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by Julian Spivey
The first 50 are in alphabetical order ...
Ain’t Lookin’ by The Wild Feathers Appalachian by Dori Freeman Astronaut by RC & the Ambers August 29 by Rod Gator Blacktop Blues by Chris Hennessee Blame on the Bottle by Mac Leaphart Bubba Jones by Tony Joe White Can’t Let Go by Robert Plant & Alison Krauss Chance in Hell by Bobby Dove feat. Jim Cuddy Chevrolets and Angels by The Ben Jarrell Band Clayton Was a Cowboy by Jesse Daniel Coalshooter by Cole Chaney Cowgirl Blues by Midland The Creek by Zach Russell Cry by Jon Batiste Dance the Night Away by Tyller Gummersall & Kinsey Rose Dying to Make a Living by The Local Honeys The Gallows by The Barlow Geraldene by Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram & Jon Randall Horses in Heaven by Kylie Frey feat. Randy Houser How Lucky I Am by Kaitlin Butts I Need Your Love by Charley Crockett I Wish You Would’ve Been a Cowboy by Adeem the Artist If I Didn’t Love You by Max Flinn In a Perfect World by Elijah Ocean Jackie by James McMurtry Just Don’t by Shelby Lee Lowe The Killing Type by Jamestown Revival Lonesome for a Livin’ by Blackberry Smoke feat. Jamey Johnson Longer Than She Did by Cody Johnson Lookin’ Over My Shoulder by John R. Miller The Luxury of Dreaming by Jason Eady Old Gods by Emily Scott Robinson Operation Never Mind by James McMurtry Pawn Shop Queen by Katie Jo Persephone by Allison Russell Record High by Randall King Social Drinkers by Mike and the Moonpies Some Things Never Change by Flatland Cavalry The Storm by Michigan Rattlers Strong by Charles Wesley Godwin Take me Away by Morgan Wade They’ve Closed Down the Honk Tonks by Miranda Lambert Things a Man Oughta Know by Lainey Wilson Think I’ll Stay by Jesse Daniel Waterbound by Rhiannon Giddens feat. Francesco Turrisi Where the Cottonwood Grows by Alan Jackson Where the Neon Lies by Triston Marez & Ronnie Dunn Wide River to Cross by Tyller Gummersall You Get it All by Hayes Carll
50. "The Hounds" by Taylor McCall
I didn’t know who Taylor McCall was coming into 2021 and then “The Hounds” became one of my most listened to songs of the year. The non-album single, released in January, is quite hard for me to put a finger on because I see absolutely no backstory on it online. I believe it’s a tale of a broken relationship but all I really know is McCall has a fantastic voice and “The Hounds” has a killer chorus and makes for a good folk-rocker.
49. "Anchor" by Jack Ingram feat. Miranda Lambert & Jon Randall
Jack Ingram’s standout track on The Marfa Tapes with Miranda Lambert and Jon Randall is the quiet love song “Anchor.” Maybe it’s the acoustic guitar picking, the almost whispered vocals or the fact it’s clearly recorded outside, but this is one of the rawest songs you’re going to hear, and it just works for the track about that special someone that you depend on more than life itself. Ingram said in a press release when the track was released: “You know that feeling when someone pulls you in so deep that you never want to come back? You just want them to hold you and never let go. There’s a beautiful freedom in that, and somehow it feels like you’re flying. That’s an anchor, and you’re lucky if you found one.”
48. "The Light Saw Me" by Jason Boland & the Stragglers
I feel like Jason Boland & the Stragglers might be the only group in any subgenre of country music to get away with performing a concept album about alien abduction. The title track to the album The Light Saw Me is my current favorite from the album, which just came out December 3. A play on the Hank Williams classic “I Saw the Light,” “The Light Saw Me” is about a Texas cowboy in the 1890s who’s abducted by aliens but returned to the same place a century later. If you’re reading this and think Boland has lost his damn mind, don’t worry it sounds like you’d expect a Boland song to sound, fiddle included.
47. "All It Cost Me Was Everything" by Cody Jinks
Cody Jinks has had quite the busy 2021 releasing two albums – the country album Mercy and going back to his heavy metal roots with None The Wiser, released under Caned By Nod. I honestly don’t have much use for the metal record, but my favorite track off Mercy is “All It Cost Me Was Everything.” The song, written by Jinks, Kendell Marvel and Josh Morningstar, is pretty much quintessential Jinks with its tale of a hard lived life and paying dues on the road for the career he loves.
