In recent years, Tami Neilson has been learning to carry both great joy and great sorrow simultaneously. The New Zealand-based, Canada-born powerhouse’s new album, Neon Cowgirl, is named after the towering electric figure on a sign that’s overlooked Broadway in Nashville watching over Tami’s career since she was 16 years old. The songs were born from a five-month family road trip combined with a major musical tour that would allow Tami the once-in-a-lifetime chance to really give it her all with her career. It was the chance for her children to experience what her life was like at their age, when she toured the country with her family’s band, led by her eccentric and wildly lovable dreamer-father, Ron Neilson. Before she got the chance to hit the road for that trip, Tami landed in the ICU with sepsis and nearly lost her life. She blessedly recovered, but found that all her priorities centered around trip/tour had changed.
In our Basic Folk conversation, we talk about the songs on Neon Cowgirl, her dear friendship and collaborations with Willie Nelson, and Tami’s exciting performances at the Grand Ole Opry. One of the songs on Neon Cowgirl, “Keep On,” was inspired by a cosmic conversation she had with Wynonna Judd. Judd, to her surprise, quoted the same exact phrase – “Keep on, keep on, keep on” – that Tami’s late father had written in one of her most cherished letters.We also talk a lot about her brother, Jay Neilson. For all of her career and life, Jay has been by her side as her guitarist, co-writer, and musical partner. Last July, Jay suffered a rare and debilitating brain injury that he is still recovering from. Tami and Jay have not been able to perform together since that injury. She shares what it’s been like to be without Jay and how it’s been for him to be so public about his condition.
Tami Neilson and I first connected during the pandemic. She was a guest on the podcast after she released her 2020 album, Chickaboom!and again after she released her fifth album, Kingmaker, in 2022. Since those chats, I have loved following her career, listening to her new music, and experiencing her highs and lows with her. She’s one of my favorite guests and I’m thrilled to welcome Tami back to talk about her wonderful new record.
Welcome to the playlist you probably didn’t have on your bingo card this year: a series of songs spanning from gospel music to ’90s folk to contemporary singer-songwriters, all curated by a drag queen with a number one Christian album under her belt. I’m Flamy Grant, and I’m honored that BGS invited me to share the songs that healed my very gay, very religious trauma.
My first record was called Bible Belt Baby, so I know a thing or two about growing up in the shadow of a religious fervor that wants boys to be boys, girls to be girls, and gays to keep it in the closet. Here are a few of the songs that helped me not only to come out, but to let this little light of mine keep shining in the faces of a lot of people who’d prefer it were hidden under a bushel. Not today, gatekeepers. Not today. – Flamy Grant
“If You Ever Leave” – Flamy Grant
Oh, hello darling. I’m a drag queen with wares to sell. Of course I’m starting off this playlist with my new single! It is, at least, very much on topic. This ballad from my forthcoming record, CHURCH, pretty much speaks for itself, but I will offer this one, brief, supplemental thought: if there’s a God demanding your worship, but as you get to know him you discover that you are capable of loving people better and more completely than he is… don’t worship that God. Girl… it’s a trap.
“Undamned” – Over the Rhine
Outside of Amy Grant, no artist has had as much of an impact on me as Ohio-based duo Over the Rhine. Karin and Linford have saved my life ten times over. “I’m not your little lost lamb, God might still get my world undamned.” This song somehow manages to be both defiant (personally, my favorite posture) and repentant. Brazenly owning your apostasy while unabashedly surrendering to a cosmic, supernatural love at the same time? Slay. (Bonus: Lucinda Williams delivers an absolutely divine featured vocal. Undamn me anyday, Over the Rhine.)
“Wrap My Arms Around Your Name” – Sarah Masen
When I was growing up, I was only allowed to listen to Christian music. Sarah Masen was always a bit of a square peg in a round Christian music industry hole, and one of the first songwriters I encountered who addressed the conflict, doubt, and dissonance inherent to the faith everyone else around her was putting such a sheen on.
From the first line, “Mystery’s walking on my head again,” I was hooked on this song about yearning to feel deeply spiritually connected. “Does hallelujah wear the same old face?” Excellent existential question, Sarah. Thanks for giving my teenage angst a place to freely ask it.
“Amy’s Song” – Matt Simons
Back in 2018, I was a worship leader for a queer-affirming church in San Diego and we decided for Pride month that year that we would put on a worship service that was 100% produced, led, and delivered by our queer members. I even wanted to make sure every song we sang had been written (or co-written, in this case) by a card-carrying member of the alphabet mafia. I found “Amy’s Song” and loved the music and the message: “Does your God really give a damn” about who I love?
The twist for me was in discovering that one of the song’s co-writers, and its namesake, Ames, and I had played a show together years before in when we were both closeted and going by different stage names. I led “Amy’s Song” at our church that Sunday and Ames and I have since reconnected online. We’ve even been talking about writing something together one of these days. “Amy’s Song 2: The Ballad of Flamy,” perhaps? (Pro tip: after you listen, go watch the music video and making-of mini-doc, both on Matt Simons’ YouTube page. Bring Kleenex.)
