Oklahoma Songs, Artists, and Music - All About Oklahoma!

Ever since the earliest days of statehood, Oklahoma has always had a great wealth of musical talent. The wide ranging talent runs from such spiritual classics as D.A. Shaw's "I'll Fly Away" to the wildly popular Carrie Underwood and Garth Brooks. At other times in the history of the state, various places played host to many of the countries musical legends. Such greats as Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys graced Cain's Ballroom for years, while others such as Glenn Miller and Count Basie frequented places such as Taylor's Inn outside Poteau.

While music has changed, the same great legacies continue on. There is a great host of talent to be found all across the state, from the very talented Terry Joe Wiles to the world reknown Reba McEntire.

This list showcases some of the best of Oklahoma! Do you have others to add? Share them in the comment section below.

Music has always had a way of touching the soul and evoking strong feelings of emotion. These official Oklahoma songs do just that; from the great classic Oklahoma! by Rodgers and Hammerstein to the upbeat rock music of The Flaming Lips, these songs are sure to make you stand up straight, proud to be an Oklahoman.

• Official Oklahoma State song: Oklahoma!, Rodgers & Hammerstein (adopted in 1953)
• Official Oklahoma country and western song: Faded Love, Bob Wills/Billy Jack Wills (Adopted 1988)
• Official state children's song: Oklahoma, My Native Land, Martha Kemm Barrett (adopted in 1996)
• Official state folk song: Oklahoma Hills, Woody Guthrie/Jack Guthrie (adopted in 2001)
• Official state rock song: Do You Realize?, The Flaming Lips (adopted in 2009)
• Oklahoma's Centennial Song: Oklahoma Rising, music by Vince Gill and lyrics by Jimmy Webb

Oklahoma is a beautiful land full of mountainous peaks, rolling hills, endless plains, and rambling rivers. It is a land where one can get lost for days with nothing but the solitude of self for company. In many ways, this was where country music started. The first country music record was recorded in Oklahoma by Texan Eck Robertson and an Altus native, Henry C. Gilland. This was the 1922 classic fiddle piece titled “Arkansas Traveler”. Together, they spent the next several years moving about the region and promoting their music. This led to other major labels seeking similar artists. During the 1920s, the genre was dominated by string bands.

Following Robertson and Gilland, Jimmie Rodgers came on the scene. His style of music helped promote the use of vocals among the stringed instruments.

Some of the first to begin dressing in the “old west” style was Otto Gray and the Oklahoma Cowboys. This began the popularity of the “singing cowboys”, including Gene Autry and Roy Rogers.

From there, major bandleaders such as Bob Wills came on the scene. Caught up in the “big band era”, they combined country with swing, and became the fathers of Western Swing. By the 1930s and 40s, country was an established culture in American life. Although Oklahoma played a small role in its development, it can be considered an important role.

Many of the themes in these Oklahoma country songs represent the laid-back way of life that seems natural for the state, while others reflect on the tight bonds of family and friends.

• Does That Wind Still Blow In Oklahoma (Reba McEntire & Ronnie Dunn)
• Good Old Oklahoma (Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys)
• Okie from Muskogee (Merle Haggard)
• Oklahoma Borderline (Vince Gill)
• Oklahoma Rag (Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys)
• Oklahoma Sunshine (Waylon Jennings)
• Oklahoma Swing (Vince Gill with Reba McEntire)
• Take Me Back To Tulsa (Bob Wills and Tommy Duncan)
• Tell Me Something Bad About Tulsa (George Strait)
• You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma (David Frizzell & Shelly West)
• The Everlasting Hills of Oklahoma (Tim Spencer and the Sons of the Pioneers)
• For Oklahoma, I'm Yearning (Wava White/Jack Guthrie)
• Home In Oklahoma (Jack Elliott for Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers)
• The Gal From Oklahoma (Junior Brown)
• Home, Sweet Oklahoma (Tom Paxton)
• Loves In Oklahoma (Jason Eklund)
• My Oklahoma (Terrye Newkirk)
• Oklahoma Breakdown, Hosty Duo
• Oklahoma Girl (Eli Young Band)
• Soft Winds Of Oklahoma (Bill Emerson)
• The Everlasting Hills of Oklahoma (Susie Luchsinger)
• I Ain't In Checotah Anymore (Carrie Underwood)
• I'll Just Hold On (Blake Shelton)
• Oklahoma-Texas Line (Rascal Flatts)
• Oklahoma Breakdown (Stoney LaRue)
• I Need You (Tim McGraw/Faith Hill)
• Everywhere (Tim McGraw)
• Boys From Oklahoma (Cross Canadian Ragweed)
• Don't Let the Sun Set on You in Tulsa (Waylon Jennings)
• Don't Make Me Come to Tulsa (Wade Hayes)
• God's in Oklahoma Today (Justin McBride)
• I Heard Oklahoma Calling Me (David Allan Coe)
• Idabel Blues (Stoney LaRue)
• If I Ever Get Back to Oklahoma (Jason Boland & the Stragglers)
• Oklahoma Rising (Vince Gill)
• Oklahoma Wind (Billy Joe Shaver)
• In Oklahoma (Cross Canadian Ragweed)
• Oklahoma Breakdown (Stoney Larue)
• I Lost My Heart In Oklahoma (Kevin Fowler)
• Girl Who Danced Oklahoma (Terry Allan)
• God's in Oklahoma (Justin McBride)
• Boys from Oklahoma (Cross Canadian Ragweed)
• Oklahoma Shines (Mel McDaniel and Oklahoma Wind)
• Oklahoma Sweetheart Sally Ann (Maddox Brothers & Rose)
• Boy from Oklahoma (Willis Ramsey)
• By the Time I Get to Phoenix (Glen Campbell)

