Tag: kacey musgraves

The Producers: Buddy Miller

Posted on by Editor

Even if you weren’t already aware that Cayamo Sessions at Sea was recorded on a cruise ship, even if the title didn’t spell out the circumstances of the album’s creation, you could probably guess as much. Featuring several generations of roots artists covering old country songs, the record sounds sunny and breezy, light but not lightweight. Buddy Miller and Lee Ann Womack make “After the Fire Is Gone” sound more about the make-up than the break-up, and Elizabeth Cook emphasizes the buying rather than the crying on “If Teardrops Were Pennies.” Even Kris Kristofferson’s new take on “Sunday Morning Coming Down” sounds like nothing so serious as having to disembark at the end of a week at sea.

It’s to Miller’s considerable credit that none of that is a bad thing. A producer and central performer, he keeps things light, as though you’re flipping through vacation photos, but that strategy showcases the amiable dynamic between performers and singers more than the ocean-bound environs. It sounds like it would have been a blast to make, even if they held the sessions in an outhouse or a bank vault.

For nearly a decade, Miller has been a prominent figure on the Cayamo Cruise, which sails from Miami to St. Maarten and Tortola and features a who’s who of roots and country artists. In that time, he’s only missed one boat, and that’s only because he was recovering from a heart attack. It struck him onstage but, professional that he is, he finished the song.

Over the last 40 years, Miller has emerged as one of the most imaginative musicians in Nashville, both on the stage and in the studio. A former Deadhead turned sideman turned producer, he has helmed albums for a mind-boggling range of artists: Shawn Colvin, Emmylou Harris, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, the Devil Makes Three, the McCrary Sisters, Dr. Ralph Stanley, and Robert Plant. When Patty Griffin wanted to make a gospel record, he had her sing at the pulpit of the Downtown Presbyterian Church in Nashville, with the band on the floor playing up to her.

“Every record has a story to tell,” he says. “Every record is a whole different world. I don’t come into anything with a preconceived nothing. I might hear things before we go in, but I won’t impose that on an artist. I just hire the players I love and see what’s going to happen.”

Why did you want to make an album on the Cayamo Cruise?

I grew up loving music, in general. I loved blues. I loved rock. I loved folk. I was a Deadhead at the age of 14. When their first record came out, I bought it pretty much for the cover. And then I started going to every show I could make it to, until around ’72 when Porter Waggoner, Tammy Wynette, and Ralph Stanley won that war. I stayed in that country music camp and gradually drifted away from the Dead. But I remember, from that very first show, there was a sense of one big family coming to those Dead shows. Now, it’s legendary and they make movies about it, but even at those first shows, you’d see the same people. They were immediate friends — an extended family. Everybody loved each other and everybody was there for the same reason.

I guess that’s a long way of saying that there’s a similar feeling on the boat, although it’s a different … I hate to use the word “demographic.” Is that what the politicians are using these days? It’s a different set of people, but all with the same heart. They’re all there for the music. It’s not a party boat. It’s a lot of people — 2,000 or 2,500 people — and I just want to hang out with them all. They’re all great. And I thought it would be interesting for them to have the veil pulled back on the process of recording. That’s why I did it. I don’t think people have any idea how records are made. I don’t even know how magical records are made. How does that magic happen? So we’re showing them the nuts and bolts — what musicians do, how they play together in a room, pick a track, fix it up, do all that stuff. I thought that would be of interest to these people that I love. That, and I worked on this television show called Nashville. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it …

Definitely.

I worked on the pilot for Callie [Khouri, who created the show], and then, when the first season got picked up, I worked with T Bone Burnett producing [the music for] it. Most of the things we produced together, I would say. I continued with it, but I think it drove him crazy. I have a higher tolerance for bullshit, I guess. But now I love it and I love the people — especially these two little girls, the Stella Sisters. John Prine was going to be on the cruise, and what I wanted to hear was those two little girls, the Stella Sisters, singing, “Daddy, won’t you take me back to Muhlenberg County?” And then John would come in singing the verses to “Paradise.” It seemed like a good thing to document. It’ll make the sweetest record. Unfortunately, John got sick and couldn’t make it.

