Wanted! – Notable Americana and Roots Music Releases for 2020

2019 turned out to be another excellent year for Americana and roots music. Releases from John Paul White, Buddy and Julie Miller, Chuck Mead, Tanya Tucker, and many others were cause for celebration for the music we love. Roots radio continues to gain listeners and mainstream country radio continues to, occasionally, remember its roots and reflect the shift in tastes of a growing fan base.

But radio is just part of the story. We listened to this timeless music through the format du jour, streaming services. Spotify has several internally curated playlists for Americana and roots music ( The Pulse of Americana, Roots Rising,
Fresh Folk ) as well as my own semi-weekly playlist ‘Twang Nation Friday New Tunes Hayride Then there’s the vinyl boom which roots music artists and fans played a significant part.

2020 starts off right with releases from Gill Landry, Terry Allen, Maria McKee, Della Mae and Pinegrove with releases from John Moreland, The Lone Bellow, The Cadillac Three, and Aubrie Sellers releasing in February. Then there are yet-to-be-announced release dates for James McMurtry and others. Bookmark and check back to this list as we will update those dates and add other releases as we learn more.

Also if you know of a release not on the list feel free to add it below.

Thanks for keeping up with Twang Nation and happy 2020!

January
Jan. 10: Paul Kelly – Songs From the South 1985-2019
Jan. 10: Aerialists – “Dear Sienna”
Jan. 13: Maria McKee – ‘La Vita Nuova’
Jan. 13: Left Arm Tan – self-titled
Jan. 15: David Dondero – ‘The Filter Bubble Blues’
Jan. 17: Eleven Hundred Springs – ‘Here ‘Tis’
Jan. 17: Marcus King – ‘El Dorado’
Jan. 17: Marshall Crenshaw – ‘Miracle of Science’
Jan. 17: Pinegrove – ‘Marigold’
Jan. 17: The Innocence Mission – ‘see you tomorrow’
Jan. 17: Della Mae – ‘Headlight’
Jan. 17: Torgeir Waldemar – ‘Love’
Jan. 17: Fruition – ‘Broken at the Break of Day’
Jan. 17: Bill Fay – “Countless Branches”
Jan. 17: Dwight Yoakam – Blame The Vain (Vinyl Reissue)
Jan. 17: Buck Owens – ‘The Capitol Singles & Albums 1957-62’
Jan. 17: Buck Owens & Susan Raye / Very Best Of (Vinyl)
Jan.22: Vance Gilbert – ‘Good Good Man’
Jan.22: Gill Landry – ‘Love Rides A Dark Horse’
Jan 24: Terry Allen and the Panhandle Mystery Band – ‘Just Like Moby Dick’
Jan 24: Bonny Light Horseman – self-titled debut
Jan 24: Kailey Nicole – self-titled EP
Jan 24: Mrs. Henry Presents: ‘Live at the Casbah’
Jan 24: The Wood Brothers – ‘Kingdom in My Mind’
Jan 24: Bart Bugwig – ;Another Burn on the Astroturf’
Jan 24: The Haden Triplets – ‘The Family Songbook’
Jan 24: The Lil Smokies – ‘Tornillo’
Jan 24: Joy Mills Band – ‘Echolocator’
Jan 24: Kailey Nicole – self-titled
Jan 24: Steve Scott – ‘No Love For The Common Man’
Jan 24: Caitlin Sherman – ‘Death To The Damsel’
Jan 31: Dustbowl Revival – ‘Is It You, Is It Me’
Jan 31: Brian Johannesen – “Holster Your Silver”
Jan 31: Possessed By Paul James – ‘As We Go Wandering’
Jan 31: Tre Burt – ‘Caught It from the Rye’
Jan 31: Drive-by Truckers – ‘The Unraveling’
Jan 31: Cave Flowers – self-titled
Jan 31: Blackie & the Rodeo Kings – ‘King of This Town’
Jan 31: Sophie & The Broken Things – self-titled
Jan 31: Glenn Jones – ‘Ready For The Good Times’
Jan 31: Eric Brace & Last Train Home – ‘Daytime Highs and Overnight Lows’
Jan 31: RB Morris – ‘Going Back To The Sky’
Jan 31: Tomar & the FCs – ‘Rise Above’