46. "Never Wanted to Be That Girl" by Carly Pearce & Ashley McBryde
Thank God for the women of country music trying to keep a little traditional country in the mainstream. Surprising CMA Female Vocalist of the Year winner Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde (one of the best in the genre for my money) have put a unique spin on a cheating song in a duet with one woman realizing she’s the “other woman” when seeing her guy with presumably his wife. Pearce told Taste of Country: “I think it’s a story that happens more times than people even want to admit. This should be looked at as two female artists coming together to write a truth that so many women live.”
45. "Call Me a Fool" by Valerie June feat. Carla Thomas
Americana Awards Artist of the Year nominee Valerie June got the chance to team up with soul icon (and I’m sure one of her musical heroes) Carla Thomas for the bluesy soulful “Call Me a Fool” on her latest album The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers. June told CMT she wanted people to know they could have dreams, even if the world around them thought they were foolish, “No matter how big or how small your dream may be, keep believing, and let the world call you a fool!”
44. "Run On Ahead" by The Steel Woods
“Run On Ahead” by The Steel Woods is one of the 2021 songs most likely to bring tears to your eyes, especially with the untimely death of band member Jason “Rowdy” Cope on January 16. “Run On Ahead,” written by Ross Newell, a friend of the band, might not explicitly be about the loss of Cope (I’m not sure when it was written, but the album released just four months following his death) but is about the death of a loved one and Wes Bayliss’ vocal on the track is heartbreaking. “Run on Ahead” is one of a few tracks on the band’s All of Your Stones album that you just can’t help but think of Cope when listening to.
43. "You're Lucky She's Lonely" by Summer Dean & Colter Wall
In a year filled with some good country music duets one of the best is the collaboration between Summer Dean and Colter Wall on “You’re Lucky She’s Lonely” from Dean’s album Bad Romantic. The song tells the tale of a woman who’s so lonely she’s probably going to go home with anyone by the time of last call at the bar. Written by the two performers, both of whom are known as throwbacks, it’s a weeper that truly could’ve worked in any of the last five-to-six decades of country music.
42. "More Than We Can Handle" by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
One of my favorite lyrics of 2021 is “Save the dog/then we decided we should save the kids too” in Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real’s “More Than We Can Handle,” a song about a family losing almost everything to a flood, but as his wife reminds the narrator in the chorus: “God won’t give us more than we can handle/and at least we’ve got each other if I’m wrong.” It’s such a sweet song, but the dog over the kids line makes me chuckle every time.
41. "Love Songs" by Lonesome River Band
This has been a rather good year for bluegrass and one of my favorites of the genre this year was “Love Songs” by Lonesome River Band. The song has some of the absolute best picking of the year when it comes to banjo playing by Sammy Shelor, a recipient of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo. The mandolin by Jesse Smathers and fiddle playing by Mike Hartgrove are top notch, as well. The song was written by songwriter Adam Wright, who also wrote Balsam Range’s “Santa Barbara” which appears on this list, and he just has an incredible knack for bringing humor out in these songs. The punchline of “Love Songs” is if the songwriter had to make his living out of love songs he’d starve to death, because he’s supposed to write what he knows and he doesn’t know love. Vocalist Brandon Rickman brings out all the wit of the song in his performance.
40. "Get the Money" by Red Shahan
My favorite track off Red Shahan’s latest album Javelina is “Get the Money,” the tale of a getaway driver for a bank robber who realizes too late in the game he’s made a mistake getting involved. It’s a unique look at a frequent alt-country/outlaw country theme of criminals and the ensuing chase from the authorities.
39. "I Lied" by Lord Huron feat. Allison Ponthier
There’s a lovely sway to the music of “I Lied,” a duet of deceit between Lord Huron and Allison Ponthier. It’s almost as if a breakup is occurring at a Hawaiian luau at first, but the music does eventually match the sadness of the lyrics of a husband revealing his infidelities to his wife in a letter with the desire to end their marriage with harmonizing backup vocals sounding as if coming from angels up above. Grateful Web described the track as “heartbreakingly dreamy” and there’s probably no better description for “I Lied.”
