The Difference Between Country Music and Country & Western Music
Country Cousins Crooning and Cowboys Around the Campfire
In the olden days, they were called conundrums. Now we call them head-scratchers, puzzles, quandaries, or — in somewhat Churchillesque fashion — enigmas. I like the Spanish word for them: rompecabezas (head breakers).
One that has kept me awake at night many a time and led to a perpetually confused expression on my face is: What is the difference between Country music and Country and Western music?
A somewhat similar stumper is, “What’s the difference between a Possum and an Opossum?” This vexing difficulty, though, is easily resolved when one realizes that Opossum is correctly spelled O’Possum, and thus it’s patently plain that an O’Possum is nothing more or less exotic than an Irish Possum.
But back to the case at hand, to wit: The Mystery of the Difference Between Country and Country and Western Music.
You cannot see me, but I am now doffing my hat and taking a bow, as I am about to reveal to all of you out there in Internetland the difference between these two related but distinct genres of music. Take a listen:
Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said about obscenity, “I know it when I see it.” Now, when asked about the difference between Country and Country Western music, you can say: “I know it when I hear it.”