Not surprisingly, this essay is going to be a two-parter, mainly because Ken Burns’ “Country Music” documentary clocks in at 16 1/2 hours and is spread out over eight nights (Sunday though Thursday, two weeks in a row). Accordingly, this first installment concerns the first week’s episodes.

Already acclaimed for his extensive video histories about jazz music, the Civil War and the Dust Bowl, Burns, a Baby Boomer who is reportedly a rock music fan, apparently approached this project with an attitude of educating himself as well as viewers. That perspective seems to work because country music has more of a polyglot chronology than some music fans may realize.