The Boys Country Corner, Vol. IV / Plus, Kip and Richard Think About the Dictionary!

It turns out that not all country singers are men in cowboy hats. This week the boys examine Gretchen Wilson’s “Redneck Woman.”

Well I ain't never
Been the barbie doll type
No I can't swig that sweet champagne
I'd rather drink beer all night
In a tavern or in a honky tonk
Or on a 4 wheel drive tailgate
I've got posters on my wall of Skynyrd, Kid and Strait
Some people look down on me
But I don't give a rip
I'll stand barefooted in my own front yard with a baby on my hip

Cause I'm a redneck woman
And I ain't no high class broad
I'm just a product of my raisin'
And I say "hey y'all" and "Yee Haw"

Kip says: “I won’t lie. Feminism scares me. And I sense a somewhat feminist message in the early lines here, in the rejection of the “Barbie” stereotype. I know that many of my feminist colleagues get angry at the notion of Barbies, about how they enforce a ‘girly’ expectation from a very early age. But it’s just a doll, people! A very sexy doll!”

Richard says: “Many female country singers like the Dixie Chicks are seeking to overthrow the old ‘stand by your man’ sentiment of the Tanya Tucker days, but Wilson’s song doesn’t comfortably fit into that vein. Notice how she rejects the Barbie stereotype only to embrace the ‘barefoot and pregnant’ scenario a few lines later. No, this is mostly a simple celebration of the ‘country girl.’ I’ve known a few in my Southern days. We used to have a saying back in high-school in Romance: “if she drives a truck, she’ll fuck!’ Sometimes it was true.”

Kip says: “What I’m looking for is a girl who looks and dresses like she’s on her way to Quinton’s but also enjoys planting corn and going to tractor-pulls. But I haven’t found one yet.”

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This week the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary added this year’s crop of new words, including “infinity pool” and “air quotes.” Despite a year of intense efforts on Richard’s part, however, the word “bitchcakes” did not make the cut.

Richard says: “This shit is bitchcakes!”

Kip says: “Dude, I love using air quotes! (Sometimes I even use air parentheses!).”