Personal Top 10 Country Albums

I asked a friend to compile her list of top 10 books ever. In return, she asked for my top 10 country albums I thought she should have. Ten is all?! So hard. But here's what I came up with-


Without further ado,
10 (+) Country Albums You Must Have:

1. Deana Carter, The Chain.
A very cool album which consists completely of covers- all music her dad, who is/was a studio guitarist and producer, had a hand in in the original stages. Also includes much collaboration with many of the original artists. Fresh sound. SO COOL.

2. Lori McKenna, Unglamorous.
There's just something about this woman. She was "discovered" by Faith Hill and has tracks recorded by Faith, Tim McGraw, Sara Evans, among man others. Still, the songs are way better when she sings them herself. The last track on this album kills me every time.

3. Tim McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors.
I'm always surprised at how much Tim McGraw music I actually own because I don't consider myself one of his biggest fans or anything, but this particular album has a really organic sound for such a commercial artist. The songs are good, and as a whole it feels timeless. I've owned this one for four or five years and it's a go-to when I don't know what else I want to listen to.

4. Phil Vassar, Shaken Not Stirred.
I DO consider myself a big Phil Vassar fan- he's a great songwriter, lyricist, pianist, and performer. This album is the most cohesive and I prefer the sound of this one to his others. Another to check out might be his Greatest Hits, though. He rerecorded some of the hits he's had as a songwriter for other artists (like Jo Dee Messina's "Bye Bye") and they're really simple, nice recordings.

5. Sugarland, Love on the Inside.
Their music just keeps getting better. I love this one because Kristian does a lot more singing and their arrangements don't feel like stuffy commercial country. Very vocal, very organic. The deluxe fan edition has some awesome stuff at the end like a live Matt Nathanson cover, and that track alone is worth the extra two dollars or whatever it is.

6. Nickel Creek, Reasons Why: The Very Best.
I saw these guys live and never expected any four people (counting the bass player) to be able to make THAT MUCH SOUND come out of those little acoustic instruments. They're perfect in nearly every way and the subject matter isn't so typical, which is refreshing.

7. Miranda Lambert, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
This girl does real country music up right. She's got attitude and songwriting chops and is not afraid of a good old-fashioned steel guitar.

8. Reba McEntire, It's Your Call.
You have no idea how hard it was for me to pick just ONE Reba album. Pretty much any of her '90s albums, especially the early '90s, are The Tops in my book. Even so, I own almost everything she's done since 1986. Maybe even since before that. No. I'm serious. It's Your Call is full of reasons I really fell in love with her, though. Take It Back, He Wants to Get Married... it's a good album.

9. Brad Paisley, 5th Gear.
Some people just don't get it, but I find Brad Paisley HILARIOUS. He's got a way with melody, too, and can play guitar like a dreeeeeeam. It's traditional with a twist, and I'm all about country sounding like country. Plus, "Online" is a little too appropriate, I think.

10. Sara Evans, Restless.
Girl can SING, and this is probably her best collection of songs as a whole. "Otis Redding" is still my favorite- just paints a lighthearted, romantic little picture.



Honorable mentions go to Dierks Bentley, only because I absolutely could not decide which of his albums you should have. I love them all equally, in different ways, and so just couldn't make the decision. I couldn't even give you a Dierks playlist and pick favorite tracks because I seriously love THEM ALL.

Also to Bethany Dick, whose latest is only 4 tracks long BUT you can download it for free (www.myspace.com/bethanydick)! She's originally a Montana girl like I am, and she and my friend Fiddler actually know each other, so it's kinda cool.




What do you think, country fans? What did I leave out? Anything you wouldn't have included? Which Dierks album would you have chosen?

Road Music

So I just made the big move to Tennessee. From Minnesota. In my car. Why yes, thank you for asking. It was a long drive.

I got to stop in Chicago, though. That was fun.

So anyway, what does one do while driving for a planned fifteen hours, and actual 17 or 18? Listen to music, right?

