5 Country Rock Songs That Blurred The Line Between Nashville And LA

There are some songs that remind us that country and rock aren't all that far removed. Nashville is known across the United States as a hub of country music. Los Angeles, by contrast, is the home of the Sunset Strip and the feral devotees of hair metal. But those two worlds aren't all that different: both share stylistic roots in blues and American folk music, both are integral to contemporary culture, and both lionize the hedonic revelry of the common people. For that reason (and the fact that it will always feel good to shout "FREEBIRD!" between songs at any concert), we wanted to deep dive on some of the most banging country/rock crossovers.

So while the literal line between Nashville and LA is about 2,000 miles wide, the sonic split is wafer-thin. Whether it's the Eagles enjoying a glint of heavy metal or Metallica singing about regret in the country-inspired "Mama Said," we wanted to take a look at the songs that remind us that cowboys and headbangers are close-knit brethren. 

"Victim of Love" is the sound of a band throwing caution to the wind. There can be no doubt that the Eagles dominated the '70s with ease, and they did it with a sound that leaned heavily on easy-listening country tempered with a very precise hard rock edge. It's a sound that captures the attention of the mainstream masses and indulges their wild side just enough to feel hip without fully crossing over into the denim and leather world of heavy metal. 

The song's album, the almighty and unstoppable "Hotel California," flirts with hard rock stylings throughout, and "Life in the Fast Lane" (one of those songs that started out as a simple warm-up exercise) gets the closest of the rest of the lot. But "Victim of Love" sees the Eagles fully embrace the kind of lighters-in-the-air, throwing up the devil horns hard rock that the rest of the album only hints at. The song's main guitar riff stomps in tandem with the drums in that chunky groove that AC/DC, Slade, and the Sweet trafficked in throughout the '70s. It's enough to make the normally affable, good-natured band seem like the dangerous and foreboding bad boys they'd previously only hinted at being.

In conversation with Songfacts, guitarist Don Felder described the track's harder edge as an intentional move: "We were trying to move in a heavier direction, away from country rock." But despite that conscious move, the band never fully voids their country underpinnings. The snarling twang in the vocals and the genteel blues of the lead guitar work keep it moored to their Southern sound. It never stops feeling like cowboy rock; it just cranks the volume up to 11. 

"Mama Said" finds Metallica wholly removing themselves from their genre. Metallica's musical evolution — from underground thrash titans to progressive metal maestros to mainstream rockers — has long been among the most legendary controversies in the history of heavy metal. But what has often felt like a betrayal to thrash metal loyalists has yielded extraordinary results. A deep cut off of 1996's "Load," this country crossover ballad is a perfect example of metal's biggest band being willing to take extraordinary risks and come back bearing treasure.

While the lyrics paint a heartbreaking portrait of a man realizing too late that youthful rebellion cost him one of the most important relationships in his life, the song itself is notable for its stark departure from metal and wholly into the country genre. The album and its sequel, 1997's "Reload," are a conscious foray into hard rock infused with country and blues. As such, it makes sense to fully step into country waters at least once. Singer James Hetfiled's rugged everyman baritone voice handles the subject matter and tonal shift effortlessly, and the rest of the band is along for the understated ride. 

"Stand" is a soulful attempt at rock evolution. Poison's Brett Michaels has always had a country boy flair, as "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" made abundantly clear, but 1993's "Native Tongue" finds the band wholly embracing the hard rock country mindset. With Nirvana and grunge dominating the early '90s musical landscape, '80s mainstays found themselves grappling for relevance. The successful ones (Bon Jovi, Metallica, Ozzy) held on by maturing, reinventing themselves as metal's elder statesmen.

"Native Tongue" was Poison's bid for such status, and while it didn't attain the same critical or commercial success, their gambit to return as Southern hard rock adults has some notable high points. "Stand," which goes all-in on the country power ballad with mandolins and lush gospel choir, is an endlessly listenable plea for all of us to speak truth to power. The band that had gone to such great lengths to inform us that they needed nothing but a good time seems like the last ones to make a socially conscious anthem, but "Stand" sees them realize it in grand fashion. 

"You're No Good" finds Linda Ronstadt letting us know that we're no good in uncertain terms, and her bellowing delivery of the chorus leaves us no choice but to agree. Her all-time biggest hit, the track clocked an impressive No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and helped propel the album "Heart Like a Wheel" to the top slot on the Billboard 200.

That astronomical success is borne out of a song that leans into earthy, country folk set pieces without abandoning the steady, Motown-inspired groove that undergirded so much mid-'70s pop. That righteous blend is delivered courtesy of crackerjack studio talent worthy of one of the top pop divas of the decade. There's enough Southern grit in the larger arrangements to satisfy country purists and Rondstat's own background as a backup singer for Neil Young shines through in a sonic world that is as polished and pristine as it is rootsy and relatable. 

Although many would argue that LA band Megadeth lost the plot chasing a new sound with 1999's "Risk," the album did feature an admirable degree of stylistic experimentation from a band that could have just as easily (and perhaps more advisedly) rested on its laurels as '80s thrash pioneers. But while stagnant sales and critical dismissal have tarnished the album's reputation, tracks like the country-tinged "Wanderlust" are remarkable for their ability to grind a sharp '80s metal edge into the stylistic pastiche of other genres. 

Produced by Nashville legend Dan Huff, the track opens with a dense, grinding distorted guitar set against the ominous pulse of a single kick drum. It feels like a setup for some sort of foray into doom metal until the chorus kicks in like a spurred cowboy boot against saloon doors. The lyrics lean into predictable but satisfying illustrations of a lone maverick living a romanticized life of gun fights and solitary travels. 

It's just the right amount of familiar blended in with the avant-garde. It may not have made much of a splash upon its release, but appreciation of the track's many country overdubs is enhanced on the 2004 remaster release where expanded stereo panning allows for the larger ensemble to shine.