“breathe again” – Joy Oladokun
Honestly, it was hard to pick just one song from Joy Oladokun’s extensive repertoire of musical remedies for the religiously wronged. She is both plainspoken and poignant, capturing the heartbreak so many queer people experience when we grow up in families and cultures that suffocate us in a shame-inducing, manipulative desecration of divine love. Joy’s voice in this song just melts me, and it’s a breath of fresh air for the closeted kid I used to be when she uses it to sing, “If I hold my breath until I’m honest, will I ever breathe again?”
“Someday You’ll Wake Up Okay” – Spencer LaJoye
This is inner child work of the highest order and nobody translates the specific into the universal with such clarity as my friend Spencer. “You won’t hear me, but I’ll think it from the future.” Oof. Also, who knew healing your inner child could be such a bop?
“Holy Sunlight” – Steven Delopoulos
Something about the music of Stephen Delopoulos, who fronted the ’90s Christian band Burlap to Cashmere, just feels reverent. It’s like high-church Paul Simon. This song reminds me that even when we’re leaving, we’re really not. “Pack my luggage, fake a smile/ Don’t cry, we’re all connected like the ocean sea.”
“Faith” – Semler
No one is more emblematic of a reckoning for the Christian music industry to me than my pal Semler, who was the first out queer artist to have a number one Christian record a couple years back. In “Faith,” they are eye-level with the abusers of power in the church they’re confronting. “Don’t pretend I’m not your body.” GOOSEBUMPS, HUN. And it’s a song that somehow doubles as a powerful worship anthem of sorts for the disenfranchised? We’re here, we’re queer, and we still have faith, dear. I live.
“Shiloh” – Audrey Assad
I had stopped listening to CCM by the time Audrey got her record deal with juggernaut Christian label Sparrow Records back in 2010, so I missed most of her early career. But during the pandemic, I learned about this (wildly-talented) artist that Christian media outlets were criticizing for “backsliding.” Don’t tempt me with a good time, I said. Audrey and I have become friendly on social media since then, and she’s so much more than a good time. She’s a healer. This song in particular patches up a new part of me every time I hear it. God bless the ones who leave the church but never stop providing care for souls.
“The Way You Get Found” – Story & Tune
I’m proud to say I was the first person to ever hear this excellent song, in the basement of the San Diego house I shared during pandemic with its writers, Karyn and Ben. The line that got me then still gets me today: “I bless the way you carve your name on the gate-kept inner sanctums where they said you couldn’t stay.” Absolute pros, these two, crafting an artful turn of phrase that not only perfectly fits the demanding cadence of the song, but delivers a well-placed gut punch to folks who know what it’s like to stand up to religious bullies when they say we can’t be on their playground.
“Jacob from the Bible” – Jake Wesley Rogers
This song came through my Spotify algorithm one day and stopped me in my tracks. Of course, now Jake is a world famous colorful crooner and besties with Elton John, etc., but when this song came out, I was able to reach him online and successfully petitioned him to be on my podcast. You can still listen to that conversation. We talk about this song, where it came from, what it meant to each of us, and why Jake should definitely be our first gay president. For me, it feels like a life-giving extraction from all the oppressive weight of religious expectation. “I don’t want to be held down by a heavenly man.” Makes me think of Jacob from the Bible when he defeated the angel in an all night wrestling match. (Hot!) And honey, wrestling with God? Relatable.
“Testify to Love” – Wynonna
Okay, this might be the only bonafide CCM hit in the mix. It was originally recorded by Christian supergroup Avalon and if you were anywhere near Christianity in 1997/98, this song is In. Your. Bones. Every once in a while when I’m playing to an audience of a certain age — the ones who were in youth group about the same time as me — I’ll bust this out as a cover during my set and, well, let’s just say it’s so cute to watch half the room have a dramatic That’s So Raven-style flashback. But I propose to you that at the end of the day, it’s a gay song. I mean, the opening lyric is, “All the colors of the rainbow!” It’s all about how love wins!
What really seals the deal is Wynonna Judd’s countrified cover of the song from a very special episode of Touched by an Angel. I dare you to listen and not agree that Christianity peaked in 1997 and we should frankly just ignore everything that’s come out of evangelicalism since this song ruled the airwaves.
“House of Spirits” – Allman Brown
London-based singer-songwriter Allman Brown taps right into all of our generational trauma and father wounds with this achingly gorgeous spiritual about how it feels to sit vigil by the deathbed of a parent who “damned my soul to the fires.” As someone with a damaged and deeply strained relationship with an ultra-religious father who’s still alive, this song gives me a glimpse into the journey ahead, and I find myself praying along with Allman that one day that house of spirits “will feel like home.”