I loaded up my ipod and then completely trapped my FM transmitter under piles of other stuff, so I didn't even get to listen to half of what I planned. Thankfully, I still had a bunch of my new CDs in my purse, and the great thing about new CDs is that you can listen to them more than once, even in a row. And truthfully, that made the trip seem shorter, listening to fewer CDs. That might seem strange, but it worked out well. So, here's what I listened to:

Jon McLaughlin, OK NOW: twice.
Cadillac Sky, Gravity's Our Enemy: three times.
Rebecca Lynn Howard, No Rules: twice
The Decemberists, The Crane Wife: three times
Deana Carter, The Chain: a whopping FIVE (maybe six, I honestly lost count) times
Keith Urban, Greatest Hits-19 Kids: twice

Other than about a half an hour of radio at the end of each trip (into Chicago and then into Murfreesboro) that got me through 17 or 18 hours of driving. I'd recommend especially The Decemberists for a drive, especially if you're driving by yourself. That is an album that is meant to be listened to front to back in one sitting, and when you've got nothing else to do... it's perfect.

What didn't I get to listen to? The road mix I made specifically for this drive including all sorts of leaving home songs and going to Tennessee songs. Kind of a bummer. Also, a few mixes made by the guy I stayed with in Chicago-- I really wanted to listen to them before I saw him and knew driving would be the perfect time to do it, but didn't get to.

But I can listen to them now.
I'll report back.

What's some of your favorite road music? Do you listen to CDs, mixes on your iPod, the radio? What gets you through a long drive?

My Music, 2008

In no particular order, the music that made 2008 great:
(in other words, everything I bought this year)


Cadillac Sky, Gravity's Our Enemy
Sugarland, Love on the Inside
Chuck Wicks, Starting Now
Jason Mraz, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.
Elevation, Strangelove
White Light Riot, Atomism
Phil Vassar, Prayer of a Common Man
Keri Noble, Fearless
Keith Urban, 19 Kids
Taylor Swift, Fearless
Michael Buble, Call Me Irresponsible
Trisha Yearwood, Heaven, Heartache and the Power of Love
Josh Ritter, The Historical Conquests
Carrie Underwood, Carnival Ride
The Decemberists, The Crane Wife
Matt Nathanson, Some Mad Hope
Ingrid Michaelson, Be Ok
Ingrid Michaelson, Girls and Boys
Blue Moon Rising, Blue Moon Rising
Cherryholmes, Cherryholmes II Black and White
Punch Brothers, Punch
Lori McKenna, Unglamorous
Bethany Dick, Bethany Dick



Some of this music I was obviously slow to catch on to, but mostly not. I also realize by looking at this that my musical taste really has broadened. I wonder what next year's list will look like...

And of course, that's not all I listened to-- that's just the new stuff. Other music that definitely had its place was

Martina McBride, Waking Up Laughing
Colbie Caillat, Coco
Sara Bareilles, Little Voice
John Mayer, Continuum
...among others


New so far this year, 2009:

Ari Hest, Someone to Tell
Josh Kelley, Almost Honest
Rebecca Lynn Howard, No Rules
Jon McLaughlin, OK Now

And you could count the Decemberists and the Matt Nathanson albums as 2009 albums, really, since I got them both for Christmas and really started listening to them after the new year.


What's on your 2008 list?

Open Letter to Jake Owen, or Why I Still Love Country Music

It's nights like this when I find myself believing in traditional media again. I find myself believing in country music again, mainstream or not. I find myself laughing and crying and loving and hoping and wishing. Why? Because I watched a couple hours of TV.

GAC, actually.

I fell out of my music television habit long ago. I mean, I used to live on CMT or GAC, whichever our cable provider was carrying at the time (and oh, it was Heaven when it finally carried both). I was flipping back and forth between GAC and CMT Pure tonight and happened to catch Sammy Kershaw's "National Working Woman's Holiday," and I was taken right back to, Lord, I don't even know when. I'll bet I hadn't even hit double digits yet, and I was dancing around the living room singing every word to that song, cheesy video and all. It was back in the days when CMT and GAC still played music all the time. It was so wonderful. Those channels were like oxygen to me.

As I grew, both channels still managed to play some role in my life, but over the last two years as my relationship with mainstream country itself has fallen apart and these channels went the route of MTV and started programming ridiculous shows instead of music (although I do have to admit I'm a recent convert to My Big Redneck Wedding. If you ever need to feel normal, just watch an episode of that show. Oh my goodness). I can't honestly tell you the last time I sat down and meant to turn on one of the music channels. I can't even tell you when I ended up watching one on a whim as I surfed through. It doesn't happen anymore.

But PBS was supposed to be showing a Faith Hill Christmas special this year, and I searched and searched our listings, trying to find play times, unable to find anything. The other night, I was spending time with a friend whose roommate had left GAC on the TV in the background, and at some point the Faith Hill special came on. I didn't really watch it then, but I realized that if it was on once, it would likely be on again, so I made a mental note to watch out for it when I got home and set it to record. Tonight, when I finally remembered to do so, it was just starting. So I watched it.

