Though Americana may be a less-institutionalized and much smaller genre that tends to have better music and promote artists that are easier to respect, sometimes it can seem almost as exclusive as Music Row. So here is a list of artists that even considering Americana’s heavy requirements, could make it big and improve the Americana world if only given a chance.
This album is good both because it is Willie, and because it is good. After years of navigating through a gray area in his career and having to dabble with some record labels probably less able to do a Willie release justice, he’s back with the same company who released Red Headed Stranger, and back to making albums worthy of the world stopping down to pay attention to.
If there’s honor amongst thieves, then it only seems fitting there should be a Grifter’s Hymnal. And if there’s going to be a Grifter’s Hymnal, it’s only fitting Ray Wylie Hubbard should compose it. The ingredients of grifters are already mixed there on his palette: Tales of dead and dying things and dens of iniquity, the struggle or the soul between good and evil, and the difficulty sometimes of telling the two apart.
When you consider yourself some type of high fallutin’ music critic, you get asked many times what your favorites albums of all time are. I would honestly say that Happy Birthday, Sabo! by the long since defunct band Royal Fingerbowl sits in my top 3 albums of all time, and can reside in the very top spot depending on the current mood. Happy Birthday, Sabo! is an album of sheer madness.
Despite the safety, there is a good flow to this music, and a patience. In most music, you have a group of guys doing their best individually, hoping it fits in the context of the song. With Velvet, everyone is on board, listening to the music and what the song is calling for. It’s the difference of four horsemen riding side by side across the plain, or four horses yoked together.
So here it is, the list of albums Saving Country Music deems essential for 2011 listening. Please note this list only includes albums that have been reviewed so far. And as always, your feedback is encouraged. What are your essential albums? What did we miss? What was released in 2011 that deserves a review?
There is nothing I take more seriously than naming what I think is the best album of any calendar year. The Album of the Year offers a guidepost for future generations to find the best music that was forgotten by the mainstream, while at the same time being a current ambassador to the mainstream to illustrate what great music they are overlooking.
One of the most pressing questions I’ve seen about his music in the context of his new album Bad As Me is if it should be considered “roots” or “Americana.” 7 years ago, when Waits put out his last real original album, I would have probably said no, but loaded with qualifiers. Today my answer would be “absolutely.”
The first record in the 4 record salvo from Hank3 Ghost to a Ghost felt very much like business as usual in the post-Straight to Hell era. But Guttertown is where Hank3 gets it right by doing the same thing he did in the early and mid oughts, following his heart, defying any expectations for sound and genre, and letting his creative passion flow. Simply put, this is the best album Hank3’s put out since his 2006 opus
Some, including myself, had opined that Hank3 was possibly squirreling back songs during the late Curb era, not wanting to give his arch nemesis his best material. Instead it feels like we got what was left on the cutting house floor, and a few songs that reek of self-parody. Folks hoping for a return to the golden era of Hank3’s country music creativity will have to keep waiting.
The Hank3 news continues to pour in ahead of his colossal 4 album release on September 6th that includes a double country album with a whooping 41 new songs, and two heavy metal-based albums. The 10 new country songs he debuted in Nashville last week can all be seen here courtesy of Cathy’s Reinstate Hank Bandwagon. Word is “Fadin’ Moon” is the track Tom Waits will appear on.
With his own new label, Hank3 Records, and the sense that he has thrown off the chains holding him back creatively, Shelton Hank Williams III, aka Hank3, is coming out swinging this year with the release of four records on September 6 – that’s right – FOUR.
The propensity of the Drive By Truckers to get political on your ass, and just a general “like but not love” feeling I’ve had for their music over the years means I really don’t have a dog in the race when it comes to the whole Jason Isbell vs. Drive by Truckers tilt that’s been going on since he left the band a few years ago. When I saw him perform many of the songs from Here We Rest live at South by Southwest…
I really want to like Hayes Carll…People like to compare him to Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt and Tom Waits. But in the end, though he’s a good songwriter, he’s not a great one, and the overselling and mischaracterizing of his music has led to some unnecessary criticism, and a missing of the point that his music is fun, and meant to be enjoyed.
It would make life much easier for me if on Saturday night, Justin Townes Earle put on the performance of a lifetime. With all the negative publicity he has received here and other places, but especially here, it has characterized me as a madman on a mission to destroy him. From NPR stuff, to more NPR stuff, to breaking the story on his arrest, it has branded me a Justin Townes Earle adversary in a way that has adversely effected my standing with many people I respect.
When it boils right down to it, what is it going to take to Save Country Music? Hard work, education, and grass roots efforts are one way, but the magic bullet would be an artist that could rise above all the arguments dividing country music, and offer widespread appeal through a new approach while also […]
In the upcoming 200th issue of Mojo Magazine, the legendary Tom Waits takes the helm as editor, and handpicks Hank III to be one of the issue’s featured artists. In the 7 page spread, Waits recounts seeing Hank III for the first time at the Mystic Theatre in Petaluma, CA: “I had heard he does […]
Wow. Well if you head isn’t already spinning from the caliber of recent REAL country music releases, it will be now. Lucky Tubb & The Modern Day Troubadours team up with the legendary Wayne “The Train” Hancock for an old school comic book style dynamic duo one two punch to the gut of mainstream pop […]
“Every great artist has had a place where their music could be birthed.” That quote from the new documentary Anderson Fair – For The Sake of The Song about a small, long-lived acoustic room in Houston puts into perspective how important the venue is to music more than any other I could procure. We talk […]
With his first official solo album, Junk, along with his good friend and talented musician in her own right Rachel Brooke, have put together a brilliant, quality, and surprisingly accessible long runner with an eponymous title. This is one of those albums you can put on in the background of any gathering of any people, […]