February
Feb. 1: Glenn Jones Are You Ready For The Good Times
Feb. 7: Hank Williams – ‘Pictures From Life’s Other Side’
Feb. 7: John Moreland – “LP5”
Feb. 7: The Lone Bellow – “Half Moon Light”
Feb. 7: The Cadillac Three – “Country Fuzz”
Feb. 7: Aubrie Sellers – “Far From Home”
Feb. 7: Dom Flemons – ‘Prospect Hill: The American Songster Omnibus’
Feb. 7: Miss Tess – ‘The Moon Is an Ashtray’
Feb. 7: Darling West – ‘We’ll Never Know Unless We Try’
Feb. 7: Elkhorn – ‘The Storm Sessions’
Feb. 7: The Steeldrivers – “Bad For You’
Feb. 7: Frazey Ford – ‘U kin B the Sun’
Feb. 7: Corinne Sharlet – ‘Deceiver’ EP
Feb. 7: Chicago Farmer – ‘Flyover Country’
Feb. 7: David Allen – ‘Regrets and Retribution’
Feb. 7: Flyin’ A’s – ‘No Holds Barred’
Feb. 7: Supersuckers – ‘Play That Rock n’ Roll’
Feb. 7: William Prince – ‘Reliever’
Feb. 7: Frank & Allie Lee – ‘Treat A Stranger Right’
Feb. 7: Lynne Hanson – ‘Just Words’
Feb: 14: Phil Madeira – “Open Heart”
Feb. 14: Tami Neilson – CHICKABOOM!
Feb. 14: Robert Vincent – ‘In This Town You’re Owned’
Feb. 14: Jeremiah Johnson – ‘Heavens to Betsy’
Feb. 14: Little Misty – ‘Old Ghosts’
Feb. 14: The Third Mind – self-titled debut
Feb. 21: Nora Jane Struthers – “Bright Lights, Long Drives, First Words”
Feb. 21: Arik Dov – ‘The Man’ ep
Feb 28: The Secret Sisters – “Saturn Return”
Feb 28: Sierra Hull – ’25 Trips’
Feb 28: Pam Tillis – new album
Feb 28: Waco Brothers – ‘RESIST!’
Feb 28: Chelsea Lovitt – ‘You Had Your Cake, So Lie in It’
Feb 28: Avi Kaplan – ‘ I’ll Get By’

March
March 6: The Panhandlers – Josh Abbott, John Baumann, Cleto Cordero and William Clark Green – self-titled
March 6: The Mastersons- ‘No Time for Love Songs’
March 6: Brandy Clark – ‘Your Life is a Record’
March 6: Jim Lauderdale – ‘When Carolina Comes Home Again’
March 6: Will Sexton – ‘Don’t Walk the Darkness’
March 6: Green Leaf Rustlers – ‘Within Marin’
March 6: Aoife O’Donovan – ‘The Bull Frogs Croon (and Other Songs)’ EP
March 13: Dave Simonett (from Tramped By Turtles) – “Red Tail”
March 13: Sam Doores (of The Deslondes and formerly Hurray for the Riff Raff) – self-titled
March 13: Anna Lynch – ‘Apples in Fall’ EP
March 13: Outlaw Billy Don Burns -‘The Country Blues’
March 15: Sons of the Pioneers – ‘The Lost Masters’
March 20: Delta Rae – ‘The Light’
March 20: Carla Olson – ‘Have Harmony Will Travel 2’
March 27: Lilly Hiatt – ‘Walking Proof’
March 27: Marie Miller – ‘Little Dreams’
March 27: Kim Richey – ‘A Long Way Back: the Songs of Glimmer’
March 27: Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real – ‘Naked Garden’

April
April 3: Caleb Caudle – ‘Better Hurry Up’
April 3: The Nine Seas – ‘Dream of Me’
April 3: Ruthie Collins – ‘Cold Comfort’
April 3: Lisa Lambe – ‘Juniper’
April 3: Matthew McNeal – ‘Good Grief’
April 3: Christy Lynn Band – ‘Sweetheart of the Radio’
April 10: John Anderson – ‘Years’
April 10: Eliza Gilkyson – ‘2020’
April 10: Watkins Family Hour – ‘ brother sister’
April 17: Shelby Lynne – self-titled
April 17: The Reverend Shawn Amos – ‘Blue Sky’
April 17: Girl Skin – ‘Shade is on the other side’
April 17: The White Buffalo – ‘On The Widow’s Walk’
April 17: Joe Ely – ‘Love in the Midst of Mayhem’
April 20: Nicholas Jamerson – ‘The Wild Frontier’
April 24: Teddy Thompson – ‘Heartbreaker’
April 24: Sailing Stones – ‘Polymnia’
April 24: Lucinda Williams – “Good Souls Better Angels”
April 24: Whitney Rose – ‘We Still Go to Rodeos’
April 24: Corb Lund – ‘Agricultural Tragic’
April 24: Willie Nelson – ‘First Rose Of Spring’
April 24: The Lowest Pair – ‘The Perfect Plan’
April 24: Pam Tillis – ‘Looking for a Feeling’
April 24: Kyle LaLone – ‘Somewhere In Between’
April 26: Randy Rogers Band – ‘Hellbent’
April ?: Van Darien – ‘Levee’

