When You're Hot, You're Hot

As the ‘70s progressed, the increasing presence of Country on the pop landscape broadened the very idea of what the music was. “Behind Closed Doors,” spoke to Country listeners via the whiskey smoke flavoring Charlie Rich's velvety voice, while Billy Sherrill's easy-listening, strings-and-piano production smoothed a path to a wider audience — the song scored Rich not only his first Country number-one despite decades in music, but a Grammy and a prominent place in the pop Top 40. Not quite a novelty song, Waylon Jennings's “Okie from Muskogee” nonetheless stood out from the crowd as a musical flashpoint that spoke directly to heartland values while remaining open to more liberal-minded interpretations. And on “Bloody Mary Morning,” Willie Nelson blended all the traditional trappings — Bluegrass banjo, steel-guitar twang, heartache and booze for breakfast — with behind-the-beat vocals and a jet-plane travelogue that updates the concoction into something undeniably modern.