Zodiac Signs And Country Music
Or Why Saturn is the unofficial patron planet of Country (Part One)
Country music as a genre is famous for its doleful tones and stony acceptance of life at the coal-face of “Reality”. Relying heavily on a heart-wrenching descent into melancholia, Country excels in its capacity to describe woe exactly as it is.
A defining characteristic of the Country genre is its ability to confront pain, loss and loneliness in a matter-of-fact way, leaving little room for either sentiment or denial.
From an astrological perspective, such sardonic acceptance is characteristic of Saturn and its Cardinal Earth sign, Capricorn.
More than any other sign of the Zodiac, Capricorn expresses the wisdom that comes through suffering and the pragmatic approach to life earned first and foremost through the proverbial “School of Hard Knocks”
Such gritty – and at at times dark – realism has traditionally been Saturn’s domain. Many prominent country artists are born with either Capricorn or Saturn highlighted in their charts. A quick trawl through birth charts featured in The Country Hall of Fame reveals a plethora of Saturnine themes.
It takes no great leap of astrological insight to see that a prominent Saturn or good dose of planets in Capricorn is intrinsically linked to an artist’s ability to “tell it like it is”.
“Telling It Like it Is” – Saturn, The Zodiac’s Realest Planet
Country twangs with the ice-cold tinniness of love lost, limits met and hope denied.
Its’ playlist is stacked with tunes telling tales of sorrow, isolation and despair. Time and again, lyrics advocate resignation in the face of what “is”, rather than hiding behind a romantic fantasy of what “could be”.
In fact, Country’s crowning glory is its ability to tell honest stories, eschewing the frills, fuss and make-believe which can typify other musical styles for pure grit and frank revelations. Such tales are well suited to Saturn’s gloomy domain. It would seem the The Lord of Limits is right at home on a time-trodden Country road.
Just like Saturn, country songs offer a “like it or lump it” point of view. With Capricorn, there is often a matter of fact wit that pulls strength from self-deprecation to expose the foibles of life.
In order to master this kind of realism, a Country artist needs a certain stoicism, born of an ability to accept things for what they are, plus a homespun kind of wisdom earned through ups and downs.
Whilst not every Country luminary has a dominant Saturn in their chart (Pisces and Scorpio themes often feature too) there is definitely a kind of connection between strong Saturn placements and the sensibility of Country stars.
Dipping into the Country catalogue soon reveals a surprising number of artists with Saturn, Aquarius (Saturn’s other Zodiac sign) or Capricorn featured strongly in their charts.
Dolly, Tammy and Keeping it Real – Signs of a Country Kind Of Chart
Take the undisputed Queens of country – Dolly Parton and Tammy Wynette. Their charts make it clear that these are Saturnian kinds of girls.
Dolly Parton was born with her Sun in the last degree of Capricorn opposing Saturn in Cancer (chart below). What is more her Saturn is exactly conjunct a debilitated, retrograde Mars giving her first-hand experience of what it means to overcome hardship and obstacles.
An astrological signature for gritty determination, Saturn/Mars is known for achievement built on pragmatism and the ability to endure through hard times.
Parton famously penned one of the best selling singles of all times “I Will Always Love You”. Released in 1974, and then re-released in 1992 by Whitney Houston, this song has struck a chord with tens of millions owing to its fundamental acceptance of loss and limitation.
Acknowledging the personal flaws which can undermine relationships, the tune dissects with pragmatic exactitude a particular kind of romantic demise. As an ode to the bittersweet moment of parting, Parton faces up to the ending of this love affair with the frank admission – “We both know that I’m not what you need”.
Similarly Dolly’s smash hit of the 1980’s – “9 to 5” – struck a chord with employees all over the world, depicting as it does the humdrum necessity of working for a living, and the real world inequalities that exist between bosses and those who work for them. Indeed, nothing could be more Saturnian than the realness of hierarchy and the need to pay those bills.
Tammy Wynette was born with a Capricorn Moon, exactly sesquiquadrate Saturn. This combination points to a long-suffering acceptance. Many of her hits dealt with themes of loneliness, divorce, and the difficulties of relationship. Moon-Saturn aspects are notorious for generating a melancholic frame of mind, and often underscore feelings of isolation.
