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?

Psh. It Happens.

No, this isn't the post in which I tell you how absolutely incredible Cadillac Sky's Gravity's Our Enemy is. And Oh My, is it. It's also not the post where I thoughtfully lay out every soulful sound of Keri Noble's Fearless. Life's been full and it's been hard to find the moments needed to do these collections of music justice. Also, I was thinking today, have I ever done a good run-down of Blue Moon Rising's One Lonely Shadow? Because that should be added to the list too.

What I really came here to tell you is that I just picked up Sugarland's Love on the Inside. I've only listened to the first three songs so far, but already I think it's my favorite album of theirs so far, and glancing through the songwriting credits, it looks like Jennifer and Kristian wrote all of the tracks on the basic edition and all but two on the deluxe fan edition. It's got a great sound, is full of energy, and will be a pleasure to listen to over and over again.

Hopefully I can get back to you on this one and the others soon.

On a final note-This album is in beautiful, beautiful, cardstock packaging. I'm now avoiding the plastic jewel cases as one of my tiny contributions to the environment, so seeing this packaged like it was made me a happy girl. Hello Earth! I love you!

Wishlist

For quite awhile--months even--I was fairly content with my music collection. It's large, and while not exactly eclectic, I have a little something for any mood I could possibly be in (Sugar Hill Gang, anyone?). But this trying to save money thing has really taken a toll on me lately, and my list of MUST HAVE NOOOOW PLEASE albums is getting longer by the day. It hurts, really.

• Rebecca Lynn Howard, No Rules
• Sugarland, Love on the Inside
• Lady Antebellum (more out of curiosity than anything)
• Duffy, Rockferry
• Keri Noble, Fearless
• Joshua Radin, Simple Times
• Ben Folds, Way to Be Normal
• Chuck Wicks, Starting Now
• Melonie Cannon, And the Wheels Turn
• Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles, Diamonds in the Dark

Now, I do have a way of acquiring most of this music without breaking the bank--it's called shopping in the new & used section of Amazon.com. But still... I can't afford to do even that just yet. So they sit there, looking at me with their bright beautiful puppy dog eyes from my wishlist.

Hi little guys. I'll give you a home soon! Promise.


And yes, I'm fully aware that some of this music was released years ago. I'm slow sometimes. Forgive me.