But that was where the idea came from. What I do is, I try to engineer collaborations. That’s just how I think: Let’s pair this with that. I think in collaborative terms. I don’t know if it’s because I’m lazy and don’t want to do all the work by myself. But I think it’s because I just want to hear certain things. Shawn Colvin asked me to do a record of hers a while back, and I thought, "You know what? Brian Blade and Bill Frisell. I would love to hear her voice framed by those two musicians." That’s what I’m talking about. It’s all about coming up with your dream teams.

Tell me about setting up a studio on the boat.

I asked one of the engineers I work with, Gordon Hammond, if he wanted to go on this cruise. We bought a bunch of microphones, a lot of gear, and set up in what was a bowling alley on the ship. We managed to turn it into this vibey … I hate that word, “vibey.” It’s very homey and warm, with all our gear set up and the band set up in a circle. There are about 100 chairs, because we couldn’t fit more than that in there and I didn’t want the sound of more than 100 people breathing on the same time to work its way onto the record.

What are some of the challenges that come with recording on a boat?

I guess I don’t look at it that way. There are certainly challenges, like when somebody turned on the wrong light switch. Boats just have a lot of switches on them. We couldn’t always tell what they were for, so somebody turned on the disco ball accidentally and it started blasting some dance song. That was actually a fun moment. And an easy problem to fix. You just don’t want to stop if there’s a flow going. It’s as much about the lighting in the room, the air in the room, how it feels. All of that affects the music. Outside of that, there aren’t really any challenges that are any different from recording on land.

The one and only cruise ship I’ve been on felt very institutional to me. Aside from the scenery and the sun, it didn’t feel like it would be especially conducive to making music.

That could be anywhere. That could be any recording studio. It’s all about … I don’t want to use the word “staging.” I’ve been working on television too long. But it’s about the feel of the room, how close people are together. I like people to be right on each other. You can bring in nice-looking rugs, even on a cruise ship. You can drape things on the wall, turn the lights down. You can make any room feel nice. That’s what we did in that bowling alley, which actually felt pretty nice to begin with. And it felt great when we had it set up and started recording. I think everyone enjoyed themselves — the artists and the audience. They loved to see that recording process, even though this isn’t really the process. The vocals went down with the track, and the track went down fairly complete. Maybe a couple of tracks have two or three overdubs and a few vocal fixes, so it’s not really like making a record. It’s a little more honest than that, but it still gives people a view into that world.

So there’s an instructive or an educational element to this project.

Exactly. I thought, if people love music enough to get on the boat, then they might love to see that process and see how artists say, "You try singing that part. Let’s flip on the chorus, and you take the harmony while I take lead. Let’s leave that line out. Hold the drum till the chorus. Don’t have the bass come in until the fourth bar." All of that stuff is worked out long before the audience gets involved, so they don’t know what goes into it. This is a very, very simplified version, but it’s still something I think they find fascinating.

There’s a nice range of artists on this album. You have younger artists like Kacey Musgraves alongside older singers like Kris Kristofferson. Was that something you were thinking about, that generational exchange?

Yeah. It’s a funny thing: My name is on the record, so I have to be involved somehow, playing or singing or just having a presence on it. My part is very minimal, but I had to be there. If it was just me doing whatever I wanted to do, I probably wouldn’t even be on half of those tracks. I would have put Kacey singing with Kris or someone else, not me. But it’s my record company and my name goes on the album, so I have to do something. I think it’s a good record. I like it. Maybe because I don’t hear myself is why I like it so much. That’s what makes my records so hard to listen to.