What could be more matter of fact than her biggest hit, Stand By Your Mind? Laying bare as it does the harsh realities of the marriage institution and social inequalities which uphold it STYM is stoicism at its best. Whilst on the surface the lyrics appear to advocate the pragmatic acceptance of gender based servitude, in the end Wynette calls it as it is finishing her dissection with the last line of the final verse stating “After all, he’s just a man”)
Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
Need more proof? Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard were also born with Capricorn rising as well as tight Moon-Saturn aspects. Haggard has Saturn semi-squaring the Moon whilst Nelson has an exact biquintile. Saturn tends to cast a gloomy shade over the Moon’s emotional frame. Hank Williams displays his Country pedigree with his Moon in close sextile to Saturn, which also squares his Ascendant and opposes the MC. These aspects, even when “minor”, are exact and so go a long way toward describing a “country kind of chart”.
Like his other Saturnian colleagues, Nelson has also made a huge career from the ability to “tell it like it is”. An amble through his back catalogue provides ample evidence of Saturn’s sombre tone.
One of Nelson’s biggest tunes was written in 1961 and immortalised by Patsy Cline. “Crazy” exemplifies the peculiar pain of love that is both lost and not returned. Describing the agony of loving someone when intrinsically the affair is doomed, Crazy is an all-time greatest Country hit owing to its bleak acceptance of despair.
Nelson’s 1980 hit – “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” is another prime example. Written by Sharon Vaughan but made famous by Nelson, the song spent only two weeks at number one in the Country charts, but has been re-recorded ever since.
Depicting cowboys as a kind of isolated anti-hero, Nelson immortalises them through his ability to relate to the cowboy myth showing us that being flawed is part of their pedigree. Nothing says Saturn like a penchant for loneliness, and MHHABC is the ultimate ode to this truth. “Cowboys are special with their own brand of misery, from being alone too long”.
More about astrology and Country Music (Part Two)
I grew up a-dreamin’ of bein’ a cowboy
And lovin’ the cowboy ways
Pursuin’ the life of my high-ridin’ heroes
I burned up my childhood days
I learned all the rules of a modern-day drifter
Don’t you hold on to nothin’ too long
Just take what you need from the ladies, then leave them
With the words of a sad country song
My heroes have always been cowboys
And they still are, it seems
Sadly, in search of, but one step in back of
Themselves and their slow-movin’ dreams
Cowboys are special with their own brand of misery
From bein’ alone too long
You could die from the cold in the arms of a nightman
Knowin’ well that your best days are gone
Pickin’ up hookers instead of my pen
I let the words of my youth fade away
Old worn-out saddles, and old worn-out memories
With no one and no place to stay
My heroes have always been cowboys
And they still are, it seems
Sadly, in search of, and one step in back of
Themselves and their slow-movin’ dreams
Sadly, in search of, and one step in back of
Themselves and their slow-movin’ dreams
Songwriters: S. Rice Sharon Vaughan. My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys lyrics © Jack And Bill Music Co., Universal Polygram International Publishing Inc, Universal – Polygram International Pub Inc, Universal-polygrm Intl Pub Obo Jack And Bill Music
The Major Astrology Influences For You in 2023
Part One of our 2023 overview looked at the influence of Pluto in Aquarius and the transit of Jupiter through a new cycle of the Zodiac. We also explored ways to manage your mental and physical wellbeing through tuning into the monthly rhythms of the lunar cycle.
Here we look more closely at Saturn’s influence and what Pluto in Aquarius might mean, plus a personal focus on your Saturn cycle based on your Rising Sign
Your major astrology influences for 2023
A New Jupiter Cycle Kicks Off – One of the bigger generational patterns to shift gear in 2023 is the journey of Jupiter through Aries and then Taurus. Because Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac, when Jupiter transits here (once every 12 years) we can think of it as the step up to the next level in an evolving cycle.
Total Lunar Eclipse November 2022
Damian Rocks
I’m a professional astrologer, coach, and Ayurvedic consultant, originally from Australia but now travelling the world. At Stars Like You, the focus is on happiness. We publish great astrology articles, as well as well-researched pieces on nutrition, wellness and Ayurveda drawn from years of clinical experience.
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