First of all, Faith Hill is the classiest lady in country music, hands down. There are some other classy ladies, for sure, some of whom can even sing, but Faith Hill, folks, is the reigning queen. She treated those Christmas songs with the respect and reverence such classic songs should be treated with, and when the two originals came out, her "Where Are You Christmas," from How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and her new "A Baby Changes Everything," we really got to see the singer in her. And yes, the second brought me to tears. It was that good.

But then, because I watched the concert rather than recording it, I got sucked into what was programmed next. A live talk show kind of show from the CMA Festival. Obviously a rerun, but nothing I'd ever seen before. I got to see interviews with Sara Evans, who looked stunningly beautiful, seemed immensely happy, and was seriously hilarious. Joe Nichols knocked the damn socks off of me with his wit and silliness, and even the Jake Owen-Bucky Covington matchup was entertaining to watch. Something I really realized, or maybe just remembered tonight, is that this is what country music is about. It's why I always loved it. It's not just about the music, and believe me, sometimes I wish country radio had much higher standards, but it's about the people behind the music. It's about the down home, down to earth, genuine people singing the songs. You don't have to be from a ranch, or raised in the rodeo, you don't have to wear a cowboy hat, you didn't have to be a member of 4H or the FFA, you don't even have to be from a small town to get country music, for it to belong to you. That's what I've always loved about it. It's not an exclusive little club. It's for everybody, if they'll just take it.

And, um, anything that'll put Jake Owen in front of me a little more often? I'll take it. He's pretty.

Dear Jake Owen,
Be my boyfriend? I'll be in Tennessee soon!
Love,
Courtney

Grammy Nominees are in...

And does it come as a surprise to anyone that I'm completely thrilled about Jason Mraz's nomination for the song of the year Grammy?

Well, then you just don't know me very well.

I'm a little torn because Sara Bareilles is also nominated in that category, and it's (as far as I know) the only nomination for each of them, and she's definitely my girl, Sara is, but I think I just gotta go with Jason on this one. I've loved "I'm Yours" since the moment I downloaded the mp3 of someone's cheap live recording in 2004, and every version I've heard since has made me fall even deeper in love with Jason and with the song. He finally put it on an album because his fans kept asking him to. That's a great reason for whoever makes the Grammy choices to choose Jason-- this song isn't just song of the year, it's possibly song of his career. It has taken on a life of its own.

Way to go, J.
Will you be mine? 'Cause I'm yours.

Fearless

So I bought the Taylor Swift CD.

I've already read rave reviews and rants about how the girl can't sing and how all the songs are whiny teenage fodder, but I formed my own opinion before I read all that stuff. Want to hear it?

I loved Taylor's first album, which was self-titled. I was never overly impressed with the song "Tim McGraw," or her vocals overall, but after watching a documentary of sorts on this SIXTEEN year old girl and finding that she'd written every song on the album--even a few of them completely on her own--I was intrigued. Seeing her sit on a stool with her guitar and a microphone singing, "I'll be 87 you'll be 89, I'll still look at you like the stars that shine in the sky..." I thought, "Oh my, my, my, my." I knew the girl had some talent. She hooked me. I didn't believe it for a minute when one of her friends said, "I think she's better than most of the singers in Nashville right now. As good as Faith Hill, for sure," but that wasn't why I bought the album. I bought the album because this tiny little high school sophomore was writing songs as good or better than the ones I was writing as a college student working on a music degree. It impressed me.

I fell in love with that record, and so obviously, when Fearless was released last week, I bought it immediately.

My initial reaction wasn't one of sheer joy. I wasn't floored, and I think leading the album with "Fearless" was a poor choice, not because it isn't a strong song (it's not the strongest), but because the cover art and the imagery one imagines when branding the whole album as "fearless" didn't match the song of the same name at all. "Fearless," the song, is just a playful little romp-- I was imagining the fiercer side of Taylor to accompany a song title like that, and in that respect, I was disappointed.

