outspoken execs who are liberal Democrats as there are candid conservatives. The artist and songwriter communities also have their share of those who lean left, though many of them don’t feel at liberty to declare their politics in a post-Chicks-bashing climate. But it’s undeniable that the genre emphasizes the traditional domestic values and patriotism more popularly associated these days with the right—which may make it less the marginalized, regionally specific genre it first appeared as than, arguably, early 21st century America’s most mainstream music. But what of Steve Earle souls trapped in Toby Keith counties? For anyone in the heartland who feels left behind by country’s conservative tilt, there’s a refuge for the loyal opposition in the form of alternative country, which is "alt" not just in its stylistic variations but, more often than not, its politics. Artists who fall under the alt-country—or Americana—banner like Earle, Nanci Griffith, Rodney Crowell, Drive-by Truckers, and James McMurtry are often more vociferous in their anti-Bush or antiwar statements than their counterparts in the rock and hip-hop worlds. With all these different viewpoints represented, REDNECKS & BLUENECKS contends that country and its offshoots really represent the one strain of popular American entertainment where both sides of a passionate political debate are being argued…on and off the record.
STEPHEN KING:
"Chris Willman's Rednecks & Bluenecks is an entertaining and informative overview of the country music scene in the 21st century. It also proves conclusively that American country music is really American folk music: a mirror of interesting (and troubled) times. You won't read a better book about American music this year--or, probably, a better one about American political thought."
 
CAMERON CROWE:
“Fast, fun and skillfully reported, Rednecks & Bluenecks jumps into the breach of the political battle that fuels America's musical heartland. It's a surprising page turner, full of great fly-on-the-wall scene-setting and lively interviews...”
 
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE:
“Fascinating and funny...”
 
SPIN magazine:
“Could George Will and George Jones be each other’s ideal drinking buddies? After reading this intelligent chronicle of the Nashville scene’s politics around the 2004 election, you’d think the two would go together like yee and haw. A-”
 
AMERICAN SONGWRITER:
“The interviews are revealing, especially those with artists as articulate as Toby Keith, Natalie Maines, Ronnie Dunn, and Steve Earle. Yet it takes perspective to put their opinions into context, which Willman lays out insightfully and often with a humorous twist.”
 
LATIMES.COM:
“Illuminating writing — as clear and joy-inducing as Allegheny Mountains moonshine.” (Tom O’Neil)
       REDNECKS & BLUENECKS:
THE POLITICS OF COUNTRY MUSIC
 
NPR’S “FRESH AIR”:
“The best music book I read this year.” (Ken Tucker)
 
MOJO magazine:
“Four stars... Informed, entertaining attempt at untangling party allegiances in C&W… A fine report from the trenches.”
 
HARP magazine:
“By peeling away readers’ preconceptions and challenging us to understand why certain people talk and act the way they do, Willman’s actually engaging in politics himself—the politics of inclusion. Armed with a wealth of interviews and an easygoing, offhanded prose style... he’s delivered the most entertaining book I’ve read in ages.”
 
LOS ANGELES TIMES:
“As Chris Willman explains in his fine book on country music politics, Nashville’s Bush supporters—and rebel voices like Steve Earle and Merle Haggard—were well ahead of the curve when it came to offering visceral opinions of current events.” (Ann Powers)
 
THE AMERICAN SPECTATOR:
“Plucky...”
 
MOTHER JONES:
“Sharp yet dishy...”
 
ED BENSON (executive director,
Country Music Association):
"Chris Willman’s insightful journey through country music and politics is so much fun. Whether you lean left or right, there are great stories, and you’ll better understand why people are so passionate about the music. Feel free to hum along as you read."
 
 
 
 
 
 
On the eve of America's invasion of Iraq, the Dixie Chicks went from being the leading lights of country music to heartland pariahs almost overnight, thanks to one Bush-bashing aside on a London stage. A year later, the list of entertainers stumping for the president’s reelection consisted almost exclusively of country stars such as Brooks & Dunn, Lee Ann Womack, and Travis Tritt. Post-9/11 ballads like Toby Keith’s "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue" and Darryl Worley’s "Have You Forgotten?" were taken up as rallying anthems by a nation at war. Had country always been as politicized—and almost unilaterally conservative—as it was suddenly made to appear?
 
Rednecks & Bluenecks: The Politics of Country Music, a provocative new book from Entertainment Weekly senior writer Chris Willman, looks at America’s culture war through the prism of country artists, executives, and fans. The reality turns out to be somewhat more complex than the image usually painted in mainstream media coverage of country. On Music Row, there are at least as many outspoken execs who are liberal Democrats as there are candid conservatives. The artist and songwriter communities also have their share of those who lean left. But it’s undeniable that the genre emphasizes the traditional domestic values and patriotism more popularly associated these days with the right—which may make it less the marginalized, regionally specific genre it first appeared as than, arguably, early 21st century America’s most mainstream music.
 
And what of Steve Earle souls trapped in Toby Keith count On the eve of America's invasion of Iraq, ies? For anyone in the heartland who feels left behind by country’s conservative tilt, there’s a refuge for the loyal opposition in the form of alternative country, which is "alt" not just in its stylistic variations but, more often than not, its politics. Artists who fall under the alt-country—or Americana—banner like Earle, Nanci Griffith, Rodney Crowell, Drive-by Truckers, and James McMurtry are often more vociferous in their anti-Bush or antiwar statements than their counterparts in the rock and hip-hop worlds.
 
With all these different viewpoints represented, Rednecks & Bluenecks contends that country and its offshoots really represent the one strain of popular American entertainment where both sides of a passionate political debate are being argued…on and off the record.