Nashville is like no other place in the world for songwriting. People come here from all over the world — songwriters, young singers, all these young women. In addition to the cruise and the television series, I do a radio show on Sirius XM. Usually it’s weekly, or just whenever I can get it done. I have a guest come over every week, and lately I’ve had some of these younger writers that I run into. I find it amazing that they’ve been doing this since the age of 13 or 14. That’s when I knew I was going to be making music for the rest of my life, but some of these kids have already started writing songs. A lot of them have their parents’ support, too. That was something that wasn’t really around, when I was a kid. My parents wanted me to do anything but music, maybe because there was this whole other subculture that was tied to the music. I think there’s less money in it now than there was when I got started. I think. I don’t really know much about that end of it, but it does seem like the music business has dried up. You might know more about that than I do.

I hear conflicting reports. Some people say it’s still possible and there’s great music being made, and others are very pessimistic. I guess it all depends on who I’m talking to.

There’s always great music. Sometimes you just have to look a little harder for it. I think with downloads and iTunes and everything, it’s more about singles than it is about albums. That’s the part I miss. You would make a record. The Grateful Dead made Anthem of the Sun in 1968, and you wouldn’t think about chopping it up into 10 little songs. Ralph Stanley made Something Old Something New back in the early ‘70s and, even though I’m sure there was no intention of it being a themed record, it just flowed together so well that you had to listen to it in that sequence. You wouldn’t want to download just one song. Or Porter Wagoner. He was doing concept records before the Beatles. So I’m glad vinyl’s making a comeback.

I think that’s something that’s overlooked in country music, especially. There are so many incredible singles, but there are a lot of amazing albums, too. Making a good record is a very different process than making a great song.

I don’t know a whole lot of big country artists. Well, I know some, I guess, and I think they still look at it as as making a record. And gosh, when I was growing up — and I’m old! — it was about the single. That’s what got played on the radio, in mono. It was all about the mono mix. So, maybe, in a way it’s not so different; but I would make a point to buy the albums and listen to side one all the way through, then side two. There might be a stinker in the middle of side two, but that was all part of the package.

When you start working with an artist, is that what you’re thinking about as a producer? Are you looking at these projects as albums rather than songs?

Completely. It’s funny you ask that, because I’ve never thought about it. I think that’s because I don’t produce anything that is going to end up where people are going to care about singles. In my mind, the audience is buying an album, so we’re making an album. I just finished a record with Steve Earle and Shawn Colvin — a duets record. They’ve made some incredible records, and all they cared about with this one was the vinyl. Steve, in particular, was very concerned with sequencing for vinyl. We cut a lot of songs together, but we just put enough songs on there that would fit and sound great on vinyl. I’m happy to be thinking along those lines.

That’s one thing I actually went to school for as a kid, was to learn to use a Scully lathe. For most of my life, that was a great skill to have. Then it became pretty useless. I don’t actually have a lathe. I have enough useless stuff in my house that weighs 500 pounds. But I like being around all that old equipment with all of its old smells.

I do think the weight of that equipment — the tactile quality of it, the smell, and look of it — does add to the way you experience music.

I’ve got so many old, heavy microphones. I guess the heaviest one I have is an RCA 44-BX, that big … I don’t know what you call that shape. Not the big egg, but the one with the angles on it. You see Frank Sinatra singing into it all the time. It weighs a ton. It’ll take down any mic stand. It’s a warm mic, a beautiful-sounding mic, so it’s difficult to record with. But I’ll put that up or my old Neumann U47 because they take the singer someplace. You look into that thing; you get up close to it and you can smell it. You look into that thing and you start singing and you think about who has sung into it for decades. That’s part of creating the world that you record in, and it affects the music. There are great new microphones, of course. I keep buying new ones that sound really good, but when it comes to the singer trying to tell a story, you have to give them a mic that’s really been down the road.