“What You Heard” – Amy Grant
An Amy Grant song on this list was inevitable, but far less likely is a song from a parent who learned better communication skills by going to family therapy with her kids. But that’s exactly what we have in this, the first new song from the Queen of Christian Pop in a decade. I saw Amy perform it last year and she told the story of how group therapy with her family helped her understand that some of the ways she thought she was communicating love to her kids weren’t exactly landing that way on their ears. It’s the kind of thing most survivors of religious trauma can only dream of: a God-fearing parent gaining perspective later in life and using therapy tools to change behavior? A better relationship through effective communication? May we all be so fortunate. But even if we’re not, my favorite diva (she would never call herself that, so someone has to) has gifted us with this beautifully-written song that shows it’s possible. Amy and amen.
“May I Suggest” – Susan Werner
I’ll leave you with the best benediction that’s ever been spoken (sung) over me. I wish someone had invited me to the Susan Werner party years ago, so I’m making it my mission to bring as many plus-ones as possible now that I’m here. Actually, in a way, I’ve been here since high school, I just didn’t know it. The first time I heard this song was as a cover by Ellis Paul and Vance Gilbert back in the late ’90s, but I just assumed it was theirs. Then about a year ago, a friend sent me a track by Susan called “Our Father,” in which she expertly/hilariously reimagines the Lord’s Prayer (“Deliver us from those who think they’re you”). I was hooked and started working my way through her catalog, but it wasn’t until I saw her live at the Kerrville Folk Festival earlier this year that I learned she was the composer of this song I loved when I was 17.
When she sat down at a baby grand and soulfully set out to convince a field full of festival-goers that “this is the best part of your life,” I openly wept. It’s tempting after you escape from oppressive, high-demand religion to fall into the trap of regret for a lost youth and years of missed chances. Susan invites us to consider the other side of that coin: thanks to the trauma you’ve survived, “Inside you know what’s yours to finally set right.” The next time Susan is anywhere near you, drag yourself (yes I said DRAG) and everyone you love to the show — and hope that she sings this benediction over you, too.
What is Good Country? A great question, to be sure. It’s a new brand coming from BGS in 2024 that will feature all good country. A bi-weekly email newsletter that’s curated and one-of-a-kind, Good Country will feature long reads, playlists, videos, interviews, and more all highlighting the best of country music from across the roots music landscape.
But what is good country? A much more nebulous question! As one wise social media commenter put it, “You’ll believe it when you hear it.” We posed the “What is good country?” question to our BGS contributors and the year-end list they’ve put together is striking in its depth, breadth, inclusion – and it’s full of good country, certainly. From Tanner Adell’s boundary-pushing, pop-inflected country trap to Dean Johnson’s retro, genuine sounds; from Jelly Roll to Kara Jackson, “Fast Car” to “Lavender Country,” good country has been all around us all year.
Whatever good country is to you, we hope you’ll find plenty of it below, within our list of country favorites from across 2023. And, we hope these albums, songs, and performances whet your appetite for plenty more Good Country, coming from BGS in early 2024. Sign up now to be one of the first to enjoy our upcoming newsletter, direct to your email inbox.
Tanner Adell, Buckle Bunny Before we forget, “Old Town Road” was not only a novelty, but a masterpiece of a country song, and a reminder that the South has always been a vulgar mix – the more vulgar, the more forward-thinking, and the more complexly, political. In a rejoinder to stupid, butch truck songs – and a specific “fuck you” to people like Aldean – Adell’s Buckle Bunny is filled with all kinds of specific geographic detail (see the chorus to “Bake It,” which goes: “Brown sugar caramel/ Ding ding Patti LaBelle/ Sweet potato pussy pie/…”) in service of sexual and political liberation.
On the highlight of the album, “FU 150,” she owns the truck, the means of production, and any man who trifles with either her or her truck. This has been a year of ambivalent women pushing against dumb men (See Pillbox Patti, Elle King, Tigirlily Gold, Kelsea Ballerini, Hannah Dasher, etc.), but this might be the best time I had listening to music this year, and considering how much we had to endure, can’t we have a little bit of fun? – Steacy Easton
“Fast Car” – Luke Combs, via Tracy Chapman It’s painfully obvious how long overdue it is for Tracy Chapman to be recognized, in this way, as a pivotal American songwriter – plus, the absurdity of her being the first Black person ever to win CMA’s Song of the Year. Still, it’s worth celebrating just how great it is to hear “Fast Car” on the radio again, and for a whole new legion of fans to discover it. – Amy Reitnouer Jacobs
Sierra Ferrell, “Fox Hunt” and “The Garden” We would be remiss if we failed to include the astoundingly radiant Sierra Ferrell from our inaugural year-end round-up for Good Country. From her baffling multi-instrumentalism to her gilded attire to the floral ornamentation of her microphone, Ferrell has captivated the hearts of troves of roots music fans across the globe. Most recently, she graced us with her single, “Fox Hunt,” and “The Garden,” an original song recorded for the soundtrack of The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes.
