Country music for people who hate country music... Mar 09 '01 (Updated Aug 12 '01)    Write an essay on this topic. Tweet Popular Products in Music Jersey Boys [Original Broadway Cast Recording] by Original Broadway Cast From $8 Mai by Eri Sugai From $4 The Bottom Line Don't expect to hear any of this on the radio-- it's made by people far too talented and intelligent, and it would embarrass most mainstream country acts. Since I've started writing reviews in earnest of all of the albums in my rather extensive CD collection with my "country" stuff, I thought that adding a "Top 10 list" in this category might be useful in providing some additional perspective on how I determine what makes a truly great album. I've grown up in the South, surrounding by traditional, mainstream country music-- artists like Garth Brooks, George Strait, Patty Loveless, and Alan Jackson. And I'm the first person to admit that, while having a certain visceral appeal, I find the vast majority of mainstream country music, both in the traditional sense and in the recent Shania-dominated sense, to be completely repulsive and insulting. It's dominated by gimmicks: uptempo barsongs intended to capitalize on the appeal of catchphrases; songs which perpetuate the "cowboy" myth; or hyperglycemic powerballads which shamelessly tug at the listeners' heartstrings and wallets. Of course, most modern country doesn't really have much in common with some of the remarkable singing and songwriting of the past-- neither Hank Williams nor Patsy Cline would ever get radio airplay alongside such hacks as SheDaisy or Aaron Tippin. Today, artists who either 1). have something in common, musically speaking, with the great artists from country's Golden Era OR 2). attempt to create genuinely intelligent, challenging music are relegated to the territory of "alt-country." These are the talented, unheralded musicians who never break the Top 40 radio airplay and whose music videos, when show at all, are relegated to CMT's "Jammin' Country" segment, shown at midnight. The work of these artists comprises about half of my total CD collection, taking up space with rock and pop acts such as PJ Harvey, REM, and Fountains of Wayne. Their work is intelligently written, beautifully performed, and thoughtfully produced. It proves that country music isn't just about divorce, beer, pickup trucks, and how much someone loves her equally famous husband, Tim. That was an incredibly long prefactory statement, but I hope that it has provided some additional insights into the reasons I write my epinions reviews the way I do. Anyway... SO. My Top 10 Country Albums list contains only albums released in the past year, simply because 2000 was an amazing year for alt-country artists (check of the Village Voice's poll of over 500 ROCK critics at www.villagevoice.com, and you'll see that a shocking number of alt-country artists ranked QUITE high on their list!) and because, unfortunately, I have a fairly short memory! If you'd like to learn more about the albums listed here, I've already written reviews of many of them, and I hope to get around to reviewing the rest of them within the coming few weeks. So... here goes! 10). Billy Bragg & Wilco, Mermaid Avenue, Volume 2. I actually like this "sequel" album quite a bit better than the first Mermaid Avenue, released two years ago. British singer-songwriter Billy Bragg teamed with alt-country heroes Wilco to write music for some of the lyrics legendary songwriter Woody Guthrie penned on his deathbed decades ago. A combination of absolutely brilliant lyrics with some simply inspired musicianship. The album's first track, "Airline to Heaven" outright rocks, and the quality doesn't decline. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. 9). Nickel Creek. It's just bizarre that a group of 20-ish Californians should be able to play Bluegrass music so flawlessly. Produced by no less than Allison Krauss, Nickel Creek's debut album showcases some first-rate musicianship and a maturity in their delivery of complex lyrics that truly belies their age. Their three part harmonies-- this band can boast two incredibly gifted lead vocalists, mind you-- would ideally drive SheDaisy and Rascal Flatts into retirement. Rating: 4/5 8). Dwight Yoakam, dwightyoakamacoustic.net. Quite possibly the most unfortunate album title since Badly Drawn Boy's The Hour of Bewilderbeest, the fascinating Yoakam again blurs the line between mainstream appeal and obscurity on thie unusual collection. Running nearly 70 minutes in length, these 20+ tracks combine acoustic (duh!) versions of some of Yoakam's better-known radio hits-- "Little Sister" and "1000 Miles from Nowhere" are especially