What followed was a bunch of songs that blended into each other at first. This is partly due to songwriting--and she did all of the songwriting again, at least half of it on her own--but to be fair, that's largely the fault of producer Nathan Chapman, although it looks as though Taylor had a hand in production this time around too. Point is, not only does it instrumentally sound the same song in and song out (which is preferable, if you're careful about it) but it sounds like the same arrangement over and over. I understand that Taylor has a "sound" and that "sound" has worked, and straying too far from that might be alienating a large number of fans who are too scared to fall in love with anything that sounds different than the last album--but in this case, there wasn't much growth to speak of at all, and for those of us who aren't generally formula radio listeners, a little growth in the sound is definitely nice to have.

Onto the happiness, though, I have to say that vocally, while I still wouldn't ever put her in Faith Hill's league by any means, she has improved. I said from the beginning that she just had a young little voice and that she'd probably grow into it, and if she had smart people working for her, they'd hire her a voice coach. I think those things are happening, and even though she really does still need to grow into her voice, it's obvious now that she certainly will.

Lyrically, the songs have gotten even better. The way this girl (and on occasion, her go-to cowriters) combines words with melody is really special. "There's something 'bout the way the street looks when it's just rained, there's a glow on the pavement, you walk me to the car. And you know I wanna ask you to dance right there in the middle of the parking lot, yeah." Funny thing, because last spring I was trying to verbalize that very feeling and never succeeded. In swoops Taylor, and not only did she do it so incredibly simply right there, but she combined it with a catchy, unique melody worthy of the sentiment.

"Fifteen" is full of poignant comments on high school life, the most jarring one being "Abigail gave everything she had to a boy who changed his mind and we both cried," but I can't help but feel like this song is a rip-off of Brad Paisley's "Letter to Me." And it would make sense, too, right? She did tour with him earlier this year. Still, I can't blame her for that because I've been known to take inspiration for songs directly from other songs too, and she did a good job with it--but let's just hope they're careful about releasing this one as a single. People aren't stupid.

"Love Story," is the one we all know-- the first single and video from this album. The arrangement on this one is actually quite nice (if we're talking album version-- I heard a remix the other day that make my stomach knot itself up) and the theme is lovely, along with the "baby just say yes," hook, which works so well on a few different levels. Still, I wonder... and I have to ask. Taylor, have you ever read The Scarlet Letter? Romeo and Juliet works. The princes and the princesses work. I'm not putting the Scarlet Letter reference together at all.

All that aside, I LOVE "Hey Stephen," and the arrangement ("mm mm") and the sense of humor that shines through in this particular song. "Those other girls, well they're beautiful, but would they write a song for you?" I can't help myself either, Tay.

I especially love these break-up ballads like, "White Horse," because Taylor is so all over the media with any bit of information about herself that she can muster that it's fun trying to guess which story these songs belong with. After seeing her Crossroads special with Def Leppard a week or so ago and hearing her tell a story about Drew (the one from "Teardrops on My Guitar") I want to believe this one's about him. Also, the one line, "stupid girl," is incredibly powerful the way she sings it.

"She wears short skirts, I wear t-shirts. She's cheer captain and I'm in the bleachers." Do I have to say anything else? "You Belong With Me" is an incredibly fun one to car dance and sing along with. The end.

"Breathe" was cowritten by Colbie Caillat. I knew long ahead of time that there would be a Colbie song on this album, and before I ever looked at the songwriting credits, I figured it was this one. It blends in well with the rest of Taylor's album. It doesn't feel out of place at all. Yet, it's got such a signature Colbie feel to it, not to mention harmony vocals, which I found out later are sung by Coco herself, that to a girl who knows Colbie's debut inside and out, it was obviously this one. And considering that these are two of my favorite female songwriters, this song is definitely one of my favorites, if not because it's just a good song, then by default. But it really is just a good song.

Talk about getting beat up. "I know that you see what you're doing to me, tell me why." Yeah, I've felt that way once or eight times. Way to verbalize it, Tay.

"You're Not Sorry" is turning into one of my favorites on the album. I love the strings and piano--even though I HATE the way the piano sounds, but like I said, that's another issue. The way this entire song is put together is beautiful. It fits like puzzle pieces fit.