Photo credit: CJ Hicks

Kacey Musgraves and Miguel Go Dolly and Porter on Surprising Duet

Posted on by Editor

2016 is the Year of the Wave. Towards the beginning of his torrential outpouring of tweets, Kanye West got into a Twitter spat with Wiz Khalifa over, among other things, his choice of Waves as an album title for what eventually became The Life of Pablo (if you care enough about the fight, it's explained in detail here). It was silly and the Internet laughed. Today, though, there's a new wave in town, and it sounds a lot better than Kanye West angrily typing into his phone.

Odd couple Kacey Musgraves and Miguel reimagined the latter's track "waves," off his excellent 2015 album Wildheart, and it's pretty damn fantastic. For the uninitiated, Miguel is an R&B artist frequently cited as this generation's Prince, thanks in equal parts to his stellar falsetto and his seemingly insatiable sexual appetite. The track in question is part of Rogue Waves, a just released 5-song EP that remixes Miguel's original tune via artists like Tame Impala, Travi$ Scott and, most notably, Musgraves.

Most of the remixes sound like facsimiles of the original, but Musgraves' version finds the song slowed down considerably, the funky beat of the original replaced with twangy guitar licks and an interplay between and Musgraves and Miguel that would make Dolly and Porter proud. That slower tempo, combined with the addition of a female voice and the ensuing back-and-forth between the two artists, makes for, somehow, an even sexier song than the original, and an important new entry into the country crossover canon (Case in point: about two minutes in when Musgraves sings “until I hit the peak,” the music drops out, and a guitarist we can assume to be Misa Arriaga comes in with some spaghetti western twang. Damn). 

Country is no stranger to crossover. The last few years, especially, have seen a near meteoric rise in the popularity of country that sounds less like itself and more like pop or hip-hop, with artists like Florida Georgia Line and Sam Hunt borrowing from Top 40 radio to six-figure results. In some cases, it works. In others, not so much. "waves" definitely falls into that first category, proving that a little mutual respect between genres can yield surprisingly good crossovers. Now, let's all cross our fingers for a Kacey Musgraves R&B album.

Lede photo via Instagram

Stephen Colbert Is Late Night’s Roots Music Champion

Posted on by Editor

Getting a coveted performance slot on a late-night TV show is no easy task. Unless you have a Billboard hit or the last name Bieber, odds are you won't make it onto what's become some of television's most prime musical real estate. For roots musicians, that means fewer shots at late-night stardom and fewer chances to reach the wide audiences such performances award. But luckily, The Late Show's Stephen Colbert is changing the game, championing up-andcoming roots musicians and introducing their music to his legions of loyal fans. 

We've rounded up some of our favorite roots performances from The Late Show below. Check 'em out!

Kacey Musgraves, "Late to the Party"

Kacey Musgraves is no small star, so it's not as much of a surprise that Colbert would invite her to the stage to perform "Late to the Party," one of the standout tracks from her sophomore album Pageant Material.

John Moreland, "Break My Heart Sweetly"

John Moreland, however, is a surprise — Colbert gave the talented Oklahoma singer/songwriter his network television debut when he invited him to perform this track from 2013's In the Throes (despite Moreland releasing High on Tulsa Heat last year) earlier this month.

Lake Street Dive, "Call Off Your Dogs"

Lake Street Dive is a big name in the roots community, but their reach doesn't extend far beyond the genre's boundaries. Colbert had them over anyway, and the Brooklyn quartet got to wow the audience with this tune from Side Pony.

Margo Price, "Hurtin' (On the Bottle)"

The first country signee to Jack White's famed Third Man Records, Margo Price may not be a household name yet, but it's only a matter of time before she is. This performance of her debut single on The Late Show is sure to be part of what seals that deal.

Aubrie Sellers, "Light of Day"

Daughter of Lee Ann Womack, Aubrie Sellers is no stranger to the late-night circuit, although this performance on Colbert was the first time she was the one gracing the stage, performing a cut from her debut album New City Blues.

Wilco, "Random Name Generator"

Okay, so maybe a band as big as Wilco doesn't exactly need a television champion, but it's great to see them hit the stage to perform this tune from 2015's Star Wars nonetheless.

