Some country stations are pulling Little Big Town's "Girl Crush" off of the air

"My Girl Bill" is actually a song about the importance of commas.

 

This is the way people feel. I heard this kind of crap all the time, the summer i worked in a trucking garage. Middle America is still back in the middle ages.

 

I think they knew exactly what they were doing here.

 

And of course, it would be equally acceptable if it were about a girl with a crush on a girl. But it's not -- it's about fixating obsessively on "the other person" that your partner dumped you for (or met after dumping you), which I think is a very cool way of addressing how wretched and pathetic loss and jealousy can make someone. Because a lot of people have experienced that very thing at one time or another: being totally unable to stop torturing ourselves by envisioning images like the ones in the song, rather than just straightforwardly missing the person who's gone, which is still unpleasant but so much less masochistic. And yes, it throws in some snickery innuendo along the way, big woo.

 

I've read in places that "My Girl Bill" was banned on some stations. This was also mentioned by the late, great DJ Joe Donovan who used to play it as part of his overnight oldies show on WHAS-AM 740.

On top of that, I grew up listening to Top 40 on WABC in NYC and never heard it once -- and they used to play "Spiders and Snakes," "Funny Face" and various other country tunes like crazy, so someone must not have liked it there. Anyway, my point is this has some historical precedent. But you wonder about people who want music banned. I hope they're also not watching cable or playing video games, because much of that makes "Girl Crush" seem like "Puppy Love" by comparison.

 

Why is this surprising? Are you people not paying attention to what is going on in the world around you? The stupid people are winning...because the smart folks don't take them seriously enough..

 

I was greatly offended....by how boring the song is!

 

What's ridiculous is that if every country station in town played the song, the listeners would have NO CHOICE but to listen to the radio stations, because where else they gonna go for truck songs?

 

Great point! Just remember, this stuff is nowhere in the league of Conway.

 

It can be taken both ways, both as a song of jealousy and a song of desire, it depends on how you want to hear it. I think they knew that going in, and chose to go with it. The real controversy is that there are still morons out there with an antiquated mindset who just won't admit the world has changed. And it ain't going back.

 

Oh yeah its on them. Country radio turned on the Chicks in a heartbeat. I NEVER drink Lipton anymore as they were cowardly, and I DEFY any anti Chicks country fan to justify MURDER threats over being 100% in the right about their comments. That few country artists stood by the Chicks, and some even seemed to enjoy piling on(Toby Keith) makes me flat out ill.
The Chicks last album was selling to people who were not country fans. It could have just as easily been a number one folk album.
As to why they stopped, having kids was a big thing. And who would play their records on the air? Country Radio? Be serious. That order did not come from call in complaints, it was top down by the station and network owners within 24 hours.

Ralph, have you ever seen "Shut Up And Sing"?

 

No. What is it?

 

I don't even think it was ever the way they think it was!

 

I'm not a fan of new "country", but this is a very well-written song and it approaches relationships and jealousy with an ironic twist I've never heard in a song before. As for stations banning the song because of the angry phone calls they get, I think that actually says more about the listeners than about the stations. On a different note, it's only the singer's vocal delivery that makes the song even remotely country. Had it been sung by Kelly Clarkson, it would be considered pop. If it were sung by Aretha Franklin, it would be considered soul. The instrumental track could remain the same.

 

To some country fans, songs about drinking, cheating and even killing (Folsom Prison Blues) are a-ok, but homosexuality is over the line. And that even isn't what the song is about. The same small-minded people offended over this song probably think "Born In The USA" is a flag-waving anthem.

 

The ironic part is the people that are against it have now made the song bigger than it ever would have been without their efforts to suppress it. So great work guys, now this song will get to more people and infect their ears with "the gay" more than ever because of your decision to make an issue out of it. Real bunch of winners.

 

Dixie Chicks doc about the Bush comment controversy.

God forbid popular country express real emotions by actual human beings again. Just keep on bringing Jesus and badonkadonk.

 

JESUS look at them. I'm a fan without hearing a note.

 

Sad at best for our (human) race, that a few morons and their selective bigotry again, is even news worthy at all...

 

Listen to Girl In a Country Song, Daily Buzzherd.

 

I think they're losing big but yelling the loudest on their way out of history.

 

It started out as a documentary of their recording an album and the embarking on their biggest tour yet, Top Of The World with sponsorship by Lipton Ice Tea. It ended up as a documentary about them dealing with death threats, radio stations refusing to run their records and pulling sponsorship of their concerts. This resulted in cancelling shows and the collapse of the tour. I'm pretty sure the Chicks have not performed since the Vote For Change concerts in 04.

 

Interesting, country hip-hop. Funny video. Yep, they're right.
Things are worse. It's just a slide down in a genre that by far
sings from the guy's point of view. As always, the industry baits
by image then wonders what the fuss is about. Suffragettes in
spanish leather.

As far "Girl Crush", it's like the Teletubbies / Tinky Winky contro.
They're looking for things that just aren't there. Mass hallucination.

 

I don't believe it was purely the comments about the "president' that did in the Dixie Chicks. I think as a poster above pointed out, the Chicks made disparaging remarks about other country artists--and country music fans in general. It was almost as if they were saying, "Thanks for buying our albums, but we really wish you were a cooler demographic. Oh, and by the way, we really hate the guy we know you hicks voted for..." And if I recall correctly, they did gain some new fans--among those who probably never payed attention to them before they discovered they agreed with their political beliefs. Besides, Kanye West never suffered commercially for his inane and mean-spirited comments about the same president. And just for kicks, look into what happened to the career of actress Stacy Dash who went off the reservation when she didn't support the "approved" presidential candidate in 2012. Or the flack that Dave Mustaine endured for the same thing.
It cuts both ways.
And about "Girl Crush?" I really don't believe very many country music fans have the vapors over the lyrics. This feels ginned up in order to cause a controversy and sell more music. I can't prove it, of course, but every few years someone jump starts their career by recording a song about "kissing a girl."
See No Doubt, Jill Sobule and Kate Perry. It's country music's turn now.