Each release is enchanting in its own right; “Fox Hunt” corrals listeners to the dance floor with its sturdy backbeat and fiery fiddles, while “The Garden” delivers a gorgeous, melancholic waltz full of gentle mourning and fertile metaphor. Ferrell’s capacity to encapsulate such a wide range of emotions through the many textures and tonalities of her talent casts her as a superlative country artist of this day and age. We anticipate, with great impatience, the release of her next album, due to arrive sometime in early 2024. – Oriana Mack
Amanda Fields, What, When and Without Whether singing with a hard-driving bluegrass band (like 2019’s “Brandywine”), or atop a pedal steel and gut-strung upright bass, Amanda Fields’ voice cuts right through the mix to deliver thoughtful and resonating lyrics. This is the case on What, When and Without, Fields’ first full-length album, and her first project in the country music realm. Produced by Megan McCormick, the album is a master class in taste, musical restraint, and great singing and songwriting. Fields’ Appalachian-inflected vocal, rested on this sonic foundation, says good country about as clearly as it can. You’re going to want to put on headphones for this one! – Thomas Cassell
Paisley Fields at The Knitting Factory, October 15 What is obvious is that Paisley Fields is an important songwriter and a frontperson of immense talent. What only became clear to me at the Knitting Factory’s new Baker Falls, New York City location on October 15th is that Paisley is also an angel. It might have been the reflection of stage lights on sequin, or the fiery righteousness of blues-rocker “Burn This Statehouse Down” (a Mya Byrne co-write), but I left the show convinced of their divine purpose as a prophet of cosmic country. During the encore, I joined the band on stage for an impromptu tribute to our dear departed auntie Patrick Haggerty and forgot all the words to “Lavender Country,” but the whole room sang, “Y’all come out, come out” until I remembered. – Lizzie No
Kara Jackson, Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love? You might find Kara Jackson’s manner frank and plain-spoken. That’s a trap. Yes, the young Chicago-raised singer, songwriter, and poet (she was the US Youth Poet Laureate for 2019-20) puts much on the surface, but it’s slippery, shifting ground. It’s right there in the title of her first full album, Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love?, a question with no answer. She contemplates such things as if on a walk in the park – wandering, meandering. The genre-defiant music, crafted with collaborators Kaina Castillo, Sen Orimoto, and Nnamdi Ogbonnaya, meanders with her, ducking down shadowy side paths, hiding behind trees, dancing in light shimmering through leaves – a short banjo coda here, a swelling choir there. And still questions with no answers, this love and life stuff. In the title song and spiritual center, she laments a friend’s death: “Why does the earth give us people to love, then give them a sickness that kills?” It’s a trap, but it’s going to be fascinating to watch this exceptional artist try to sort it out. – Steve Hochman
Jelly Roll, CMA’s New Artist of the Year My favorite country artist of the year was Jason DeFord, better known as Jelly Roll. He enjoyed a monster year both commercially and industry wide, winning 2023 CMA New Artist of the Year honors and topping all male country vocalists overall with five nominations. He also earned three CMT Music Awards, with his powerhouse anthem “Son Of A Sinner” – in my view a more explosive and dynamic tune than “Need A Favor.” His performance of the latter with Wynonna Judd and “Love Can Build A Bridge” with K. Michelle during the CMA Awards broadcast were among the program’s highlights, as well as being emblematic of his performing charisma and adaptability. But the documentary, Jelly Roll: Save Me (available on Hulu), documented his troubled teen past and redemption from incarceration and addiction, as well as the many current philanthropic activities that’s seen him use his stardom to aid and inspire others. It represents Jelly Roll’s larger societal impact beyond the music world. He’s also combined a love for classic country, as well as folk and even hip-hop, into a distinctive, identifiable and magnetic sound that made his 44+ city Backroad Baptism Tour one of the year’s best. – Ron Wynn
Dean Johnson, Nothing for Me, Please Some of us release music relentlessly from a young age and have to get comfortable with the public watching us learn and grow on the job. Others, such as Seattle’s Dean Johnson, wait until they are fifty to release a debut album and then absolutely knock it out of the park from song one. When a friend sent me “Shouldn’t Say Mine,” I assumed it was from a ‘60s era country artist that everyone else knew about but that I had somehow missed. Wouldn’t you know, it’s from Dean Johnson’s Nothing for Me, Please, released this very year on Mama Bird Records. Mama Bird releases some of the best West Coast roots music, including other favorites of mine, like Anna Tivel and Courtney Marie Andrews, and this new release by Johnson will be making waves for years to come. – Rachel Baiman
Brennen Leigh, Ain’t Through Honky Tonkin’ Yet You know what? Thank goodness Brennen Leigh ain’t through honky tonkin’ yet, someone needs to keep the neon lights burning and the juke box bumpin’ – and we’re glad that someone is Leigh. An album for the lonesome boot scooters, for the belt buckles longing for another to rub up against, Leigh’s prowess as a country alchemist is on fully display, combining sounds from the Midwestern plains, east and central Texas, and Nashville’s lower Broadway refracted through East Nashville and Madison. It’s old country, “real” country, alt country, outlaw country, and more, but most importantly it’s honest, true – and it’s danceable. What’s more traditional than country music that’ll draw tears and flat-footing? The cherry on top of all of it is the picking – you can hear the influence of Leigh’s bluegrass upbringing in every track, like Skaggs in his radio hits heyday or Vince Gill’s bluegrass tinged albums. – Justin Hiltner
Ruby Leighon The Voice 16-year-old Foley, Missouri native Ruby Leigh moved both Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani to tears on her first live show appearance on The Voice, when she performed a version of McEntire’s own “You Lie,” from the Voice coach’s 1990 album Rumor Has It. Leigh’s vocals are strong and beautiful, and slightly more developed since her September audition for the show. Then, she performed Patsy Montana’s Country & Western classic, “I Want Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart,” and got all four judges to turn their chairs – The Voice’s equivalent of a unanimous vote.