May
May 1: Elijah Ocean – ‘Blue Jeans & Barstools’
May 1: Cayley Thomas – ‘How Else Can I Tell You?’
May 1: American Aquarium – ‘Lamentations’
May 8: Andrew Hibbard – self-titled
May 8: Liv Greene – ‘Every Bright Penny’
May 8: Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen – Hold My Beer Vol. 2
May 15: Chatham County Line – ‘Strange Fascination’
May 15: Chuck Prophet – ‘The Land That Time Forgot’
May 15: Jason Isbell – ‘Reunions’
May 15: Lesley Barth – “Big Time Baby”
May 22: Reckless Kelly – ‘American Girls’ & ‘American Jackpot’
May 22: Steve Earle & The Dukes – ‘Ghosts of West Virginia’
May 22: Jarrod Dickenson -“Ready The Horses”
May 29: Jake Blount – ‘Spider Tales’
May 29: Jaime Wyatt – ‘Neon Cross’

June
June 5: Sarah Jarosz – ‘World On The Ground’
June 5: Turkeyfoot – “Promise of Tomorrow”
June 12: Sammy Brue – ‘Crash Test Kid’
June 12: Pert Near Sandstone – “Rising Tide”
June 19: Grayson Capps – “South Front Street”
June 19: Neil Young – “Homegrown”
June 19: Bob Dylan – Rough and Rowdy Ways
June 19: Blackberry Smoke – Live From Capricorn Sound Studios
June 19: Darlin’ Brando – Also, Too…
June 19: Don Bryant – You Make Me Feel
June 19: Kristen Grainger & True North – ‘Ghost Tattoo’
June 26: Corb Lund – ‘Agricultural Tragic’
June 26: Country Westerns – ‘Country Westerns’
June 26: Scroggins & Rose – ‘Curios’
June 26: Emily Duff – ‘Born On The Ground’
June 26: Will Hoge – ‘Tiny Little Movies’
June 26: Arielle Silver – ‘A Thousand Tiny Torches’

July
July 10: The Jayhawks – “XOXO”
July 10: Joshua Ray Walker – “Glad You Made It”
July 10: Margo Price – ‘That’s How Rumors Get Started’
July 10: Ray Wylie Hubbard – “Co-Starring”
July 10: The Jayhawks – ‘XOXO’
July 17: The Texas Gentlemen – “Floor It!!!”
July 24: Ted Russell Kamp – ‘Down in the Den’
July 24: Lori McKenna – “The Balladeer’
July 31: Charley Crockett – “Welcome To Hard Times”

August
August 2: The Avett Brothers – ‘The Third Gleam’
August 7: Steven Bruce – ‘Same Time, Same Place, Same Station’
August 14: Kathleen Edwards – ‘Total Freedom’
August 21: The Old 97’s -“Twelfth”
August 21: Mandy Barnett – ‘A Nashville Songbook’
August 21: Cidny Bullens – ‘Walkin’ Through This World’
August 21: Robert Gordon – ‘Rockabilly For Life’
August 28: Karen Jonas – ‘The Southwest Sky and Other Dreams’
August 28: Zephaniah OHora – Listening to the Music
August 28: Colter Wall – Western Swing & Waltzes and Other Punchy Songs
August 28: Justin Wells – The United State
August 28: Moe Bandy – A Love Like That
August 28: The Reeves Brothers – The Last Honky Tonk
August 28: Heidi Newfield – The Barfly Sessions
August 28: The Allman Betts Band – Bless Your Heart
August 28: The Northern Belle – We Wither, We Bloom

September
September 4: Carolina Story – “Dandelion”
September 4: India Ramey – ‘Shallow Graves’
September 11: Elizabeth Cook – “Aftermath”
September 18: Fred Eaglesmith & Tif Ginn – ‘Alive’
September 18: Otis Gibbs – ‘Hoosier National’
September 18: Brennen Leigh – ‘Prairie Love Letter’

October

Novenmber
November 6: Madison Cunningham – ‘Wednesday’
November 6: Jackslacks – ‘When Pigs Fly’
November 6: Johnnie & Jack with The Tennessee Mountain Boys – ‘Collection 1945-62’
November 6: Larry Keel – ‘American Dream’
November 13: Chris Stapleton – ‘Starting Over’

TBA
Carla Olson
Will Sexton
Cidny Bullens
Marshall Chapman
The Claudettes
James McMurtry
Amelia White – produced by Kim Richey

Cream of the Crop – Twang Nation Top Americana and Roots Music Picks of 2016

Cream of the Crop – Twang Nation Top Americana and Roots Music Picks of 2015

The year in music for 2016 is best defined by the classic Dickensian line from “A Tale of Two Cities,” “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

Mortality cut a wide swath across some of the greatest and influential musicians of the twentieth century. Roots and country artists like Merle Haggard, Guy Clark, Ralph Stanley, Leon Russell, Jean Shepard, Glenn Frey, Red Simpson, Joey Feek and Steve Young among other greats like Prince, Sharon Jones, David Bowie and Leonard Cohen seemed harshly unrelenting. This level of loss will be felt in our cultural fabric in ways we’ve yet to understand.

