When Megan Moroney recently said "the Carter Family basically invented country music," Shaboozey gave a swift side-eye that sent country music Twitter into a spin. But while some saw his reaction as shade, others saw it as an invitation to look deeper.... into the forgotten figures, the cultural exchanges, and the truth that country music, like America itself, is a melting pot.
The Carter Family undeniably shaped what we now recognize as traditional country music. But the story doesn’t begin—or end—with them. In fact, some of their foundational sound owes a silent debt to a Black man named Lesley Riddle, a brilliant guitarist and field researcher whose influence was so profound, Johnny and June Carter Cash’s son, John Carter Cash, credits him with helping shape the Carter legacy.
“Lesley Riddle actually likely wrote a few of the Carter Family songs,” Cash posted. “‘Cannonball Blues’ most certainly being one of them.”
Riddle accompanied A.P. Carter on his journeys through the Appalachian South, collecting and preserving folk songs. While A.P. had an ear for lyrics, Lesley had a gift for melody. Together, they formed one of the earliest (and most overlooked) collaborations in music history—decades before this kind of working relationship was formalized by the industry with the advent of hitmakers like the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers.
And then there’s Maybelle Carter, A.P.’s sister-in-law, whose innovative “Carter Scratch” guitar picking revolutionized the instrument’s role in American music. Her style would go on to influence countless artists, from Johnny Cash to modern Americana acts. As John Carter Cash puts it, “Without her mastery there would not be country music as we know it.”
But Maybelle herself was influenced by more than Appalachian ballads. She studied Mexican mariachi guitarists and borrowed from musical traditions passed along by players like Lesley Riddle. So if we’re tracing the birth of country, we’re not talking about one origin story—we’re talking about many, braided together.
The Carter Family was essential and they weren’t alone. It takes a village.
As the debate swirls on social media, maybe it’s time we give credit where it’s long overdue. Lesley Riddle deserves his flowers. So does Maybelle Carter and the Carter family. So does every unsung picker, fiddler, and porch-singer who shaped this uniquely American sound.
So who really invented country music?
America.
"The Carter Family - Legends Of Old Time Country" by Brett Jordan is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