38. "Trouble Knows Trouble" by Gary Allan
Gary Allan has been maybe the most underrated performer in mainstream country music over the last two decades and I’m thrilled to see him return with a great song in “Trouble Knows Trouble,” even if there weren’t all that many highlights off his newest album. “Trouble Knows Trouble,” written by Steve Bogard, John Edwards and Jason Sever, is a smoldering song of two lonely people, presumably at a bar, who connect on a sensual level and basically use each other for the evening. Few in country music are able to pull off a sensual vocal like this as well as Allan.
37. "Wild Turkey" by Amythyst Kiah
Amythyst Kiah’s “Wild Turkey” is one of the coolest sounding Americana tracks of the year and you can kind of get lost in its sound and Kiah’s vocal so much the first few listens you almost don’t even realize how deep and dark its content is. The song is tragically about the suicide of Kiah’s mother and her raw grief that’s so poetic it makes something so horrible sound beautiful in its own way. It’s always amazing to me how songwriters can take something so tragic in their lives and make something beautiful out of it.
36. "Back to Alabama" by The Pine Hill Haints
I can’t get enough of the opening 30-second instrumental of “Back to Alabama” by The Pine Hill Haints. It’s just so pleasing to my ears, but also so familiar as if I’ve heard it before – though it’s a new song. It feels like something, especially that riff that I think is Jamie Barrier’s guitar and Justin Ward’s accordion (though I could be wrong), that might have come from the Irish pub rock band Dropkick Murphys, though I don’t really listen to that band so, once again, I could be wrong. The song tells the tale of a traveling band loading up its tour van and going from gig to gig – the lyrics are simple, but the intensity of Barrier’s vocals mixed with this raucous jam makes for a rebellious experience.
35. "The Conversation" by The Wilder Blue
The Wilder Blue, who released their debut album in 2020 as the too vague Hill Country before switching to The Wilder Blue later in the year, released a couple of new songs this year and “The Conversation” wound up being my favorite thing they’ve released thus far. “The Conversation” instantly sounded to me as if it could’ve been a lost Eagles track with its harmonizing and its early ‘70s country-rock sound. The song tells the conversation between the proverbial devil on one shoulder and angel on the other trying to convince the narrator what to do when it comes to a possible new love.
34. "Dispatch to 16th Ave." by Muscadine Bloodline
It’s become a common theme over the last decade or so in non-mainstream country music: talking about how real country ain’t made in Nashville anymore. It’s to the point where some folks roll their eyes when they hear another one of them – and occasionally I do too – but Muscadine Bloodline’s “Dispatch to 16th Ave.” caught my attention from the first listen. The group’s take on the topic is the person who goes to Nashville and is singing the good stuff, but either is going to have to turn around and head home or kowtow to the mainstream execs and record what the trends say people want to hear. I’m thankful for the artists who do what they believe is right anyway, even if it means they may never have a No. 1 hit or sell out arenas.
33. "Juanita" by Sturgill Simpson feat. Willie Nelson
Maybe the most creative piece of music this year in the Americana or country music genres was Sturgill Simpson’s Grammy-nominated concept album The Ballad of Dood and Juanita, which tells a Kentucky frontier love story about a man and his wife, who’s kidnapped by a bandit and must be rescued. Being a concept album, which was no doubt inspired by Willie Nelson’s 1975 classic Red Headed Stranger, there aren’t many tracks on the album that can truly stand out on their own, but “Juanita” is one that does. “Juanita” is the tale of Dood remembering how he met his wife and him promising he’ll find her once again. There are many different styles of music on the album, but this track takes on a Mexican-flavored sound with a guitar solo played by the unmistakable sound of Willie Nelson’s Trigger.
32. "Santa Barbara" by Balsam Range
I feel like 2021 has been a great year for bluegrass music as more bluegrass seems to be on my list this year than most. “Santa Barbara” by Balsam Range is one of my favorite bluegrass tracks of the year with its wonderful banjo picking by Dr. Marc Pruett and its fun, tongue-in-cheek lyrics about a man blaming himself for all the problems his life faces and “if I had a dollar for every bit of trouble I’ve caused/we’d be living in Santa Barbara in a house the size of the Taj Mahal.” Vocalist Buddy Melton told wideopencountry.com: “If we have learned one thing over the last year, it is that things happen that are just out of our control. We may often feel like we are the root of all our problems and that things just won’t go our way, but we must stop beating ourselves up.”