To quote the late, great George Jones “Who’s gonna fill their shoes?”

Let’s hope that those passed legends shine as a beacon to the next generations to create great work that ties us together in song, music and common humanity. From what I know about 2017 I do see greatness coming.

But there was a silver lining. The influence of roots music in mainstream and, in a cultural equivalent of time folding in on itself, mainstream country music. This trend of influence occurs without Americana surrendering its identity of innovation and authenticity. To some artists, the genre was found too constricting and they lit out for another terrain better suited to their art.

And here’s to a more equitable arrangement between tech companies and the musicians that provide the bedrock to build their empires. Much to be done here…

As others sacrifice to create, let’s us, the audience, push ourselves to discover, share, attend live shows and financially reward the creators. Most which are hauling thier own gear and traveling to shows in cars or vans not tour buses.

Without them, this life is much less joyful.

Criteria – Calendar year 2016. No EPs, live, covers or re-release albums no matter how awesome.
Don’t see your favorite represented? Leave it in the comments, and here’s to a new year of Twang.

Matt Woods – ‘How to Survive’ – (iTunes | Amazon) – Tennessee troubadour Matt Wood’s third studio album ‘How to Survive’ offers taut songwriting that cuts to the emotional quick. Not an overtly political album but something more effective in sowing understanding – a topical album.

Paul Cauthen – ‘My Gospel’ – (iTunes | Amazon)
Paul Cauthen’s ‘My Gospel’ takes a page from the book of Paycheck and Waylon, a mix of juke box secular and pulpit gospel songs both personal and ethereal confessionals. These testimonials through Cauthen’s big baritone that suits these sonic vignettes of contemporary southern soul.

Brent Cobb – ‘Shine On Rainy Day’ – (iTunes | Amazon) Like Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves Brent Cobb worked the Music Row ear worm mines for years before moving front and center with his own wares. Those dues paid off. His debut is both breezy and heavy like the great music of the country crossovers from the 70s but fresh with life and rich with authenticity and tradition.

Darling West – ‘Vinyl and Heartache’ – (iTunes | Amazon) The Norwegian trio Darling West takes their smooth pop chamber folk aesthetic to a new high on their sophomore release ‘Vinyl and Heartache.’ Mari Sandvær Kreken’s voice transcends each original cut, and a superb cover of Fleetwod Mac’s ‘The Chain,” to take the extraordinary musicianship even higher.

Karen Jonas – ‘Country Songs’ – (iTunes | Amazon) All you need to know about Fredericksburg, Virginia-based Karen Jonas’ is right there in the title. ‘Country Songs’ picks up where Jonas’ 2014 debut ‘Oklahoma Lottery’ left us – somewhere between heartache and hangover. Her voice lies between sass and sultry as Jonas’ accounts a woman longing for more and being fed up. All the while fitting perfectly with classic barroom weepers without resorting to threadbare nostalgia.

The Buffalo Ruckus – ‘Peace & Cornbread’ – (iTunes | Amazon) The Buffalo Ruckus’ sophomore album ‘Peace & Cornbread’ still embodies the soul of all those barrooms the band has torched with their fiery live shows but brings the more feral elements to heel that pays off with cohesion and great songwriting. Here divinity mixes with road tar to create a great Southern soul album

Dori Freeman – ‘Dori Freeman’ – (iTunes | Amazon) One of the surprises of 2016, Freeman’s debut exudes the confidence of a veteran performer and songwriter influenced equally by her native Appalachia as she is classic pop, bar room country and uptown jazz and moves deftly across it all to deliver an astounding cohesive treasure.

Kelsey Waldon – ‘I’ve Got a Way’ – (iTunes | Amazon) Kelsey Waldon’s sophomore release has vulnerable resolve and classic country running through it like the coal veins in her home state of Kentucky. And just as bracing and satisfying as it’s bourbon. Her plaintive voice and keen eye for human nature makes for these sterling tales of hard roads and tender hearts.

Austin Lucas – ‘Between the Moon & the Midwest’ – (iTunes | Amazon) Austin Lucas’ latest release is a moody, pedal steel laden arc traveling among broken hearts and bitter tears. His signature croon sits between jubilant and forlorn and bears the marks of a man that’s been through trouble but comes out the other side stronger and with better stories.

Whiskey Myers – ‘Mud’ – (iTunes | Amazon)
Few musical genres are as maligned as Southern Rock. But then a band comes all with an album that makes you believe again. Whiskey Myers’ ‘Mud’ is that album. The band worked with Americana Auber-producer Dave Cobb to create an album that pushes lyrical and music boundaries established by their 2014 breakout release ‘Early Morning Shakes.’ The pride of Palestine, Texas mixes country, rock and blue-eyed soul to achieve one of their strongest efforts yet.