The crowds seem to love Leigh as much as the celebrity coaches do. In that clip, with Leigh decked out in red and black Western wear, audience members held up red hair signs to indicate that Leigh should pick McEntire as her coach, which she astutely did. Since her television debut, Leigh has racked up thousands of followers and hundreds of supportive comments on Facebook and other social media platforms — all while performing a super classic repertoire and sound. She even yodels! It’s hard not to love Leigh’s moxy, and it’s just as exciting to see people getting thrilled about country music again. Here’s hoping Leigh continues a winning streak on The Voice, and helps folks see what made this genre so good in the first place. – Lonnie Lee Hood
Mipso, Book of Fools Mipso has never been entirely bluegrass so much as bluegrass-adjacent, and the North Carolina quartet’s sixth album finds them farther from conventional roots music than ever. But it’s in service to an artistic identity all their own, with lush pop tones and minor-key vibes predominating. As always, Mipso’s most recognizable sonic signature is the dual lead-vocal approach between Libby Rodenbough’s atmospheric dreaminess and Joseph Terrell’s plainspoken drawl. When they come together to harmonize on “Carolina Rolling By,” it’s truly heavenly. The true leap forward on Book of Fools, however, is Terrell’s guitar, which is every bit up to the standards of the singing. It’s jittery and angular on “Radio Hell,” moody on “I Wait For Your Call,” and jagged enough on “Broken Heart/Open Heart” to live up to a title like that. – David Menconi
Lizzie No, “The Heartbreak Store” Lizzie No’s “The Heartbreak Store” isn’t just a catchy country tune, it’s a lifeline for the heartbroken. Inspired by a transformative tour with queer country trailblazer Patrick Haggerty, the video embodies a message of belonging and acceptance through line dancing. Country music often overlooks queer voices, however Lizzie’s anthem becomes a resonant declaration, echoing the ethos of unity and visibility. With every note, it stitches a musical tapestry of compassion, offering solace and celebration for those who’ve felt the pain of heartbreak, yet hope of community. In under three minutes, it becomes a powerful testament to resilience and love. – Cindy Howes
Jobi Riccio, Whiplash We’re at last reaching a point where queer creators in roots music are being enabled to offer their identities not as the sole complication or subversion of country norms in their music, but as just one of many inputs that wrinkle and challenge ideas of what country is and to whom it can belong. Singer-songwriter Jobi Riccio has had a breakneck year, with seemingly endless momentum piling up behind her stellar debut, Whiplash. Where the first press releases and official narratives around the album centered a “rainbow cowgirl” story, as critical mass continued to grow behind this set of songs, one could sense Riccio intentionally carving out space for their agency among that momentum. Carefully and deliberately, Riccio has re-centered focus away from reductive “rainbow cowgirl” constructions and toward what matters most: The music.
The music is certainly what deserves the focus, with queerness infused throughout, as if just one of Riccio’s own claims to the “outlaw” movement or as a purposeful snare for normative country expectations. Because these songs are straight-ahead good country – there’s a touch of kd lang’s approach, or the Chicks’, or Indigo Girls’ – Riccio’s identity is still indelible, it shines on every single track. It needs no artificial spotlight, or to be considered monolithic. As they discuss class, image, consumption, heartbreak, restlessness, and so much more, queerness is just one of the many entrancing, complicated threads begging to be pulled as you canter along with Whiplash. – Justin Hiltner
Jordyn Shellhart, Primrose Those who enjoy the confessional aspects of country music – but crave an unexpected sound and some humanistic insight – should check out Jordyn Shellhart. An emerging singer-songwriter who released Primrose, her album debut in 2023, she stands boldly apart for a singular voice and crystalline roots-pop style, with equally-exceptional lyrics. Whether breezily defying a cultural convention, delivering a mic-drop romantic kiss-off, rhetorically destroying the clueless cruelty of a teenage boy or dissecting her own mental wellness (or lack thereof), her songs are filled with nuance and sharp, straight-to-the-bone hooks, twisting and contorting along the often irregular path of real life. With the power to make a crowd of jaded journos cry, but very little exposure, she’s almost criminally under-appreciated – although we could fix that. – Chris Parton
Photo Credit: Lizzie No by Cole Nielsen; Brennen Leigh by Brooke Cooper; Kara Jackson by Lawrence Agyei.
