Introducion

The 60s began with soul music as the most important musical style, which includes the pure
soul divas and singers specializing in the new, R&B-gospel fusion.
It was in the last part of the decade that soul singer-sonwriters like Mavin Gaye invented
album-oriented soul, a style of popular soul music marked by a focus on LPs rather than singles
and the presence of socially conscious lyrics, and James Brown and his ever-evolving backing band
invent funk.
Modern music in the 60s was dominated by the Nashville sound until Merle Haggard
changed the national country sound to the Bakersfield sound. For a time, the Bakersfield sound was
the only homegrown music that could compete in sales against an influx of British bands; this was
called the British Invasion, and it sparked a new wave of music and social activism. Psychedelic
rock arose from this subculture, which opposed the Vietnam War and supported civil rights.

Country Music Nashville and Bakersfield Sounds

The predominant musical style during the decade was the Nashville Sound, the style had
first become popular in the late 50s, in response to the growing encroachment of rock and roll on
the country music, but saw its greatest moment in the 60s.
The country-pop style was also evident on the 1962 album Modern Sounds in Country and Western
Music, recorded by rhythm and blues and soul singer Ray Charles.
By the end of the decade, the Nashville Sound became more polished and streamlined, and became
known as "countrypolitan, a type of country music that resembles pop music, usually characterized
by orchestrated arrangements .
A newly emerging style, which also had its roots in the 50s but exploded in the mainstream during
the 60s, was the "Bakersfield sound." Instead of creating a sound similar to mainstream pop music,
the Bakersfield sound used honky tonk as its base and added electric instruments and a backbeat,
plus stylistic elements borrowed from rock and roll.
The most important artists of Nashville and Bakersfield sounds are Loretta Lynn She gained a total
of 4 number one albums, and 4 number one hit singles during the decade. Johnny Cash became one
of the most influential musicians of the 1960s (and eventually, 20th century). Dolly Parton, a native
of the Smoky Mountains town of Locust Ridge, Tennessee, gained national exposure on the
nationally syndicated program The Porter Wagoner Show. Her mountain-influenced, biographical
brand of country and her down-home personality won many fans, and her star power would only
begin to rise.