Ever since country music was recorded commercially for the first time more than 100 years ago, it’s recycled the past.
In its earliest incarnations, it was referred to by such terms as “old-time” music or “old familiar tunes,” owing to its nostalgic value at a time when the world was changing fast. With each successive generation, what passes as nostalgia changes, and that necessarily influences the sound of country. The traditional pop of the 1940s and ‘50s had an impact on the smooth Nashville Sound of the mid 1960s, early rock ‘n’ roll could be felt in the textures and remakes of country’s early ‘70s, Eagles shaped much of ‘90s country, and 21st-century pop acts — including Creed and Justin Bieber — have been cited as inspirations for several current performers.
With Graham Barham’s “Breakup (Down),” the nostalgia breaks a new chronological barrier, interpolating Jay Sean’s 2009 dance-pop single “Down,” which originally featured a rap by Lil Wayne. Barham has received some heat for the song online — it’s not like he’s reverently covering a Willie Nelson classic — but “Down” is, for a 27-year-old like Barham, nostalgic. He remembers grinding to it as a teen.
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