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Country music or what young people know as Alternative Country or Alt country


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More Cisco Houston this time singing Deportee a Woody Guthrie song

It goes without saying that the song is not sympathetic to the treatment of refugees

Another country in another time but the attitudes remain the same

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@ it's a toss up but probably my favourite country singer

Listening to this because you mentioned it

The first time i heard GP was when i bought his solo albums

Not having any knowledge of country music at the time i thought he was a totally original singer

Decades later i know he is one in a long line of broken hearted singers especially Merle Haggard

The stuff with Emmylou is i think the best duet singing i have ever heard and that includes the Louvin Brothers and the Everly Brothers

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Just read an article from Pitchfork about this record

Possibly the best record she has ever made and a contender for best record of 2014 but

Un reviewed in some music magazines and largly ignored in best of lists for 2014

Too old?

I think it is the best country record i heard last year

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Just read an article from Pitchfork about this record

Possibly the best record she has ever made and a contender for best record of 2014 but

Un reviewed in some music magazines and largly ignored in best of lists for 2014

Too old?

I think it is the best country record i heard last year

Great album and all, but IMO she has 4 or so better albums.

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Speaking of 'Alt Country', The Handsome Family are well worth a listen.

 

I hadn't heard of them until I was taken with the into music to 'True Detective'

 

Three excellent and earlier albums from them, ( all on spotify if you want to sample )

Singing Bones

In the Air

Through the Trees

 

Their albums are well recorded. His voice has some of the same gravitas as Johnny, but the lyrics - mostly written by his wife - are often quite poetic and poignant. A very different take from the usual country subjects.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey Keyse. Just came across this thread, and think it is great. I don't listen to it often, generally because the family protests, but I do love my occasional indulgence with country music. When I was growing up in the 70s and early 80s my dad used to take us to local country music get togethers on the south coast a couple of hours from Sydney. As a teenager I hated it, but as I got older I rediscoverd what it think you called the emotional connection of the music. I don't so much listen to the older country musicians, although I do have a soft spot for Johnny Cash. Not sure if all of these qualify, but my playlist is usually sampled from:

 

Lucinda Williams

Patty Griffin

Ryan Adams

Neko Case

Alison Krauss

Cowboy Junkies

Band of Horses

Calexico

The Decemberists

The Gaslight Anthem

Neil Young (acoustic would qualify I guess)

Gillian Welch

Wilco

Mary Gaultier

Cat Power

Shelby Lynne

Bill Callahan

Ray LaMontagne

 

That's off the top of my head, probably a few more. I do seem to prefer listening to the females, particularly on headphones. Anyway, hoping to make some more discoveries on this thread in future

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Speaking of 'Alt Country', The Handsome Family are well worth a listen.

 

I hadn't heard of them until I was taken with the into music to 'True Detective'

 

Three excellent and earlier albums from them, ( all on spotify if you want to sample )

Singing Bones

In the Air

Through the Trees

 

Their albums are well recorded. His voice has some of the same gravitas as Johnny, but the lyrics - mostly written by his wife - are often quite poetic and poignant. A very different take from the usual country subjects.

I just love the Handsome Family.  Beautiful country music but also funny and weird and totally unique.

Has anyone ever written a song like this:  A guy  has this big hole in his back yard that he chucks all his garbage into, then one day he decides to find out what is at the bottom.  So he rigs up a bath on to ropes and pulleys and lowers himself down.  He gets to the end of the ropes with no bottom in sight so he just flings the ropes away and goes careering down, down, down.... and never hits the bottom.  He just keeps on falling. End of song.

Those earlier albums were great but I feel the next one The Last Days of Wonder was there absolute peak, still funny and quirky, great melodies and a real humanity in the lyrics.

I saw them live and they were great, the husband/wife banter was terrific.

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Hey Keyse. Just came across this thread, and think it is great. I don't listen to it often, generally because the family protests, but I do love my occasional indulgence with country music. When I was growing up in the 70s and early 80s my dad used to take us to local country music get togethers on the south coast a couple of hours from Sydney. As a teenager I hated it, but as I got older I rediscoverd what it think you called the emotional connection of the music. I don't so much listen to the older country musicians, although I do have a soft spot for Johnny Cash. Not sure if all of these qualify, but my playlist is usually sampled from:

 

Lucinda Williams

Patty Griffin

Ryan Adams

Neko Case

Alison Krauss

Cowboy Junkies

Band of Horses

Calexico

The Decemberists

The Gaslight Anthem

Neil Young (acoustic would qualify I guess)

Gillian Welch

Wilco

Mary Gaultier

Cat Power

Shelby Lynne

Bill Callahan

Ray LaMontagne

 

That's off the top of my head, probably a few more. I do seem to prefer listening to the females, particularly on headphones. Anyway, hoping to make some more discoveries on this thread in future

Bloody hell, did you hack my server - I have most albums from every one of the artists you listed above. Great selection.