Newport Folk has long been a place where legendary moments are formed. The festival achieved yet another moment in its storied history last weekend when Joni Mitchell joined Brandi Carlile during the festival’s closing jam, marking the iconic songwriter’s first return to the festival in over half a century and first public live performance in decades. Brandi & Co. gave us a moment we all needed. Hearing Joni’s words and calming, dulcet tones was a balm for an uncertain society; a collective pause for us to reflect on time and its passing, and how different the world looks since the last time Joni played this stage.
We’ve rounded up a collection of the best videos around the internet from Joni’s historic set so that even if you weren’t there, you can take that joy in from every angle.
Brandi Introduces Joni
Questlove caught much of Brandi’s introductory speech building the excitement for the Joni Jam – and a bit of electric uncertainty among the crowd whether or not the guest of honor would actually be in attendance – as well as the first two numbers (“Carey” and “Come in From the Cold”) up close and personal.
But it’s wholly worth watching Brandi’s speech in its entirety, as she acknowledges the power of congregation and radical love. “To power structures, folk music is — and always has been — utterly fucking destructive… It’s a truth teller and a power killer.”
Although she’s been an entertainer for decades, Wynonna says she hasn’t ever been much for making music around the house – at least not until this year.
“I think it’s because I was so famous at 18 that the time home was spent just being quiet, because my world was so noisy,” she tells BGS. “Somebody who came to stay with us for a couple of days made a comment, ‘How come I never hear you hum or sing around the house?’ And I looked at her and I was like, ‘I don’t know!’ I had never thought of it.”
If nothing else, life in quarantine has given this country legend time to think. After all, she’s been touring since the ‘80s, first with the Judds, then as a solo artist, and eventually some of both. 2020 is the first extended break she’s taken since late ’94 and early ’95, for the birth of her son, Elijah, who is now a first responder. (She’s making a lunch for him as we’re speaking.) Off the road now for six months, she says her routine has gone from staring off into space every night, to doing Facebook Live sessions with her husband Cactus Moser, to calling up old friends and dusting off her vinyl records.
And to show for her efforts, she’s releasing an EP of covers titled Recollections. The five-song set offers her intimate, off-the-cuff renditions of classics like Grateful Dead’s “Ramblin’ Rose,” Nina Simone’s “Feelin’ Good” and John Prine’s “Angel From Montgomery,” with some of the project’s audio tracks taken directly from her Facebook live sets. She called BGS from her farm in Franklin, Tennessee, to talk about all of it, and offered a film recommendation, too.
BGS: While listening to this EP, I was pleased to hear that you and I have the same favorite verse of “Angel From Montgomery.” What was on your mind when you recorded that one?
Wynonna: Well, it’s tough and it’s a part of life… I was in the living room and I was just practicing. I haven’t done this much practicing in a long time, but I’m home and what else is there to do?! [Laughs] And I got a text from my agent who was a personal friend of John Prine and his family, and he said that John had passed. I sat there, and it’s one of those weird moments in your life when you get that call. I was overwhelmed, sitting there, and all of a sudden — I’m not kidding — I just started to play it on my guitar. I thought, “Oh my God! Oh my God!” I’ve known this song since I was 15 years old, and I started playing it like I played it all those years ago.
I kid you not, Cactus comes in and I looked at him, he looked at me, and I started singing it – he got tears in his eyes, because it was a moment. It’s like that moment when you stand there doing your vows, it’s just a heavy moment. And I said, “I think we need to do this tonight.” So we did it on Facebook Live, which is what you’re hearing. We’re sitting there together and it’s me paying tribute to my hero. One of my heroes is John Prine and we must not forget what this man gave to us. It was one of those sweet, beautiful moments of reflection on my part of how far I’ve come as an artist.
I know you play acoustic guitar on that, too. Which guitar did you play?
I played the biggest Gibson you can get. I’ve always played a big guitar, for obvious reasons. I’ve always felt like the one I have is my weapon. It’s like the biggest guitar you can buy. I was 18 years old and I needed — like when soldiers go into battle and like in Game of Thrones they’d always hold up the shield — it’s my shield. It’s my weapon. So, yeah, I just played it that night and he recorded it and kept it. I said, “Honey, I think this is important.” Because it’s a snapshot of my experience that day.
I love to hear you sing “Feelin’ Good.” I’d read you sang this at a women’s prison, too. Tell me about that experience.
