The Journal of Country Music
Vol. 21/No. 1
Country Music Foundation (1999),
3x year, $18/year
Country Song Roundup
Oct. 1999
ISSN 0011-0248 (1999), monthly,
$9.50/4 issues, $18/8 issues

The Journal of Country Music is published by the Country Music Hall of Fame, the premier country museum in the country. The issue reviewed included extensive and opinionated profiles/interviews with brother and sister country outlaws Steve and Stacey Earle, a Q&A style article with Bonnie Owens, and a selection of reviews and shorter pieces. Country Song Roundup is the granddaddy of pop country publications, marking a half century of business in 1999. The articles in CSR are shorter, and there's more attention paid current chart toppers than at JCM. However, Hazel Dickens and Greg Brown both come in for short features in the issue reviewed, and a Q&A with superstar Shania Twain reveals questions and answers that venture a bit beyond the familiar areas. Despite a few disconcerting typos (Emmylou Harris becomes Emily Lou, for example, and Trisha Yearwood is Tricia), CSR generally offers writing and a range of artist coverage a cut above its country pop neighbors, and, as the title would suggest, does include song lyrics and song-craft-focused articles as well. JCM has an informal an accessible style as well, and its niche is, as would be expected from its publisher, a bit more toward historical documentation and uncovering lesser known aspects of country music's past.
— Kerry Dexter (Tallahassee, FL)