great-- with some excellent originals and B-sides. Rating: 4/5 7). John Hiatt, Crossing Muddy Waters. Critical acclaim is nothing new for John Hiatt, who has been making stellar folk-rock for ages, and who has yet to release even a mediocre album. For Crossing Muddy Waters, Hiatt tried an acoustic approach for the first time. The style suits his rootsy sound beautifully, his raspy baritone conveying a full spectrum of genuine emotions. Even without the benefit of a drummer, these songs flat-out rock. Rating: 4/5 6). Johnny Cash, American III: Solitary Man. Odds are that the good folks at NARAS who awarded the "Man in Black" with the Best Male Country Vocal at the Grammys last month did so solely because of Cash's recent health problems-- not because they had heard any of the amazing songs on this album. Cash's speaker-rattling bass is aging quite well, and on this album he's joined by some unexpected collaborators-- Tom Petty and Sheryl Crow. Mainstream rockers, quite clearly, still have a respect for this man's ever-expanding library of brilliant music. Rating: 4/5 5). Trisha Yearwood, Real Live Woman. The best singer in modern popular music gets back on track after her foray into Celine Dion territory with her 1998 misstep, Where Your Road Leads. This eclectic set places Yearwood's gifts for intelligent interpretations of intricate, mature lyrics at the forefront of her music. The album opens with the Kim Richey and Mary Chapin Carpenter - penned "Where Are You Now," hands down one of the best singles of 2000 from ANY genre of music. The quality doesn't subside, either, as Yearwood emotes and wails some killer material from the likes of Matraca Berg, Bruce Springsteen, and Linda Rondstadt. Rating: 5/5 4). Allison Moorer, The Hardest Part. Don't tell anyone, but Moorer, The Anti-FaithHill, actually released a BETTER album than did her big sister, recent (and deserving) Grammy winner Shelby Lynne. The Hardest Part is a stark portrait of a collapsing relationship-- eleven songs exploring one woman's take on each phase of her failed romance. Showing an intelligent restraint with that huge alto of hers, Moorer asserts herself as one of the best "traditional" country singers and one of the most talented country songwriters recording today. Rating: 5/5 3). Richard Buckner, The Hill. When a brilliant songwriter defers composing his own lyrics, you know that the source of the new material must be great. And Buckner's choice isn't just great, it's one of the most significant works of American literature of the 20th century-- Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthology. Buckner uses his distinctive, evocative baritone and his captivating brand of roots-rock to give voice to 18 of the ill-fated residents of the fictional Spoon River. The result is a truly high-brow concept album unlike anything in recent memory. Rating: 5/5 2). Soundtrack, O Brother, Where Art Thou. Simply put, this is a definitive collection of the Bluegrass and Southern Gospel music of the early 1900's. Arranged by T Bone Burnett and Gillian Welch and performed by some of modern roots music's biggest talents, these songs breathe a genuine vitality into the Coen brothers' brilliant, hilarious re-telling of the Odyssey. The Soggy Bottom Boys' "I am a Man of Constant Sorrow" is brilliantly performed and produced-- it'll imbed itself in your memory for days-- but the album's real highlight is "Nobody but the Baby," the song used to lull the film's protagonists to sleep by the "Sirens," whose singing comes from no less than Welch, Allison Krauss, and Emmylou Harris. Brilliant! Rating: 5/5 1). Neko Case & her Boyfriends, Furnace Room Lullaby. It's a comparison I've made several times before, but I've yet to think of anything better: Neko Case is alt-country's equivalent of PJ Harvey. A songwriter whose lyrics resonate with a truly poetic quality and a singer of striking purity, Case might just be alt-country's current "it girl," given her recent side projects with the New Pornographers and the Corn Sisters. Furnace Room Lullaby, however, is the best showcase for her talents. Simply put, there just aren't enough superlative adjectives to describe how amazing this album is. Rating: 5/5 -------------------------------------------------- So, before you immediately say "I HATE country music!" as a reflex during your next music discussion, I recommend that you look outside the mainstream before making such a harsh judgment. There are countless artists on the fringes of this particular genre who are making music that is every bit as daring and intelligent as the biggest names in rock, pop, and hip-hop music.

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