All this time I was wasting hoping you would come around
I’ve been giving out chances everytime and all you do is let me down
And its taking me this long but baby I figured you out
And you think it will be fine again but not this time around

You don’t have to call anymore
I won’t pick up the phone
This is the last straw
Don’t want to hurt anymore
And you can tell me that you’re sorry
But I won’t believe you baby like I did before
You’re not sorry no, no, no

Lookin’ so innocent
I might believe you if I didn’t know
Could’a loved you all my life
If you hadn’t left me waiting in the cold
And you got your share of secrets
And I’m tired of being last to know
And now you’re asking me to listen
Cuz its worked each time before

But you don’t have to call anymore
I won’t pick up the phone
This is the last straw
Don’t want to hurt anymore
And you can tell me that you’re sorry
But I don’t believe you baby like I did before
You’re not sorry no no no noo
You’re not sorry no no no noo

You had me calling for you honey
And it never would’ve gone away no
You use to shine so bright
But I watched our love it fade

So you don’t have to call anymore
I won’t pick up the phone
This is the last straw
There’s nothing left to beg for
And you can tell me that you’re sorry
But I won’t believe you baby like I did before
You're not sorry, no no

And while we're guessing who these songs are about, I read somewhere that there was at least one song on this album about the Jonas Brother Breakup Extreme-- I'm gonna take a wild guess and say it's this one. You may know that Taylor leaves secret messages for every song in her liner notes. The secret message in this one was, "She can have you."

So long, Joe.

"The Way I Loved You" was cowritten by John Rich of Big & Rich and formerly of Lonestar (although if you don't know the name John Rich on its own yet, well, shame on you). JR songs for me are hit and miss, but this one is definitely a hit-- it's passionate, it's a "rollercoaster kinda rush," and definitely reminds me of a relationship or two that I've been in.

"Forever and Always?" HELLO HIGH SCHOOL. Don't totally love (or get) the "rains in your bedroom" line but love the rest of the chorus-- the quirky little rhythmic and vocal things she does. Works. Totally works.

"The Best Day," is THE BEST SONG on this album. Listen, music doesn't make me cry very often. Very rarely. The last song I can think of that consistently has me tearing up (and still does) is Sarabeth by Rascal Flatts. Something about it has to be just right, and just because it's a sappy story doesn't mean anything. But the very first time I heard this song, my eyes got all misty and my heart got all gooey and there was no going back. My eyes still blur up a little when I hear it, and I certainly can't listen to it while I'm driving. Oh no. "There is a video I found from back when I was three, you set up a paint set in the kitchen and you're talking to me, it's the age of princesses and pirate ships and the seven dwarves, daddy's smart and you're the prettiest lady in the whole wide world." Where does this girl get off loving her mom so much she writes a song about her? This is one truly original, sweet, heartmelting piece of music that really solidifies who Taylor Swift is and why she is in this business.

Because she belongs here.

The last song, "Change," is one of those FIERCE Taylor songs, but not in a "you broke up with me and I'm angry" way, just in an "I'm strong and you are too and we'll show the world some day" kind of way. If this says anything to you, it was included on the Olympic Soundtrack this summer, and listening to it, I wonder if they specifically asked her to write it. It's one of those very inspiring, obstacle overcoming, championed kind of songs. "These things will change, can you see it now? These walls that they put up to hold us back will fall down."

Who's holding Taylor back?
Um, nobody.


So, to recap, if you're still with me:

The album is worth it. I always expect more, and I'm afraid that's where my small bit of disappointment came in... but here's the way I look at it. There's this thing called the sophomore slump-- it refers to sales, mostly, but also to the way an album is presented artistically. After a successful debut, an artist really has to build upon the successful image he or she created with that first album. Sometimes the pressure is too much. Sometimes there was a lot of extra help the first time around where the second time there won't be any. Sometimes it just has to do with having a lot less time to make the second one than the first, considering the touring schedule and any other factor you can think up. I look at some of my favorite artists and realize I loved the first album, the second was just okay, but OH MAN THE THIRD ALBUM.

And if this is Taylor's sophomore "slump," oh man, I really can't wait to hear what's next.

Jake Jagielski Live

Lately I've become enthralled (again) with One Tree Hill.

SoapNet is stealing my life.

So anyway, imagine my surprise when I saw Jake Jagielski's beautiful face chinning-up at me from The Fine Line Music Cafe's windows on my walk to work this morning.


I thought I was seeing things.

So I made a mental note of that name-- "Bryan Greenberg. Is Jake Jagielski's real name Bryan Greenberg? I guess I never thought to notice..."

It is. And he'll be at the Fine Line on Monday with Graham Colton, Michael Tolcher and Tim Brantley. So here's the quandry:

Stay home and watch One Tree Hill, or go to the Fine Line to see Jake Jagielski in person?

Guess it will depend on whether I can convince any of my friends to see him with me...