A few years back, a broadway production claimed to modernize a revival of Oklahoma with a more fitting Americana sound and grit. Naturally, Kaitlin Butts went to see the musical she’s so fond of when it came to Tennessee on tour. She wasn’t a fan.
“I was excited to see how they modernized it, I was excited to see how they include a non-binary person and a person in wheelchair, but I was so disappointed,” Butts said. “They didn’t change the script at all but they were wearing graphic t-shirts. They were husking corn and spewing beer onto the audience. I felt like they were mocking it.”
“Roadrunner” is her own attempt at reimagining Oklahoma, this time with mostly original songs and a truly country sound with a few cinematic touches of rock and, yes, musical theater. The result for Butts is a classic that includes gorgeous romantic duets, a strong and slightly dangerous female perspective, and perfectly placed Kesha cover that ties it all together with profanity, threats, and unbelievable charm. More than anything else, Butts succeeds at imagining a country sound that trades in pop impurities for more natural influences and character driven story telling.
Roadrunner is my pick for album of the year and should serve as a roadmap on how to update some of the richest sources of material in American culture without losing anything by adding a feisty new perspective.
“Come Rest Your Head (On My Pillow)” should be considered a new country standard. The bonafides are absolutely there. The song rests on a foundation of fiddle and steel guitar with just a hint of more modern instruments. While Vince Gill provides the backing vocals, Butts carries the song with a performance that’s beckoning and just a little sad. Butts explained she intended the song for her husband, but wrote the lyrics to be open to interpretation; the song works just as well as an invitation to a “midnight flavor piece.”
Getting Vince Gill to contribute to the magic and give it his stamp of approval was the result of a magical night at the Opry. Though she didn’t notice as it was happening, Gill was on the side of the stage watching Butts’ performance closely. Afterward, he introduced himself and offered a hug. The fact that she secured such an impressive duet partner and fan still stuns Butts.
“It’s weird to say, but I opened my Spotify Wrapped to see that song was one of my top songs,” Butts admitted. “I listen to it so often because hearing his voice on it catches me off guard every time. Just to remind myself that I had Vince Gill sing on one of my songs. That’s not real. That’s a hallucination.”
Yet most of the magic of Roadrunner comes from songs that don’t sound like country classics. A cover of “Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” encapsulates Butts’ rock influences in a way that makes it sound like it’s playing at an arena or on the big screen. “Other Girls (Ain’t Havin’ Any Fun)” sees Butts arguing that she’s better off going after what she wants in a way that might not be considered lady like.
“There’s nothing I’ve ever gotten in my life that I haven’t charged for myself,” Butts said. “That sometimes includes men or job opportunities. I think if you go after what you want, you control your own destiny.”
Tracks like “Hunt You Down” and “If I Can’t Have You” show a more dangerous side of Butts. Nothing shows that this update of “Oklahoma” has a thoroughly modern attitude than Butts declaring “If you fuck around, boy I’ll hunt you down.” The words were penned by none other than Kesha but sound more like a country song than you’d believe if you’ve only heard her hits. Butts said her lyrics about murder may not come from experience, but they’re a healthy expression of her genuine thoughts.
“The best way for me to get anger out is for me to write a song about it,” Butts said. “Then I get to profit off it. I’m gonna let God sort it out, because if I sort it out, I’m going to jail.”
“It’s the most fun thing that I can imagine to do is to just be passive aggressive in a sweet, southern way,” Butts added of her character’s tendency to have edge even when she wasn’t threatening murder. “You can say things delicately, but with a sword.”
The final element that makes Roadrunner so uniquely charming is the way Butts mastered the spoken word. Whether it’s her snarky asides on “You Ain’t Gotta Die (To Be Dead To Me)” or the genuinely laugh out loud “Baby, I love you so much, don’t make me kill you” on “Hunt You Down,” Butts makes it clear she’s mastered the acting part of musical theater. She mostly uses her spoken lines for humor and making her characters feel more authentically sweet but tough, and it’s just one more reason that a musical makes for an amazing country album.
“The humor is what I have always loved about theater and the story telling,” Butts said. “It’s such a weird comparison, but country music — they have so much in common. The way they express a sad song in a dramatic way. I definitely draw from musical theater when it comes to expressing that cheekiness.”
The album closes with a song called Elsa, much like Oklahoma features a conversation with an older woman towards the end of its script. The story behind Elsa comes from actual experiences Butts had singing country classics at nursing homes.
“Whenever I would play old, classic country songs, their eyes would light up,” Butts said. “There would be people who weren’t quite necessarily in the room with us and they would wake up. It was so incredible to see that and how powerful music is.”
Other tracks are worth mentioning on their own merits. “Spur” reminds us that people do better being respected and having self agency, especially in relationships. “Wild Juanita’s Cactus Juice” is full of fun alliteration and the sort of half-spoken singing that every musical needs. “Followed You To Vegas” is a shockingly sweet and tender happily ever after song. And “People Will Say We’re In Love,” the lone song from the original musical to make it onto the album, is sweet as ever with touches of folk.
If Oklahoma! was a romantic vision of what’s possible in the American West, Roadrunner is a charming vision of what Western music could look like borrowing the right touches of modern attitude and sound. Butts has produced great music before this, but she gains something extra from the winking relationship a musical has with its audience and the way 17 tracks allows her to expand the narrative and development of her characters. Roadrunner is a reminder that the mere presence of graphic tees or underrepresented characters doesn’t make for a modern story. Shifting perspective to a unique and independent woman with agency and confidence, however, makes for a beautiful work of art that both honors the spirit of the original and upends the norms of 50s culture. And not a single person needs to be drenched in beer.
Above is the full episode as aired on WUSB’s Country Pocket, including both my interview with Kaitlin Butts and the songs we discussed, starting with Other Girls (Aren’t Having Any Fun), which feels a little more school of rock than broadway musical. The interview begins with the second video in the playlist. You can hear the show live every Tuesday at 12pm on WUSB 90.1 FM or check the blog to watch it as a YouTube playlist. Visit http://www.WUSB.fm and https://www.kaitlinbutts.com for more.
Country Pocket 