31. "At Least There's No Babies" by Brit Taylor & Dee White
My favorite male/female duet of 2021 is “At Least There’s No Babies” by Brit Taylor and Dee White and it’s hardcore, traditional country to its core. The song tells of a marriage ending and how the silver lining of it all is that at least the couple hadn’t had any babies yet to tie themselves together going forward. It’s a throwback of sorts to the type of duets that George Jones and Tammy Wynette had so much success with in their heyday. Taylor released her album Real Me in 2020, but “At Least There’s No Babies” made the deluxe edition this year and she told thecountrynote.com the album didn’t feel complete without it, “It is the final chapter of the story. Its combination of humor and sadness meant I was ready to move forward and live my next story.”
30. Back in Ohio by Lucero
There haven’t been enough great songs about American ex-pat revolutionaries since the days of Warren Zevon, who is a musical inspiration for Lucero’s songwriter/frontman Ben Nichols (he once released a song called “Went Looking for Warren Zevon’s Los Angeles”). Nichols found his own inspiration for a “Lawyers, Guns & Money” or “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner” in the form of William Morgan, an Ohioan who fought in the Cuban Revolution and was eventually executed by Fidel Castro. The roots rocker was inspired by a 2015 PBS documentary on Morgan called “American Comandante” and wrote one of the best fist-pounding rockers of the year, complete with a Clarence Clemons/E Street Band-esque saxophone solo I really dig.
29. "Decent Man" by James McMurtry
James McMurtry’s “Decent Man” was based on the short story Pray Without Ceasing by Wendell Berry, in fact according to Rolling Stone magazine McMurtry sent a letter to Berry asking the novelist if he’d like to share writing credit for the song (Berry declined). It’s the story of an older man in a fit of rage killing an old friend and turns himself in for the crime. The Berry story is told from the man’s daughter’s perspective. McMurtry puts the narration in the killer’s hands.
28. "Waxahachie" by Miranda Lambert feat. Jack Ingram & Jon Randall
“Waxahachie,” one of Miranda Lambert’s standouts from the excellent The Marfa Tapes collaboration with Jack Ingram and Jon Randall, tells of a melancholic drive from Louisiana to the narrator’s hometown of Waxahachie, Texas after a devastating breakup. Waxahachie represents both old comfort and a new start for the narrator and Lambert gives one of her most emotional and rawest performances to date.
27. "For Louisiana" by Rod Gator
2021 has been something of a homecoming for Rod Gator. First, he changed his recording name from Rod Melancon to Rod Gator, telling No Depression: “I had to change my name to feel more like myself.” Gator is also the name his dad reportedly wanted to name him before mom stepped in. Second, his latest album For Louisiana gets back to his swampy roots of where he was raised, and the title track is an absolute smash. You really feel like you’re flying down the highway in Louisiana when listening to this track, especially with its infectious chorus. When a songwriter and vocalist can make you feel as if you’re in the place they’re singing about they’ve done an excellent job.
26. "Fort Walton Wake-Up Call" by James McMurtry
The refrain “I keep losing my glasses” repeated over and over throughout James McMurtry’s “Ft. Walton Wake-Up Call” might be the funniest thing in Americana in 2021. The narrator’s lost glasses are the thing that keeps the story about a road trip from Hell with one’s wife throughout the South moving along. McMurtry is one of the best songwriters in the game when it comes to crafting realistic stories with so many images interwoven. It must run in his family, as his father was novelist and screenwriter Larry McMurtry of Lonesome Dove fame.
25. "Paycheck to Paycheck" by Mike and the Moonpies
Mike and the Moonpies are the hottest band in that red dirt/Texas country subgenre of country music lately with their brand of blue collar honky tonk. “Paycheck to Paycheck,” the first single off their latest album One to Grow On, is a raucous rocker that serves both as a tribute to America’s hard workin’ men and one of country music’s underrated legends, Johnny Paycheck. I bet “Paycheck to Paycheck” absolutely kills at the Moonpies live shows.
24. "Homegrown Tomatoes" by Jon Randall, Miranda Lambert & Jack Ingram
“Homegrown Tomatoes,” off the exquisite The Marfa Tapes collaboration between Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall, is one of the catchiest, most infectious tunes of the year. You can tell this trio had such a fun time recording this track especially, their laughter and sense of humor is right there on the recording. Randall takes the lead vocals on “Homegrown Tomatoes,” which takes its title from a Guy Clark classic in a nod to one of the greatest singer-songwriters ever from Texas.