Lucinda Williams, "Dust"

Finally, don't miss this stunning performance from Lucinda Williams of a poem by her father (the late poet Miller Williams) that she reinterpeted and set to music to serve as the opening track for her stellar new album The Ghosts of Highway 20.

The Virginia Songbird Takes Flight: A Conversation with Dori Freeman

Posted on by Editor

Armed with a guitar and a voice that harkens backs to traditional country greats, Dori Freeman may seem like just another singer/songwriter. But she’s far from it. The 24-year-old from southwest Virginia has been singing since she was young, a fact that comes across in her vocal control, ability, and depth. Her voice doesn’t have any pretense about it. Instead, it produces honest, straightforward melodies that complement her honest, straightforward lyrics. Her music unabashedly bridges the gap between then and now, integrating musical phrasing, cadences, and more passed down over generations throughout Appalachia’s storied region, but with a sensibility and perspective that deals largely in contemporary matters of the heart.

Freeman’s self-titled debut album will be available on February 5 through Free Dirt Records. Considering it’s already gathered buzz from the BGS, NPR, and Rolling Stone, it’s safe to say we’re catching the songbird before she soars away on quite the journey.

There’s already some significant buzz about your upcoming debut. How are you managing any excitement or anxiety you might feel about people finally getting to hear a fully realized album?

Well, I’m really excited, but it is a little bit overwhelming. I do have some nerves and anxiety over it but, for the most part, I’m really excited that everyone is getting to hear it and I’m really proud of it.

Do you have a favorite song on the album that you can’t wait for people to hear?

I really like the first track, “You Say,” and probably the country-sounding track, called “Go On Lovin’.” Those are my two favorites.

Speaking about “You Say,” I’m particularly struck by the lyrics to that song, especially the opening lines: “You say you can’t save me, but I never asked you to. Can’t you just believe that I only wanted to lie there with you?” There’s this modern-day feminist oscillation between being strong enough to stand alone, but still wanting company for the ride. Would you say there’s a particularly feminist approach to your songwriting?

Yeah, I mean, probably on a more subconscious level, but yeah that’s accurately an underlying theme in my songwriting: Dealing with relationships and breakups, and wanting to be strong and independent, but also wanting to have a partner through things.

How has Virginia and its storied musical region influenced you?

Oh, it’s had a huge influence. I grew up in a really musical, artistic family in southwest Virginia. My father and grandfather are both traditional musicians, and played bluegrass, old-time, and swing. I was surrounded by that music from birth on, and it’s had a huge impact on my songwriting and my influences, music-wise. Yeah, I feel like I owe a lot to my upbringing, to that area, and to that music.

What’s your family’s response been to your music?

I think they’re really proud, or at least … they seem to be really proud. I hope they are.
It seemed as though 2015 brought out some sharp, original female voices; I’m thinking of Natalie Prass and Courtney Barnett, especially. Each challenged their respective musical genres. How do you see yourself doing that with Americana?

I don’t really know if I have a specific intention. I just try to write from experience; I think that’s the most honest way you can write songs … or write anything for that matter. I draw on things that I’ve been through and things I know from growing up and influences that I’ve been surrounded by as a child and as an adult.

Your biography cites Rufus Wainwright as a writing influence, and there’s a mournful, honest quality to your music that certainly parallels what he’s done. What about his songwriting do you admire?

Yeah, Rufus is probably my favorite songwriter. I actually first heard him when I was 13 or 14; he was on a soundtrack to a play that I saw. It took me a few years to find out what it was, but when I heard his voice again, I made sure to figure out who it was, because it’s such an instantly recognizable voice. I’ve been a huge fan of his ever since. I really admire the honesty in his songwriting, and the originality of his music and lyrics, and how he sort of encompasses a lot of different genres and influences. He’s definitely my favorite musician and favorite songwriter.

Do you have a favorite song by him?

“Poses” is probably my favorite song.

That’s such a good one.