Robert Ellis – ‘Robert Ellis’ – (iTunes | Amazon) On Robert Ellis’ fourth solo album, the Texas songwriter further moves from the school of George Jones country crooning even further into the adult pop of James Taylor and Paul Simon, and tackles adult themes of despair, restlessness and loss of love. A disciple of music styleS and texture, as well as songcraft and extraordinary fret work, Ellis delves into Chet Atkin’s jazz-flavored country (Drivin), bossa nova (Amanda Jane) and even a neo-classical dirge (The High Road) and ties. It shouldn’t work but damned if Ellis doesn’t pull it off.

Hayes Carll – ‘Lovers and Leavers’ – (iTunes | Amazon) Carll’s latest suggests his 5-year recording hiatus has been a rough if introspective stretch. ‘Lovers and Leavers’ is Carll’s solemn of his career without tipping into being a dour bumfest. These days there’s more on Carll’s mind than drinking, hootin’ and ahollerin’. This is an authentically more personal, emotional and confessional work that moves Carll into the realm of Guy Clarkian genius.

Margo Price – ‘Midwest Farmer’s Daughter’ – (iTunes | Amazon) An overnight success 13 years in the making, Jack White saw something in Margo Price that Music Row didn’t when he signed her as the first country artist on his Third Man Records label. Life’s harsh beauty pours from each song and common resolve is there with grace. Stuff too real for Music Row confections. Price sits well within a current musical groundswell proving that soulful roots music has an audience hungry for something real and is here to stay.

Lori McKenna – ‘The Bird & The Rifle’ – (iTunes | Amazon)
‘The Bird & The Rifle’ – When she’s not penning mega hits for the likes of Tim McGraw and Little Big Town, Lori McKenna puts her considerable songwriting skills to weightier faire like her latest, ‘The Bird & The Rifle.’ Intimate stories of small town hopes hitting the hard choices and their unforeseen consequences. We see ourselves in gems like “Halfway Home” and “We Were Cool” and brings more dimension to McKenna’s own “Humble and Kind” which was a hit for McGraw. These songs create a web that ties our experiences together in common humanity.

Sarah Jarosz -“Undercurrent” – (iTunes | Amazon) Jarosz’s 4th full-length studio album surprised many fans who’ve been listening since 2009’s debut ‘Song Up in Her Head.’ The then teen wunderkind has built on her time in the bluegrass genre and arrived an accomplished arranger, songwriter, singer and musician. Traditional forms are reworked as contemporary personal reflections of maturity and sophistication. experimental pop fuse with classic songwriters like Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell and Carol King.

B.J. Barham – ‘Rockingham’ – (iTunes | Amazon) Inverting the country contemporary music trope of quaint small town nostalgia American Aquarium vocalist B.J. Barham focuses his deft songwriting eye on the gutting of the small town American dream. The album title, Rockingham, is the North Carolina, a town of a few thousand where Barham was raised, is the starkly real and metaphor for many forgotten towns. Steely-eyed truth sketches each hardscrabble scenario where desperation lingers thick in the air like the funk from the local tobacco company.

Robbie Fulks – ‘Upland Stories’ – iTunes | Amazon) Fulks is the unheralded hardcore alt-country troubadour. Though not as well known as Steve Earle or Chis Knight for decades Fulks is the guy the Earle and Knight would listen to closely for economy of songcraft and rich imagery. his newest offering is grammy nominated and might rightly put him at the top of Americana legends lists. Appalachian break downs and honky-tonk weepers driven by his voice that echos the ages makes this a glorious addition to the roots music canon.

Miranda Lambert – “The Weight of These Wings” – (iTunes | Amazon) Break-up albums are a mixed bag. When done well, as with Beck’s ‘Sea Change’ and Willie Nelson’s ‘Phases and Stages,’ the work can become an iconic confessional moment in a profession that trades on personal reflection. Miranda Lambert’s double album ‘The Weight Of These Wings,’ split into two sides — The Nerve and The Heart, written in the wake of her tabloid fodder divorce from Blake Shelton shows Lambert taking a step back and licking her wounds with songcraft instead of chasing chart toppers. This is a 24-song thesis on survival, healing and returning back to Texas roots.

John Paul White – ‘Beulah’ – Out of the ashes of one of the most celebrated pop-folk duets of modern times rises a forlorn beautifully crafted from folk, classic country and adult pop. An album that is both rich lyrically and melodically. John Paul’s post Civil Wars is a moody beauty with keen songwriting sharper and more cohesive than his CW days. Sparse arrangements- B3 organ, cello, drums, bass and the ever present acoustic guitar – build a fitting texture to frame the songs. Harmony is not forgotten with the Secret Sisters lending a subdued vocal hand on songs like the country weeper “I’ve Been Over This Before.” This gets better with each spin

Cream of the Crop – Twang Nation Top Americana and Roots Music Picks of 2014

TNCream2014

It defies all marketing logic.

