All Kinds of Country

Editor’s Note: Each issue of Good Country, our co-founder Ed Helms will share a handful of good country artists, albums, and songs direct from his own earphones in Ed’s Picks.

William Beckmann

Born and raised in a border town in Texas, singer-songwriter William Beckmann perfectly illustrates how Mexican folk, Tejano music, and country have always been closely intertwined. Latin folk is Americana; mariachi and Norteño are country. With Good Country like his, that connectedness feels intuitive – and obvious. Beckmann’s new album arrives June 20.


Rhiannon Giddens & Justin Robinson

Rhiannon Giddens & Justin Robinson, founding members of revered string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, reunite on a new old-time album, What Did The Blackbird Say to the Crow, which celebrates North Carolina repertoire, fiddle, banjo, and front porch pickin’. I’m excited to join them both – and many other special guests like Steve Martin, Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and more – at the Hollywood Bowl on June 18 for a special one-night-only edition of their Old-Time Revue.


The SteelDrivers

“Uneasy listening” or “bluegrass soul,” whatever you call their style of music, the SteelDrivers are a bluegrass institution. Their new album, Outrun, is their first with Sun Records, an excellent label match for a group that combines bluegrass, blues, country, and soul with music that’s equally at home in Nashville, Memphis, Muscle Shoals, and beyond. Love this band of ringers!


Jack Van Cleaf

There’s a new sort of Americana/country/Gen Z folk brewing between social media and music cities like Nashville, Chicago, and LA – and Jack Van Cleaf is at the center of its rise. Is it alt-country? Is it contemplative bedroom folk? Is it indie rock? Is it singer-songwriter Americana? It’s all of the above. Check out his latest LP, JVC, to discover your own terms for his striking style.


Watchhouse

My old pals Andrew and Emily were a pick last year when they guested on “Pink Skies” on Zach Bryan’s smash hit album, The Great American Bar Scene. Now they’re back with a full-length album of their own, Rituals, out today! We’ve been covering and collaborating with Watchhouse for over a decade, so stay tuned for more celebrations of the new record coming soon to BGS and Good Country.


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Photo Credits: William Beckmann by Connor Robertson; Rhiannon Giddens & Justin Robinson by Karen Cox; The SteelDrivers by Glenn Rose; Jack Van Cleaf by Joseph Wasilewski; Watchhouse by Jillian Clark.

LISTEN: Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz, “I Surely Will Be Singing”

Artist: Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “I Surely Will Be Singing”
Album: Surely Will Be Singing
Release Date: September 21, 2021
Label: Mountain Fever Records

In their Words: “We wrote this song at the beginning of the pandemic. We both noticed how much more we paid attention to bird life when everything slowed down. We also talked about the fact that while music is a career choice, it is important to continuously find joy in making music, without the need for outside approval — like a bird that sings to himself, with no regard for applause. This is a hymn to nature, and to the spirit of human resilience in the face of adversity.” — Tammy Rogers & Thomm Jutz


Photo credit: Anthony Scarlatti