It’s such a good one, yeah.

Yeah, he almost has that confessional air to his writing, as if he’s sitting next to you talking, rather than putting on a performance onstage.

Absolutely. He’s not afraid to say anything. He doesn’t hide anything in his lyrics. He’s really honest, and I really admire that.

Not to get too gender-heavy here, but it seems as though male musicians can get away with that to a degree that female musicians sometimes can’t. If you even do this, how do you try to push back against being honest and having your opinion without anyone giving you any guff about it?

I totally agree with that. I think it’s much easier for male singers and songwriters to write really honest lyrics, whether it’s going through breakups or anything that has to do with relationships. I think it’s a lot easier as a male to get away with those songs. I think now we’re at a point where there are women who are writing songs now that aren’t afraid of that anymore. I just try to do the same thing, and be as honest as I can, and write what I’m feeling and what I’ve been through. It’s funny — it’s a lot easier for me to talk about those things in songs than it is for me to talk about those things, whether it be with friends or family or just in general. It’s a lot easier for me to get them out through songwriting than it is just talking.

Why do you think that is?

I don’t know. I’m not sure what that is. It just seems to be the easiest way for me to open up about things. For some reason, it’s a lot easier for me to open up about past experiences through writing songs than it would be if I were to try and sit down and talk about something with someone. It’s a lot easier for me to just put it into a song, maybe because singing and songwriting are the things I’m more confident in in my life. I think that’s why it’s a little bit easier for me.

Not to label everybody, but so many creative individuals seem to have a more introverted personality. It’s hard for them to have a one-on-one, but if you give them a creative medium, they’re able to express themselves quite freely.

Yeah, absolutely. Going back to your initial question about it being easier for males to get away with things in songwriting … I definitely think we’re at a time now where there are a lot of female singer/songwriters coming out writing really great stuff that you wouldn’t have necessarily heard, you know, 20 or 30 years ago.

Absolutely. And I long for the day when music doesn’t have such gender divides. Even if they seem to be fading to an extent, they certainly still exist.

I think it’s sort of the same thing as, you know, girls will get labeled a slut, rather than a guy who dates a bunch of girls. No one is going to say anything about him. I think it’s very similar in songwriting. Girls are going to be judged more if they write really personal, honest lyrics about something they’ve experienced versus if a guy were to write about the exact same thing.

True. I’m curious about recording in New York when what you’re doing sounds so antithetical to that city. Was that a weird juxtaposition for you?

It’s a totally weird juxtaposition, but I’ve always been really drawn to that — drawn to writing from a place of my background, where I come from in rural Virginia, and then pairing that with recording the album in New York. It’s the antithesis of the songs. I think it really brought something to the album. I like that it wound up just more modern-sounding, like backing instrumentation to pair with the lyrics. I think they really complemented each other and worked out very well.
What was it like working with your producer Teddy Thompson?

Oh, it was wonderful. I’ve been a huge fan of his for a long time, too, and discovered him through listening to Rufus. Of course, they’ve done quite a bit together, and they’re good friends. I’ve been listening to him for 10 years now, and never thought I’d get a response from him when I reached out, but he actually listened to my music. We talked some and exchanged some emails, and spoke on the phone, met in person, and then it just sort of seemed to snowball from there. Before I knew it, we were in the studio making the record. I still can’t believe it actually happened.

It seems so serendipitous to contact a producer and have them actually pay attention.

Yeah, I couldn’t believe that he actually responded. I think I got really lucky and caught him on a good day. He was wonderful to work with, really observant and specific about wanting to keep the record centered around my voice and the songwriting, and really careful to keep that the center of things.

I know your debut album has not yet dropped, but let’s have some fun and look ahead to the future. Who would you like to collaborate with down the road?

Well, Rufus will always be my first choice for that. I love the early — I mean all of it’s good — but I’m a big fan of the early Father John Misty stuff. He’d be another one that I’d love to collaborate with. My favorite female singer and songwriter is Kacey Musgraves.