While country music does a good job of representing Oklahoma, the state is not without it's famous rock music. These Oklahoma rock songs carry the same message as the country music, but with a style that's geared more towards the upbeat city life of Tulsa or Oklahoma City.

• Tulsa Time (Don Williams)
• Never been to Spain (Three Dog Night)
• My Oklahoma Home (Originally a Folk Song by Sis Cunningham, later recorded by Pete Seeger and again released on a Seeger tribute CD by Bruce Springsteen)
• Rough Wind In Oklahoma (Michael Hedges)
• Tulsa (Rufus Wainwright)
• 24 Hours From Tulsa (Gene Pitney)
• Oklahoma (The Call)
• Endless Oklahoma Sky (John Moreland & the Black Gold Band)
• Home Sweet Oklahoma (Leon Russell)
• Oklahoma Breakdown (Stoney LaRue)
• If You're Ever in Oklahoma (J.J. Cale)
• California Okie (Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen)
• Oklahoma Stomp, (Duke Ellington - Jazz)

Oklahoma has had an impact on many styles of music, from big-band era jazz to modern country and rock. Many famous musicians and composers claim Oklahoma as home, as shown in this list below.

• Keith Anderson, Miami, Oklahoma
• Hoyt Axton, Duncan, Oklahoma
• Chet Baker, Yale, Oklahoma
• Louis W. Ballard (1931–2007), composer from Quapaw, Oklahoma
• Johnny Bond, Enville, Oklahoma
• Garth Brooks, Yukon, Oklahoma
• Anita Bryant, Barnsdall, Oklahoma
• J. J. Cale, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Richard (Moon) Calhoun, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Henson Cargill, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Kellie Coffey, Moore, Oklahoma
• Spade Cooley, Grand, Oklahoma
• Lloyd "Cowboy" Copas, Muskogee, Oklahoma
• Edgar Cruz, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Jesse Ed Davis, Norman, Oklahoma
• Joe Diffie, Velma, Oklahoma
• Katrina Elam, Bray, Oklahoma
• Kata Hay, Skiatook, Oklahoma
• Ty England, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• David Gates of Bread, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Vince Gill, Norman, Oklahoma
• Woody Guthrie, Okemah, Oklahoma
• Jack Guthrie, Olive, Oklahoma
• Lowell Fulson, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Roy Harris, Chandler, Oklahoma
• Wade Hayes, Bethel Acres, Oklahoma
• Lee Hazlewood, Mannford, Oklahoma
• Eric Himan, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Wanda Jackson, Maud, Oklahoma
• Travis McDaniel (singer-songwriter), Stillwater, Oklahoma
• Norma Jean (Beasler), Wellston, Oklahoma
• Toby Keith, Moore, Oklahoma
• Litefoot (b. 1969), rapper from Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Reba McEntire, McAlester, Oklahoma
• Barry McGuire, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Jay McShann, Muskogee, Oklahoma
• Gary P. Nunn, Okmulgee, Oklahoma
• Patti Page, Claremore, Oklahoma
• Sam Rivers, El Reno, Oklahoma
• Carl Radle, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Jimmy Rushing, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Leon Russell, Lawton, Oklahoma
• Scott Russell, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Blake Shelton, Ada, Oklahoma
• B. J. Thomas, Hugo, Oklahoma
• Dwight Twilley, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Jared Tyler, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Carrie Underwood, Checotah, Oklahoma
• Malvin Dino Vice, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Jimmy Webb, Elk City, Oklahoma
• Bryan White, Lawton, Oklahoma
• Charles Kent Wilson, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Robert Lynn Wilson, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Ronnie James Wilson, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Sheb Wooley, Erick, Oklahoma
• Larry Newsom, Ponca City, Oklahoma

Numerous bands have also gotten their start in Oklahoma, and also represent a wide variety of musical genre's.

• The All American Rejects, Stillwater, Oklahoma
• Aqueduct, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Chainsaw Kittens, Norman, Oklahoma
• Color Me Badd, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Colourmusic, Stillwater, Oklahoma
• Cozad Singers, Anadarko, Oklahoma
• Cross Canadian Ragweed, Stillwater, Oklahoma
• Ester Drang, Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
• Evangelicals, Norman, Oklahoma
• The Flaming Lips, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Hanson, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• The heartless moment, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Hinder, Norman, Oklahoma
• Gap Band, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Kings Of Leon, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• The Nixons, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Shiny Toy Guns, Shawnee, Oklahoma
• Starlight Mints, Norman, Oklahoma
• Umbrellas, Norman, Oklahoma