Best Country and Roots Albums of 2025 So Far
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As we reach the halfway pole of the musical year, it’s time to reflect back on the best albums that have been released so far. There are some great projects that you should make sure don’t slip under your radar.
DJ Bobby Bones Spent $13,000 Smearing Himself in a Bid for Sympathy
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A lying, cheating, deceptive, narcissistic, self-centered buffoon. That is about the only conclusion one can come to when reading the news that pop country über DJ Bobby Bones spent $13,000 of his own money on a smear campaign against himself when he first showed up to Nashville to helm iHeartMedia’s flagship country music morning show.
So There’s a Guy Whose Real Name Is “Willie Nelson Waylon Jennings”
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If your real, legal name is Willie Nelson Waylon Jennings, the good news is you’re named after two of the most badass country music artists to ever suck air. The bad news if your Willie Nelson Waylon Jennings is that you were just arrested in Carroll County, Georgia on burglary charges after your getaway car ran out of gas.
ABC Cancels “Nashville” – A Postmortem
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The cancelling of Nashville has repercussions far beyond a few disappointed TV viewers. The show has been seminal to the spectacular growth in both population and tourism that Nashville has experienced over the last five years. It was an outlet for songs that were worthy of a larger audience.
Big Takeaways from Sturgill Simpson’s Appearance on the WTF Podcast
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Sturgill Simpson sat down with Marc Maron of the WTF podcast recently, and the hour or so interview was released on Thursday (5-12). If you’re a diehard Sturgill Simpson fan, it would be strongly encouraged that you listen. Here are some of the more interesting tidbits from the conversation.
The Band Perry Is Officially Going Pop – Signs to Interscope
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The strange saga of what was once one of country music’s most promising trios and family bands continues. After parting ways with Nashville-based record label Big Machine in early March after the colossal failure of their latest single “Live Forever,” it has been announced that The Band Perry has signed with Interscope Records and is going full pop.
Merle Haggard Final Song “Kern River Blues” Is Released
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As Merle was suffering from complications due to a double pneumonia and was in a hospital recovering, he would pen what would become his final song, “Kern River Blues.” Even though Merle was barely strong enough to sing, he put out the effort to record the song at his “Hag” studio with his full band.
The 2016 Americana Music Awards Announce Nominees
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Early Wednesday evening (5/11), the nominees for the 2016 Americana Music Awards were announced via NPR’s live stream from the historic Mansion on O Street in Washington, DC. The event was hosted by the Milk Carton Kids, and featured performances from multiple Americana artists.
Don’t Waste Your Time on Keith Urban’s “Ripcord”
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Ripcord is a synthy, shallow, rhythmic-centric gaggle of immediately forgettable efforts that is obsessed with the doings of early adulthood in an unhealthy manner for a 49-year-old perfomrer, and offers absolutely no type of statement or expression either sonically, lyrically, creatively, or otherwise.
Cheryl Desere’e – More Than Just A Pretty Face
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Listening to this self-titled record is like taking a side trip to a forgotten roadside motel lost in time somewhere in California’s desert interior, where the glow of a neon sign beats back the dullness of modernity, and the turning of a room key is like the opening of a time capsule to a place much more accustomed and comfortable to old souls.
SCM’s Official Entries in Old Dominion’s “#Snapback” Contest
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Here at Saving Country Music, if there’s anything we love more than baseball caps with perfectly flat brims being worn backwards at country shows (apparently called “snapbacks”), it’s a good contest. So when a press release arrived at headquarters announcing a “snapback” design contest for pop country group Old Dominion, you’re damn skippy I was game.
Live Review – Sturgill Simpson at ACL Live
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Sturgill Simpson embarked on the second night of a two-night sold-out stop at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin, on Friday (5-6). It was the second night on his current tour, and one of the first glimpses of what fans can expect from an expanded lineup, and a new sound that veers slightly away from the country style Sturgill’s career has been known for up to this point.
Album Review- Cyndi Lauper’s Country “Detour”
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Never could I have dreamed when I first decided to channel my passion for music into operating a country music website that I would be asked to comment on a country record released from Queens-born New Wave 80’s sensation Cyndi Lauper. But this is not your average “gone country” project.