23. "Nightflyer" by Allison Russell
Allison Russell has had one of the best years of any artist in Americana and that was solidified with her recent three Grammy Award nominations, two of which are for the lead single “Nightflyer” off her solo debut album Outside Child. The song has been nominated for Best American Roots Song and Best American Roots Performance. The vocal by Russell is jaw-droppingly beautiful on a song that is essentially pure poetry set to music. You’ll almost feel like you can take off and fly while listening to this one.
22. "Silver Valley" by David Miner
Seattle singer-songwriter David Miner’s “Silver Valley” captured me from the very first time I heard it. It’s simplistic. It’s mostly just Miner’s voice with guitar accompaniment, but it tells such a strikingly tragic story of a miner trying to make it by digging for silver and once that goes bust must try to adapt to the changing world around him. The line “oh Silver Valley/one day these mountains will come down on me” repeated throughout the song is so striking in its imagery. It’s stuck with me all year.
21. "West Texas Cloud Appreciation Society" by Josh Grider & Drew Kennedy
Josh Grider and Drew Kennedy’s collaboration “West Texas Cloud Appreciation Society” will have you admiring the clouds like never before. It’ll also have you admiring a terrific whistle solo. I really love lyrics like, “if you’re a fan of God or Bob Ross/join the West Texas Cloud Appreciation Society.” You’ll be singing along with this one fast.
20. "All of Your Stones" by The Steel Woods
The Steel Woods frontman Wes Bayliss has this quintessential Southern Country-Rock voice that reminds me a lot of both Jamey Johnson (who actually co-wrote this song with Bayliss and Jason “Rowdy” Cope) and legendary original Lynyrd Skynyrd frontman Ronnie Van Zant (whom the group covers on their latest album). “All of Your Stones” is the title track from the band’s third studio album and it’s a triumphant song about taking the best of a breakup and coming out stronger and better for it. It’s basically a “don’t let the bastards get you down” song.
19. "Boots" by Aaron Watson
Aaron Watson is one of those singer-songwriters out of Texas that would’ve been a big country star in another era, say the ‘90s or early ‘00s. “Boots,” from his latest American Soul, should be a huge country hit. “Boots” is about a man loving to take his woman out for a dance and how the feeling between them makes him float on the air. The song has such a catchy chorus that’s fun to sing along with and it should make for a nice spin around a honky tonk dancefloor.
18. "Diamond Studded Shoes" by Yola
Can I get away with calling an Americana song a “banger”? Yola’s “Diamond Studded Shoes” is soulful to the core, but also a bit dark when you pay attention to the lyrics. She hides the seriousness of the song in an upbeat groove, something that could get people loving the song before they even find out it has a message. It’s a song about never giving up the fight for things that are important because there hasn’t been a whole lot of change in the world just yet.
17. "Break it Kind of Guy" by Eric Church
Eric Church’s double-album (or triple album if you’re a member of his fan club) Heart & Soul was disappointing to me, especially since Church has been one of my favorite artists since he debuted. It’s his least interesting album thus far, but still has some gems like “Break it Kind of Guy,” which I’ve liked from my first listen. “Break it Kind of Guy” is a perfect mixture of Church’s badass “Chief” side and a soulful side we saw on his previous album Dangerous Man. I think there’s a bit of “Break it Kind of Guy” in all of us and it’s a lot of fun to sing along with, especially on a day you’re feeling a bit defiant.
16. "Ten Mysterious Photo That Can't Be Explained" by Billy Bragg
I think English folkie Billy Bragg’s “Ten Mysterious Photos That Can’t Be Explained” is one of the smartest and wittiest songs of 2021 and very timely. The song, he co-wrote with his son Jack Valero, is essentially your average day on the internet with things like social media and comment section trolls, conspiracy theories, “cybercondriacs” (a truly terrific new word) and the general feeling of how something that was created for good and to help people learn new things has turned into something so terrible and evil. I absolutely love the title taken from those cheap-looking, clickbait slideshows you’ll find at the bottom of many websites. I also think the lyric: “they look like reasonable folks but the next thing you know is they’re screaming, ‘I don’t want your cure!’” is one of the truest things I’ve heard all year.
