New Traditional

As album sales slumped in the wake of the Urban Cowboy debacle of the early 1980s, Nashville record companies frantically searched for new inspiration. They found it in a spare, back-to-basics, Neo-Traditionalist sound that was the polar opposite of the glitzy showmanship of Kenny Rogers and Ronnie Milsap. Leading the charge of New Traditionalism was Texas cowboy George Strait, with sturdy songs like "Unwound" and "Amarillo by Morning." Country fans were thrilled with his Honky-Tonk sound, as they were with the music of John Anderson and bluegrass picker Ricky Skaggs. By the mid-'80s, a whole new crop of artists had arrived -- the Judds, Randy Travis, Steve Earle and Dwight Yoakam among them -- who further revitalized the stagnant industry. The rootsy tunes of these artists did much to influence future superstar singers like Clint Black and Garth Brooks, whose glitzy appeal is merged with traditional elements.