Oh, they stopped playing country long ago, when the artists who couldn't make it in rock any longer switched over to country, and brought their rock/pop attitudes with them.
I think Garth Brooks started the whole downfall.
With all due respect to fans of *real* country musc, I always get a good laugh out of people who ooh and aah at the staging of country concerts by Garth Brooks, Shania Twain et al. They are using the same stages (round, etc.), lighting rigs, effects and video screens that rock acts used 20+ years ago. Brooks has even acknolwedged his debt to theatrical acts like Kiss.