You two would be killer together.

I love her; I’m such a big fan of hers. I think she’s really great and I’m so glad to see someone like her in a really male-dominated genre like country.

Going back to being honest, she’s someone who’s genuinely unafraid to say what’s on her mind.

I really admire that about her songwriting. She’s got a great voice, just the whole aesthetic of what she’s doing. I think it’s really great.

Photos courtesy of Kristin Horton and HearthPR

BGS Class of 2015: Songs

Posted on by Editor

What an overwhelmingly fantastic year for roots music! We couldn't fit all the greatness into our album list, so we picked another 21 of our favorite songs.

Anderson East, Delilah, "Find 'Em, Fool 'Em, and Forget 'Em"


A song from the heart of Southern soul music, AndersonEast found this little George Jackson/Rick Hall gem hiding down in Muscle Shoals and made it his own.

Brandi Carlile, The Firewatcher's Daughter, "The Stranger at My Door"

While "The Eye" would be the obviously outstanding song to pick, this little ditty is sneakily special and captures so much of what is great about Brandi Carlile.

Dave Rawlings Machine, Nashville Obsolete, "The Weekend"


It's always a good year when we get new music from Dave Rawlings Machine, and this opening track from Nashville Obsolete expresses a sentiment we can likely all relate to: hitting the weekend like a freight.

David Ramirez, Fables, "Harder to Lie"


This is one of those tunes that absolutely rocks you back on your heels with its unabashed forthrightness. Good luck getting past it to hear the rest of the record.

Drew Holcomb, Medicine, "American Beauty"


Drew Holcomb captured lightning in a bottle with "American Beauty" — a love song for anyone who has had to let go sooner than they wanted.

Glen Campbell, I'll Be Me, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You"


One of Campbell's final recordings, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You" may, at first listen, sound like a kiss-off to a former lover, but it was actually inspired by the legendary songwriter's ongoing battle with Alzheimer's, a fact that makes the depth of the lyrics and quality of the song all the more impressive.

HoneyHoney, 3, "Big Man"


Never did a song about the death of a "Big Man" sound so sweet. Suzanne Santo's voice is just about perfect … and the fiddle-laced song ain't too shabby, either.

Indigo Girls, One Lost Day, "Fishtails"


Amy Ray crafted some mighty fine tunes for the latest Indigo Girls' record, including this stunner that shows how powerful a well-placed horn part can be.

JD McPherson, Let the Good Times Roll, "Head Over Heels"


This Oklahoma boy knows how to rock ’n’ roll! Under the production guidance of Mark Neill, “Head Over Heels” sounds like the Flamingos went on an extended acid trip. Vibrato Fender dreams oscillate behind McPherson’s crooning, a chorus of handclaps, and a tack piano from Hell. Oh yeah, it’ll make you dance, too.

Julien Baker, Sprained Ankle, "Sprained Ankle"


“Wish I could write songs about anything other than death,” Julien Baker sings within the first seconds of this crippling ballad, led by an electric guitar and tritone anxiety. Having grown up in Memphis, the songwriter has the lyrical talent of a serious Delta blues player, but her music is darker and more daring than much of what Tennessee knows.

Kacey Musgraves, Pageant Material, "Good Ol' Boys Club"


Less outwardly biting than the album’s title track, this cut from Pageant Material stands out in a year dominated by a ridiculous question: Just where do women belong in the salad that is country music? Plus, that inside baseball slap-in-the-face to Big Machine is pretty rad.

LP, Muddy Waters, "Muddy Waters"


LP really knocked this darkly plodding one out of the park. Elements of it echo back to her pop past, but her bluesy roots are also showing.

Mavis Staples, Your Good Fortune, "Fight"


A collaboration with Son Little, this groovy track from Mavis Staples' EP snaps and snakes, using gospel-inspired backing vocals to drive it all home.

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, S/T, "S.O.B."


