Chicago and country music – who knew?
This summer, the University of Chicago Press published a book I wrote with “country music” in the title. Inevitably that led to people asking me at book events how I got into country music, especially since I grew up in Oak Park, a place where people speak with no discernable twang.The answer is within the pages of my book. Chicago played a significant role in the pioneering days of country music, even before the music had the designation. In the 1920s, music played with stringed instruments was sometimes classified as just that: “With guitar accompaniment.” Otherwise, performers who s...