Since I was in 7th grade, I have had a strong attachment to Texas Country/Red Dirt music. I say it is a result of growing up with a combination of country music in the 90s and my parents classic rock. When I was at the age where most of my friends were obsessed with Britney Spears and the Spice Girls, I knew every word to my daddy's ZZ Top 'Fandango' cassette tape.
Since I began this music obsession, people like Pat Green, Randy Rogers and Stony LaRue were early favorites and since then I have been hooked and have continued to dig deeper into the genre of music. My favorite band of all time is without a doubt Cross Canadian Ragweed. Their music covers such a broad array of genres, from blues and honky-tonk to straight rock n' roll.
My world was rocked the day I saw my first Ragweed concert. I was a freshman in high school and went with my parents, sister, and cool, older cousin who had seen them live many times before. Every concert I'd been to before had been in some sort of coliseum where you have to sit down and behave and they were all so commercial and "Nashville," which is something I have grown to hate.
This concert was different. Everyone was wild, uninhibited and just rocking out. I was mesmerized by Cody Canada as I stood there among hundreds of drunk college students in the street of the Depot District of Lubbock, not quite understanding how important that moment was to the rest of my life. I climbed up on my daddy's shoulders for "Boy's From Oklahoma," a highly inappropriate song for a 14-year-old girl, but we didn't care. I was living in the now and soaking in every weed and beer scented moment while I could.
Me on my Daddy's shoulders.
I saw them again about a year and a half later and my world was rocked again. My favorite band would always and forever be Ragweed. They have brought me through happy times, sad times, wild times, fun times and everything in between. No matter what mood I am in, there is a Ragweed song to fit the bill. If I'm on a roadtrip with my friends, it's 42 Miles to Go and Nowhere, Texas. If I'm pissed off and/or driving, it's Stranglehold and Hammer Down. No matter what I'm feeling, there's a song for it.
Last summer, I went to the river with some friends from around College Station who were much more exposed to the scene than me in my small West Texas town. One of them told me that my favorite band in the entire world was breaking up.
I cried.
I never cry. But I cried then. Which was the first time in nearly a year. (Which could have had a thing or two to do with my alcohol intake earlier in the day.) I seriously cried.
Since then, I have been on MANY Ragweed binges, listening to nothing but my favorite band for days at a time. Not that this was unusual, but these times, it was more of a ritual than anything. I recently learned that the lead singer, Cody Canada is starting up a new band with another member of the band, bass player Jeremy Plato and Seth James. Cody Canada and the Departed.
*Insert birds singing and happiness*
Anyway, here is a link to my NEW favorite band. I can NOT wait to see them live SOON!
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