Pretty deep. It was pretty deep. I had played down the hair. I thought, “Now is not the time. I’m not on stage.” I found myself being in that moment with the women. I was standing there, telling my story, talking to the women. It was one of those moments where I don’t know what to say. … So, I just started to sing. I think it made a difference in the room, because these women could sit there for a moment and feel better. That’s what I do as my go-to — I start singing.
I don’t know what you do, but we all have a coping skill, and I think for me that day it was music. I think it’s an important as an artist to not forget your gift. Sometimes we can, if we get distracted. So, this time at home has been devastating at times, yet so life-giving, that the music reflects just that. You’ll hear tough and tender in my voice because there are days when I can’t even get out of bed without crying. And then there are some days I hop out of bed and I am freakin’ Wonder Woman.
Now that you’ve been home probably longer than you ever have in your life, have you developed any morning routines to propel you through your day?
So, on March 14, I cleared the bus. I’ve had a bus since 1984, so that was bizarre. It was like moving to another country. I came into the house and I went, “What the hell do I do now?” So I spent five weeks – you can tell I counted – of doing absolutely nothing. I got really frustrated, because I was lost! It was 8 o’clock at night and I would stare off into the night and go, “I should be doing a show. I should be with my fans. I should be with people. I should be on the road.”
Wynonna and Cactus Moser
I found myself doing nothing. And I think that’s what I needed. I’m going to do a testimonial. I’m writing a book in my head right now, and I’m going to put it to paper, like you as a writer: “What do I do today? What did I do today? What did I want to do today? What do I have to do today?” And how do you find life in that? So I went through the same stuff you have, like most of my fan family: “What do I do?” …
And I started to practice. My husband goes, “Yeah, honey, um… I don’t know if you’ve done this in a while.” It took a minute though. I had to self-start, which was hard for me, because I’ve always been given my schedule, and I go to the airport, and I hustle through, and I make it. You know what I’m saying? We’re used to doing and going and being really successful! What do you do when you’re home for six months?! What do you do, man!!
So when you say “practice,” were you practicing songwriting? Guitar?
Yes, all of it! I came home and, like the rest of America, I gained weight and let my roots grow out. I’m not wearing any undergarments. … And when you come home, and you’re on the farm – I haven’t left but maybe half a dozen times in six months — it’s very strange. What do you do? You have to find a new purpose. And my new purpose was writing, and I started calling people on the phone. Ooh!
You know how it is, you start reconnecting with people you want to reconnect with. There was a lot of forgiveness. There were a lot of relationships where I needed to go back and say, “Hey, man, I missed your wedding and I’m really, really sad about that.” Then you start a conversation. This is really important stuff, right? You don’t have time for that – you don’t make time for that – because you’re too busy being fabulous.
Have you been pulling out your vinyl records, too? And listening to music you’ve loved in the past?
Yep! I’m doing it in a way I needed to, and I don’t know that I would have if it hadn’t been for me being at home like I am. I’ll be honest. I was taught to be a doer, a mover and a shaker. I got caught up in that, and when I came home, I felt like, “If I put everything away, that means I’m stuck at home.” It took months and months and months, and finally I was like, “Oh, for God’s sake, I’m tired of looking at all my stage clothes and my undergarments! Put ‘em away!” And I was like, “No, I don’t want to because that means you’re dead!”
Anyway, I did it, and I thought, “You have to find life at home, woman!” You know, you’ve got life on the road. What is it like at home? So I started to do that, and I started to… listen to music! I started to watch documentaries. You have to watch the two-part documentary on Laurel Canyon. You have to watch it, dude, you have to. You know why? Because it’s important! You see the Eagles, when they’re teenagers, and they’re in L.A. trying to write songs. You see Jackson Browne, who’s 19, standing in line at the Whisky a Go Go. It’s awesome!
BGS did a story on that movie and interviewed Chris Hillman about it, too. It’s a fascinating history.
Oh, that’s another thing! I wanted to throw this in here: So I started to have a beautiful relationship with people I never see, and Chris is one of them. Because I got the number from my husband, I’m texting Robert Weir — and he’s texting me back! And I’m going, “OK… what are the chances?!” [Laughs]
Bob Weir’s on this new record, too.
He is, and it started out being a little bit of a dare. Cactus said, “I want you to learn a Grateful Dead song,” and I said, “Why?” Seriously, I said “Why?” Now, how arrogant is that?! I didn’t understand, not really. All of a sudden I’m learning the song and I’m going, “What the heck is this line about writing Frankenstein?” Then I started learning the song’s history and the meaning of it, so now I’ve become a student of rock ‘n’ roll. I started to study and learn the song and understand. “Ramble on Rose” – oh, there’s a story here. It’s not just a song that’s in the background as you’re smoking a joint!