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Hey Keyse. Just came across this thread, and think it is great. I don't listen to it often, generally because the family protests, but I do love my occasional indulgence with country music. When I was growing up in the 70s and early 80s my dad used to take us to local country music get togethers on the south coast a couple of hours from Sydney. As a teenager I hated it, but as I got older I rediscoverd what it think you called the emotional connection of the music. I don't so much listen to the older country musicians, although I do have a soft spot for Johnny Cash. Not sure if all of these qualify, but my playlist is usually sampled from:

 

Lucinda Williams

Patty Griffin

Ryan Adams

Neko Case

Alison Krauss

Cowboy Junkies

Band of Horses

Calexico

The Decemberists

The Gaslight Anthem

Neil Young (acoustic would qualify I guess)

Gillian Welch

Wilco

Mary Gaultier

Cat Power

Shelby Lynne

Bill Callahan

Ray LaMontagne

 

That's off the top of my head, probably a few more. I do seem to prefer listening to the females, particularly on headphones. Anyway, hoping to make some more discoveries on this thread in future

@markm1111that is a good start to what is a bottomless pit of wonderful music

about ankle deep I'd say

you need to be in up to your neck before going backwards into the great stuff from thepast

there is so much great alt country music now i struggle to get my head around it

i understand the family bit though

the older stuff like George Jones Merle Haggard Patsy Cline Hank Williams to be appreciated need to be listened to by losing the more sophisticated approach to words art or life that we have now

A bit like reading Dickens or Jane Austen

My first contact with country music was Gram Parsons in about 72 and have listened to it on and off over the decades

very seldom would a day go by that idon't hear Johnny Cash or some country song from the past or present because whatever songs are on my phone or iPod those sort of players are always there on random play

i could list a lot of seriously good stuff from the present if you are interested as well as the Johnny Cash records that are well worth hearing because his records are a mixture of the good bad and downright awful

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Some great artists mentioned by @@markm1111.

Maybe I could add:

Jayhawks

Uncle Tupelo

Son Volt

Indigo Girls.

Even throw in the late great Vic Chesnutt to that mix.

Nice list sound fan, can't believe I forgot Indigo Girls! Saw them live about 15 years ago. They have a particular following - I was one of the few men in the audience....

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@@keyse1 it would be great to get a list of a few more to have a listen to. Always look forward to discovering new music

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61I1HevIxvL._SY355_.jpgthis is Fred Eaglesmith a wonderful Canadian player

great writer with an almost stand up comedian sense of humour when seen live

He has a lot of cds but this is a good place to start.His earlier records are either very expensive or out of print.

i know him because Kasey Chambers covered a song of his and raved about him

i endured 4 days in country music hell at Tamworth a few years ago and 3 days in the equally horrid Gympie Muster to see Fred and a a few good days in Newcastle in pusuit of Fred

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Teddy Thompson is the son of Richard Thompson This is a country record he made sort of a tribute with only one song written by him.Great singing

Justin Townes Earle is the son of Steve and is a serious player in his own right.All his records are really good 

Deep Dark Woods another Canadian band with good words and beautiful singing I think this is their best record mainly because it is so good it stops me listening to their other ones i have

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61Mn5jQ-BEL._AA160_.jpgA double cd from the 80's with a lot of great songs and singing very cheap and though he is well served by compilation cds some stand alone cds are worth having

51oV65XiT6L._AA160_.jpgthis is one of my favourite collections and has some wonderful duets with June Carter Cash. Sometimes corny but always with real sincerity and sometimes humour that make the songs come alive

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  • 2 weeks later...

Eilen Jewell a wonderful singer and great disapointed in love writer

Four records into a long career this is the second

Not sure which is the best because they are so good

Flew down to Melbourne a few years ago to see her play

Music has a bit of swing to it

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One of my favourite lyrics by anyone who has been dumped after a long time together

Beautifully sung

I'll take back all those years when i go

They mean nothing to you i know

Ill take back all those years when i go

They will be all my own

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This is Corrina Steel's third album

The first 2 are so good i seldom listen to this but despite having 2 songs on it i don't like am discovering that this is as good

Sublime deep voice a bit like Jason Molina on some songs

Some reviews on the internet but not much and no sign of live performance that i could find

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  • 4 weeks later...

Bought box set of this today

12 cds

Too sophisticated for metal heads and pink Floyd lovers

You need to have gone a few rounds with Cupid to appreciate this sort of pure country heartbreak

Knocked down in the 5th and knocked out in the 7th

Or be looking towards that light dimming at the end of the tunnel

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