White Soul examines the social, political and religious foundations of country music as the soul music of the white, working-class Americans. Country music gives voice to an economically battered subculture of hard-living and hard-working people who find self-expression in the music of honky-tonks and heartaches. It celebrates the 'wild side of life' as a form of populist anarchism and escapist festivity. This unusual medley of sociology, theology, and country music history is also a compelling critique of the elitism of 'good taste' in the dominant culture. Tex Sample challenges the church to reach out to working-class people, who have often been ignored and demeaned by churches held captive to the tastes and lifestyles of the upper middle class.