I believe that when something is a God thing, and meant to be, it’s easy. There’s an ease to it. It doesn’t require an agenda or manipulation. And the next thing I know — and this is no exaggeration — the guy, the legend, the man is coming to Nashville to do something with Dwight Yoakam. And he’s at our gate! We’re buzzing him in to come down to the home studio, which is basically a shed with a lot of nice flooring. And we do a song together! And I go, well, nobody would believe me: “Hey, Robert Weir’s over here and we’re singing ‘Ramble on Rose.’ Yeah, cool!” [Laughs] It’s just fun and I want to get away with as much of this as I possibly can.
When it comes to roots music, the MerleFest 2019 lineup is tough to beat. From bluegrass heroes to country legends, along with a number of perennial favorites like the Avett Brothers, this year’s four-day event promises to be one for the record books. Where to begin? Check out the BGS daily preview below.
Editor’s Note: MerleFest 2019 will take place April 25-28 in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. The Bluegrass Situation is proud to present the Late Night Jam on Saturday, April 27. Get tickets.
THURSDAY, APRIL 25
Headliner: Wynonna
No one else on earth has a voice like Wynonna. Of course she got her start in the Judds, which brought an acoustic flavor back to mainstream country music in the 1980s. She’s also frequently cited Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard as among her earliest musical influences. You’ll surely hear the hits, yet a new record deal with Anti- means that more music is on the way.
Don’t miss: Junior Brown can wow a crowd with his “guit-steel” double neck guitar, not to mention wry tunes like “My Wife Thinks You’re Dead.” Dailey & Vincent know a thing or two about quick wit, with their fast-talking banter tying together a repertoire of bluegrass, country, and gospel. Accomplished songwriter Radney Foster issued a new album and a book – both titled For You to See the Stars – in 2017. North Carolina’s own bluegrass combo Chatham County Line kicks off the day, likely with a few familiar tunes from their new album, Sharing the Covers.
FRIDAY, APRIL 26
Headliner: Tyler Childers
With the album Purgatory, Tyler Childers captivated fans who demand authenticity from their favorite artists. The acclaimed project falls in that sweet spot where Americana, bluegrass and country music all merge gracefully. Yet the sonic textures of “Universal Sound” show that he’s not stuck in the past. In a crowded field of newcomers, Childers’ distinctive singing voice and incisive writing set him apart.
Don’t miss: If you’re into guys who write quality songs, then you’re in luck. Leading up to Childers’ set, fans can dig into the likes of Amos Lee, The Milk Carton Kids, The Black Lillies, American Aquarium, and Steve Poltz. If bluegrass is more your style, check out Mile Twelve and Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice in the early afternoon. Before that, make the most of your lunch break with country music from Michaela Anne and Elizabeth Cook. The Chris Austin Songwriting Competition is worth a stop, too.
SATURDAY, APRIL 27
Headliner: Brandi Carlile
Brandi Carlile catapulted into a new phase of her career by singing “The Joke” on the Grammys this year, not to mention winning three awards before the show. However, dedicated fans have followed her ascent since her auspicious 2005 debut album and its exceptional follow-up, The Story. She’s a master at engaging a crowd and a Saturday night headlining slot at MerleFest is yet another feather in her cap.
Don’t miss: Doc Watson himself would have approved of all the bluegrass artists on Saturday, such as Sam Bush Band, The Earls of Leicester, the Gibson Brothers, and Molly Tuttle. Keb’ Mo, Donna the Buffalo, and Webb Wilder converge upon Americana from different originas, yet they are united in their ability to electrify a crowd – even at a mostly acoustic festival. Folk fans should swing by The Brother Brothers, Carolina Blue, Driftwood, Ana Egge, Elephant Sessions, and The Waybacks. The Kruger Brothers always offer a pleasurable listening experience, too. Still not ready for the tent? Drop by the Late Night Jam, hosted by Chatham County Line and presented by yours truly, BGS. You won’t want to miss the set of special collaborations and true, on the spot, one of a kind jams with artists from all across the festival lineup.
SUNDAY, APRIL 28
Headliner: The Avett Brothers
The Avett Brothers elevate the MerleFest experience by bringing together a multitude of influences, from string bands to stadium rock. The charming track “Neopolitan Sky” dropped in February, employing a Tom Petty vibe and a surprisingly scaled-back production, as well as the sibling harmony that’s central to their sound. The North Carolina natives are proud fans of Doc Watson, so here’s hoping for “Shady Grove” to go along with fan faves like “Live and Die,” “Murder in the City,” and “I and Love and You.”
Don’t miss: The Del McCoury Band always brightens a Sunday afternoon with traditional bluegrass and any number of hollered requests. Steep Canyon Rangers will deliver a set inspired by the North Carolina songbook. After that, the ever-prolific Jim Lauderdale will take the stage with a set drawing from his country and bluegrass career. Early risers will be treated to morning music from Lindi Ortega, who hit a career high of creativity with her newest album, Liberty. Also of note: Jeff Little Trio, Andy May, Mark and Maggie O’Connor, Peter Rowan, Scythian, Larry Stephenson Band, Yarn, and all the good vibes that MerleFest has to offer.
Photo credit: Willa Stein
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