Take thoughtful, and oftentimes uncomfortable, music built unapologetically (and more importantly, without irony) from instrumentation and melodies that reflect the past and drag it into the present.

Brazen sentimentality in the face of a blase world and lack of absolute style and ideological boundaries allows Americana to attract strange cultural bedfellows, Reminiscent of the 70’s when Saints Willie and Waylon brought the rednecks and hippies together under the tin roof of Austin’s Armadillo World Headquarters, this music hits us at the human core. Good music strips away the bullshit, shows our humanity, and can make us whole.

This is why it’s the greatest music being created today. That’s why it’ll last as fashions fall and technology and cultural isolation encroaches.

But it’s shit for mapping out a contemporary music career. So how does this great stuff keep happening?

With no apparent thought to charts, hit singles, karaoke reality shows or clutching at the greased pig of contemporary music taste people believe so deeply and completely that they sit in a van for 200 plus days a year, in freezing snow and burning summer heat, to play barely filled rooms at a level like they’re playing the Ryman or Beacon. Because that girl near the stage, with the band logo tattoo, is singing every word to every song. In spite of increasingly remote odds of economic sustainability they keeping lining up and enduring.

They have no choice, the spirit fills them. And we are moved by it. It affects us all.

And that extraordinary music is not just culturally and stylistically satisfying, there’s a viable market. Jason Isbell and Sturgill Simpson have gone from tight quarter vans and half-full seedy clubs to spacious buses and sold-out theatres. Movies and TV shows are using more and more roots music to set a mood. The genre is snowballing in fans and new music and the influence is felt everywhere. It’s no longer our little secret.

This is good, it’s evolution. It’s is growth. The risk of commercial popularity resulting in diminitionment of quality is assured. But just as Americana is not fed from one influence it is also not any one band. There is a wealth of choice. some of which I hope I’ve been able to list below.

2014 leaves us in turmoil and cultural upheaval. Roots music has historically been a cultural channel to discuss injustices from the point of view of those most affected. From Woody to Dylan to Alynda Lee Segarra roots music provides a poetic reflection of where society and humanity are and where we’d like to be.

But it’s not all topical earnestness. There’s plenty of toe-tapping tomfoolery and easy fun to melt away your troubles and woes and sing at the top of your lungs.

We cry, we laugh, we get drunk and do both simultaneously. No airs, no regrets, no AutoTune.

Lists are subjective, and no more so than my own. But each year I hope to place a loose marker around where I feel we are, and where we’re headed as disciples of this mongrel aesthetic.

This year we can be assured that country music has finally been saved, so enough of that. Roots music continues to make inroads in the mainstream without losing it’s way (or soul.) As happened so music last year, many mainstream media best of country music year-end lists to purloin from the rootsier side (like this and this – http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/40-best-country-albums-of-2014-20141210 ). I applaud this. Bro-country’s foe is not the same tepid, lazy style wrapped in a dress. It’s better music without boundaries and gatekeepers.

2015 shows no sign of waning in output or fan interest. New releases from Steve Earle, Allison Moorer, Ryan Bingham, James McMurtry, Caitlin Canty, American Aquarium, JD McPherson, another from Justin Townes Earle, Rhiannon Giddens, The Lone Bellow, Whitehorse, Robert Earl Keen’s bluegrass album, and possibly a new Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell collaboration has the new year is looking rosy.

Criteria – Calendar year 2014. No EPs, live, covers or re-release albums no matter how awesome.

Don’t see your favorite represented? Leave it in the comments and here’s to a new year of twang

26. Mary Gauthier – ‘Trouble & Love’
The only way to best your demons is to look them in the eye. Gauthier does just that on ‘Trouble & Love’ With her wonderfully roughewn voice to inner struggle in the wake of love lost (or, more appropriately, taken) Misery loves company and Gauthier keeps some of
Nashville’s finest – Guthrie Trapp, Viktor Krauss, Lynn Williams, Beth Nielsen Chapman, The McCrary Sisters, Darrell Scott, Ashley Cleveland. Catharsis rarely sounds this good.

25. Old 97s – ‘Most Messed Up’
Remember alt.country? I sure do. And so does Rhett Miller. The Dorian Gray of roots rock and his faithful compadres Ken Bethea, Philip Peeples and Murry Hammond still bring the heat to their blend of Tex-power pop in even the most road-weary, blase’ moments. This is a work of fury, fun and not giving a damn. here’s to that!

24. Angaleena Presley – ‘American Middle Class’
Presley steps out of the shadow of her super group Pistol Annies and digs deep into her history to deliver an album deeply steeped in country music traditions. Presley writes songs of hardship that rings true and is too busy making a living to sing hands and despair.