Ladies and germs, Nathaniel Rateliff has finally arrived. The Midwestern singer was bound to hit a new level of popularity with each year that passed — but that moment never seemed to arrive. That is, until Rateliff traded folk music for soul. Now you simply can’t escape that "S.O.B." This Stax-approved prison pen jam gets in its licks early, and washes it down with dirty bourbon.

Rayland Baxter, Imaginary Man, "Freakin Me Out"


We’re all losing our minds … some of us are just more freaked out by it than others. Rayland Baxter provides the sing-along anthem for those of us on the “more” end of the spectrum.

Rhiannon Giddens, Tomorrow Is My Turn, "Black Is the Color"


Rhiannon Giddens is known for her work with the Carolina Chocolate Drops, but she is also a formidable solo artist. This cover of an Appalachian folk tune — the excellent accompanying video for which was shot at historic Fisk University — shows off all Giddens has to offer: her soulful voice, knack for finding a groove, and ear for interpretation.

Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out, It's About Tyme, "Brown County Red"


This Kyle Burnett-penned tune is filled with danger, bootlegin’, and cold-blooded murder on the banks of the Ohio River. When a moonshiner emerges from his secret corn liquor corner, he has an unfortunate run-in with the law, killing dead a few deputies. It’s the bluegrass equivalent to Juice. Kid just can’t stop killing! The best part about “Brown County Red,” is that it’s cast upon a major key backdrop. Surreal does not begin to describe it.

Ryan Culwell, Flatlands, "Flatlands"


Hailing from the great expanse of nothingness known as the Panhandle of Texas, Ryan Culwell speaks fondly of his childhood home and its understated beauty. “Take me back where I can see miles of dirt in front of me,” he sings. It’s something every God-fearing Midwesterner/Southerner knows to be true: Life is easier in the heat and emptiness of the flatlands … but we left them anyway.

Sufjan Stevens, Carrie & Lowell, "The Only Thing"


The sonic equivalent of David Foster Wallace’s “Good Old Neon,” the important distinction being that Stevens’ narrator sees Perseus twinkling in the clear night sky just in time to correct the steering wheel. 

The Weather Station, Loyalty, "Way It Is, Way It Could Be"


From the mind of Canadian songwriter Tamara Lindeman comes this tune, “Way It Is, Way It Could Be” — a meditation on the other side of the fence. The place where the grass always seems to be greenest. The song, off the fabulous Loyalty, has the snowy imagery of an Edith Wharton novel and the leary suspicion of Virginia Woolf. Lindeman sings in falsetto equanimity: “Was it a look in your eye? I wasn’t sure. The way it is and the way it could be both are.” Painted with images of frozen Quebec, this opening track sets the mood for the Weather Station’s best album yet.

Wilco, Star Wars, "Random Name Generator"


Wilco’s surprise album also had a few surprise hits, like “Random Name Generator.” Like the song’s “flame creator” protagonist, this tune packs plenty of dirt and burn. “I think I miss my family I found,” Jeff Tweedy laments, resigning himself as a father who simply names things. It is one of recent Wilco’s most affecting songs.

For more musical goodness, check out the full Class of 2015. Follow the playlist on Spotify and add your own favorite songs to it:

Watch the First Clip from ‘I Saw the Light’

Posted on by Editor

Hank Williams fans have been eagerly awaiting I Saw the Light, the Tom Hiddleston-starring biopic set for a premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this week. Now, take a look at the first clip released from the film, courtesy of Hiddleston himself.

Other Roots Music News:

• Kacey Musgraves and Willie Nelson shared the video for their duet "Are You Sure."

• Listen to "One That Got Away," the new song from the Legendary Shack Shakers, at Rolling Stone. 

• In a quick but important break from the roots world, Survivor threatens to sue Mike Huckabee and Kim Davis over their use of "Eye of the Tiger." 

• Brittany Howard, Mavis Staples and more joined forces for a super jam with Stephen Colbert.