Let's get this party started

Welcome everybody and welcome to Urban Cowboy. First of all let me thank my friend Brett, a talented young graphic designer, for his help in creating this blog. The text and background design that surround this text is his doing and, as I'm sure you agree, looks really great. Thanks for all your help buddy!

Now, I'd like to formally welcome everyone to Urban Cowboy, what I hope will become an outlet for a different perspective on country music. First, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Mike, I'm a 22 year old paralegal, living and working in the Big Apple. It really is a great time to be living in New York City -- Manhattan has so much to offer for someone in their twenties. Everything, that is, except for a country music fix. You see, I've been a country music aficionado for as long as I can remember. Growing up in Alabama, its really not out of the ordinary. But I grew up in Scarsdale -- about as white-collar and Jewish as a town can come. Not exactly country music central. In fact, we didn't (and still don't) even have a country music radio station. So when I say my appreciation of country music was seen as unique, I mean it.

But that's not to say that New York is lacking a distinct, country persona. In fact, believe it or not, New York City is the biggest country music market in the United States. So why is it then that I can find about 2 bars in Manhattan that label themselves "honkytonks" and finding a live country performance is about as easy as finding a lunch in midtown for under $10? There's no reason it has to be this way, and that's where Urban Cowboy comes in. It's a forum for discussion, a podium from which I can preach about the positives and negatives of the country music industry, and ultimately, an outlet for a northern voice on a largely southern tradition. That's one thing I'd like to be a running theme throughout this blog. Country music is not distinctly southern -- the emotional themes in the music are ones we can all relate to. Listen to "Songs About Me" by Trace Adkins and you'll get the point. Anyway, my hope is that we have some guest writers, recurring segments, interesting posts, truthful and insightful song and album reviews, and interesting topics of discussion. I'm not going to guarantee that this blog follows any set pattern as to its format but we'll see where it goes. And if you some how came across this searching for a 1980 flick starring John Travolta, tell your friends about us -- Urban Cowboy -- serving up country to big apple. Starting......now.