23. Sunny Sweeney – ‘Provoked’
Who needs bro-country when you have Sunny Sweeney. Her voice is your afternoon sweet sun tea but her wit is the bourbon you stir in. ‘Provoked’ is Sweeney’s true voice and it twangs true and kicks some serious ass.

22. Billy Joe Shaver – ‘Long in the Tooth’
Billy Joe Shaver is not about to sit on his long and prestigious laurels. No sir, not if Todd Snider has anything to say about it (Todd prodded Shave into this) Shaver takes aim at Music Row ( ‘Hard To Be An Outlaw’) love (“I’ll Love You as Much as I Can”) and teh absurdity of life ( “The Git Go”) God bless Billy Joe Shaver and everything he represents!

21. Rodney Crowell – Tarpaper Sky
Following his Grammy-winning collaboration with Emmylou Harris ‘Tarpaper Sky’ finds Crowell relaxin into a zone of a craft he’s spent 40 years refining. Songs from the rearview (“The Long Journey Home”, “The Flyboy & the Kid”) , heart-busters sit beside cajun frolick (“Fever on the Bayou”) to create a satisfying release.

20. Kelsey Waldon – ‘The Goldmine’
Great country music is rooted in the blood, sweat, and the threadbare hope of those just out of the reach of the American Dream. Kelsey Waldo’s songs richly reflects a lives hobbled by hard decisions and opportunities never given. While ‘The Goldmine’ reflects a hard realism, Waldon smartly ensures that it is never devoid of hope.

19. Doug Seegers – ‘ Going Down to the River’
A story too absurd to be true. Swedish documentary features homeless Nashville busker leading to a number 1 single on Swedish iTunes Charts for 12 consecutive days and a Will Kimbrough produced full-length featuring collaborations with Emmylou Harris and ex-tour mate Buddy Miller. But it’s true, and ‘ Going Down to the River’ is deep with truth.

18. Robert Ellis – ‘The Lights From the Chemical Plant’
Ellis moved to and works in Nashville. But he’s still got the heart if a Texas musician, wandering and unbridled. His love for George Jones is as much a part of him as his love for Jimmy Webb. ‘The Lights From the Chemical Plant’ reflects not only his versatility on the fretboard but his command of the songwriting craft. He reflects multiple styles, sometimes within the same song, and makes it behave. And across it all his voice glides across each with its own high lonesome.

17. The Bones of J.R. Jones – ‘Dark was the Yearling’
Brooklynite J.R. Jones, aka Jonathon Linaberry travels even further down his moody roots road with his second effort ‘Dark was the Yearling.’ Fitting comfortably with with moody-folkies like Lincoln Durham and Possessed By Paul James, sparse production ‘s soulful croon, haunting blues picking and percussive stomp make Darkness Was the Yearling is a galvanization of Linaberry both as a songwriter and a producer.

16. Marah – ‘Mountain Minstrelsy of Pennsylvania’
Pennsylvanian folklorist Henry Shoemaker long-ago cache of American song lyrics are discovered and interpreted by Marah’s David Bielanko and Christine Smith performing live around a single microphone in a ready-made studio set up in an old church, doors open to allow local performers and the generally curious to gather and join along. The result is a startlingly cohesive work driven by a ramshackle spirit. ‘Mountain Minstrelsy of Pennsylvania’ opens a contemporary channel to the restless, rustic ghosts of Big Pink more authentically than the recent T Bone Burnett helmed effort.

15. The Secret Sisters – ‘Put Your Needle Down’
Shedding the gingham shell that encased their debut The Secret Sisters , Lydia and Laura Rogers, apply their exquisite sibling harmony to push their songwriting chops and build a testament to contemporary roots music. I’m looking forward to riding along with the Rogers as they take us from the past toward a brave musical adventure.

14. Lee Ann Womack – ‘The Way I’m Livin’ ‘
Music Row superstar hangs out with motley Americana crew and ends up making a spectacular roots album? ANd it’s up for the Country Album of the Year Grammy?! Bask in genre confusion and the beauty of great songs performed by a master.

13. Hurray for the Riff Raff – ‘Small Town Heroes’
Few bands have the roots chops of Alynda Lee Segarra and her Hurray for the Riff Raff. Social-minded tunes performed with poetry over preachiness strikes a delicate balance most of the Guthrie-inspired falter. Segarra and crew prove you win hearts and minds my tapping toes and shaking asses on the dancefloor.

12. Lera Lynn – ‘The Avenues’
Lynn’s warm honey voice might lure you like a Siren, but the smart songwriting will truly wreck your ship. No, no this is a good thing! Stripped down guitar, drums and doghouse bass and cause you to sit on shore amongst the wreckage and let bask in ‘The Avenues’ glint and shimmer.

