What's Not to Love in Country Music?

One interesting thing we have learned is that the French seem to love American music… of all types. One can hear English music on nearly every radio station. While walking downtown at the Albertville music festival, I listened in on 6 or 7 separate mini-concerts and didn’t hear one word of French. (A few others said they heard French later in the night, though.) Two of the stages actually had American country songs along with line dancing, cowboy hats and boots, and American flags flying. Although the French like the sounds and beats, they aren’t always familiar with the meaning of the words being sung.

One of my classmates and his wife, Jeremy and Erin Venable, are country music singers/songwriters by profession. They were huge blessings to us at the school, leading worship multiple times. Class devotions seemed much deeper if Jeremy brought his guitar and we worshiped God together at the end. Outside of our French classes, though, they were invited to perform at a local café for their American week, and finally, at a local school at their year-end outdoor program/celebration. One of the most memorable experiences for Jeremy happened at this school performance.

As the Venables were getting set up, they realized that they needed an opening song to check the sound. On the spur of the moment, they decided to sing, “Nothin’ but the blood” as a family, mainly because it was well-known by their family and had beautiful harmony. It was just the sound check, but the crowd really got into it. As laïque (secular) as the schools are in France, it was an incredible moment of spontaneity.  They were really digging the song. In fact, front and center was a wonderful muslim mom in her hijab, videoing the performance with her Iphone held high and swaying back and forth as they sang, “Oh precious is the flow, that makes me white as snow…. Nothing but the blood of Jesus.” My classmate said it was such a powerful moment that it sent shivers up his spine; a little interjection of spirituality in such a secular space.