11. Cory Branan – ‘No Hit Wonder’
I defy you to find a better contemporary songwriter that is as deft and studied at the craft as Cory Branan (DEFY YOU!!) As evidence I submit to you “The No-Hit Wonder.” a work expansive yet grounded in the classic folk and country styles. That’s a fancy way of saying it’s badass.

10. Shovels & Rope – ‘Swimmin’ Time’
This follow-up to their 2012 acclaimed ‘O’ Be Joyful,’ has Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst has a tighter focus and arrangement of songs. This can sometimes come off as too eager to please. But when their indy-rock-meets-Carter-Family spirit overtakes, like in “Mary Ann and One Eyed Dan,” it hits on all cylinders and transcend crowd-pleasing.

9. Karen Jonas – ‘Oklahoma Lottery’
Small town character studies have always been a staple of country music. Karen Jonas builds scenes with her breathy drawl that make you feel like you lived through the desperation, danger and loneliness and litters the landscape of this excellent release.

8. Nikki Lane – ‘All Or Nothin’ ‘
Every night is Saturday night on Nikki Lane’s ‘All Or Nothin’ ‘ The Black Key’s Auerbach sets the mood and get’s out of the way as Lane fuses SMART SONGS, 60’s B-movie pop and country music gold to make her mark. So hang on, hold on and have the time of your life. But bring bail money and, be assured, there’ll be a broken heart…and a scar.

7. Hiss Golden Messenger – ‘Lateness of Dancers’
M.C. Taylor is a wandering soul. His fourth full-length as the moniker Hiss Golden Messenger continues his (hiss) quest across a troubling yet hopeful human landscape. This time the pat taken is in the form of his usual folk and country traditions with scenic asides in rock and R&B resulting in his best so far.

6. Old Crow Medicine Show – ‘Remedy’
From buskers to roots music ambassadors Old Crow Medicine Show has shown great songs and keen instrumentation does have a place in the mainstream. The band faces their newfound fame by doing what they know best, Delivering a solid ‘Remedy’ that appeals to long-times fans and garners new ones that wouldn’t be caught dead at a bluegrass festival.

5. Ben Miller Band – ‘Any Way, Shape Or Form’
If you’re looking for a band that mashes old forms with new look no further than Ben Miller Band’s latest ‘Any Way, Shape Or Form.’ The traditional folk chestnut “The Cuckoo” is taken to a tribal-drum psychedelic level. “Any Way, Shape or Form” pushes the Ben Miller Band form just another string band toward something vibrant and a forceful.

4. The Felice Brothers – ‘Favorite Waitress’
On their new release the Felice Brothers have returned from their sonic diversion in “Celebration, Florida” to their usual rustic terrain where Big Pink meets Brooklyn (with a little Velvet Underground thrown in) Gliding nimbly from ramshackle folk to smokey piano ballads to unbridled zydeco ‘Favorite Waitress’ is a fine stylistically homecoming to their splayed and gangly jams.

3. Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives – ‘Saturday Night/Sunday Morning’
Country music. like life, has always been steeped in the struggle between the light and the darkness, sin and salvation. This double album takes us on a boxcar across the dark
(‘Jailhouse, ‘Geraldine’) and the light (‘Uncloudy Day,’ ‘Boogie Woogie Down the Jericho Road’) Stuart was there when Country and Americana music was the same thing. Thank goodness he’s still on his game and cares to remind us.

2. Caroline Rose – ‘Will Not Be Afraid’
This sonic offspring of Chrissie Hynde and Wanda Jackson debut release is everything that’s great about music. It grabs you by the throat immediately with ‘Blood on your Bootheels,’ a cut on racism and violence void of sanctimony that hits like a topical bomb. ‘Tightrope Walker’ is a jaunty roots-rocker with spooky organ line as Rose lyrically juxtaposes two Americas and exposes us to be without a without net. Rose bends, shapes and fires words in a way that would make Dylan envious. This is a daring debut is the kind of record that will make you remember where you were when you heard it.

1. Sturgill Simpson – ‘Metamodern Sounds in Country Music’
Shocking, right? But sometimes the hype does reflect reality. Simpson will surely be all over Americana and mainstream country best of lists (the latter showed a tendency to reach over the fence last year when Jason Isbell sat alongside Tim McGraw and Band Perry), and rightly so. The Kentuckian’s success is more than a bro-country backlash. The praise from NPR Music to UK’S Telegraph speaks to than a more than a mere clerance of Music Row’s current low bar. Simpson channels 70’s hard outlaw country, spiked with bluegrass dexterity into songs that feel genuine. His topics are a contemporary a Kristoffersonion introspection of spirituality, identity and mind-altering substances. Simpson isn’t saving country music, he’s just reminding a us all that there’s a hunger for vibrant music that is vibrant, thriving, and unrepentantly ornery.