15. "In His Arms" by Miranda Lambert feat. Jack Ingram & Jon Randall
“In His Arms,” the first single off The Marfa Tapes – the wonderful collaboration between songwriters Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall, is so short and simple, but almost unbelievably beautiful in its imagery with Lambert singing about a lost love who’s gotten away, and she longs to be in his arms again. The verse about her wondering what her love is doing at the very moment in his life is one of the best you’ll hear all year.
14. "Help Me Remember" by Hayes Carll
Hayes Carll has been one of my favorite singer-songwriters since I was first introduced to his work via a local radio station about a decade ago. Every one of his albums has something terrific to offer and my favorite track off his latest album You Get It All is the tugging at your heartstrings ballad “Help Me Remember.” Many of us have had to experience a loved one struggling with Alzheimer’s or dementia where they have trouble remembering even the most important things about their lives. “Help Me Remember” is told from the perspective of someone with Alzheimer’s and asking a loved one to help him remember all the important life moments he’s forgotten. It’s a unique perspective because most of the time when you hear a song like this it’s told from the perspective of the loved ones coping with it and not first-hand.
13. "'Til You Can't" by Cody Johnson
One of the biggest signs to me that mainstream country music is broken and has been for quite a while is that a song like “’Til You Can’t” by Cody Johnson couldn’t even crack the top 30 on the U.S. Country Airplay chart despite being released by a major label. It’s a song, written by Ben Stennis and Matt Rogers, that’s a common theme within the genre – do the things you want to do and tell those you love that you love them because we aren’t here forever – and it’s an absolutely powerful vocal by Johnson. It should’ve been a massive hit.
12. "Reclaim My Name" by Adeem the Artist
Adeem the Artist’s “Reclaim My Name” is powerful because they’re so open and honest about things that impacted them negatively at a young age and how they had to overcome the cruelties of the world to become who they truly are. It’s obviously a song that has deep meaning to Adeem the Artist, but there are parts of it that others can feel to their core. When they sing, “grandma said that I looked fat from her perch on the porch looking side-eyed at me,” my god, I felt that.
11. "Coffin Nails" by Lucero
Alright, it’s time to get a little dark. I’ve been a bit mild on Lucero in the past, even though they have a dedicated following around my neck of the woods (front man Ben Nichols is from Little Rock), but I loved the gothic-drama of “Coffin Nails,” off their latest release When You Found Me from the first listen – it’s just too disturbing not to enjoy with its tale of a banshee that haunts a war-torn family. The subject matter fits Nichols’ sandpaper vocals terrifically and, well, we just need more banshee songs.
10. "French Summer Sun" by Jason Eady
Jason Eady’s mostly spoken word “French Summer Sun” reflects on the impact war can have not just on a soldier, but upon the future. It opens with an American soldier wounded in battle in France during World War II and coming home disabled, but able to live his life, fall in love and have children who’d carry on the family lineage. It ends with the shocking realization of how none of this would’ve happened had he died right there on that beach in the French summer sun. An Eady family trip to Italy inspired the song. Eady told WideOpenCountry.com: “The idea of the song came from visiting Anzio Beach in Italy, where my grandfather fought during World War II. While I was there, I thought a lot about how it’s not just one life that’s lost in battle, but all of the future lives and generations.”
9. "Ole Pal" by The Steel Woods
It’s hard to listen to The Steel Woods latest album All of Your Stones without thinking of their late bassist and co-writer Jason “Rowdy” Cope, who died in January. Some of the more somber tracks make you wonder if they may have come about following Cope’s death, despite the fact the album was released just a few months later. “Ole Pal,” written by front man Wes Bayliss is one of those songs. “Ole Pal” tells the story of a high school friend who’s passed on – and was reportedly inspired by the death of Winnie Cooper’s brother in Vietnam in the ‘80s TV series “The Wonder Years.” It’s a heartbreaking ballad that’ll certainly stay with you long after you hear it.
8. "The Ice Machine" by Elijah Ocean
I’ve always enjoyed a unique take on a common theme and country music is often good at producing a new twist on something old. Elijah Ocean does just that on “The Ice Machine,” off his album Born Blue, a cheating song with the narrator of the song wondering if he should go through with the affair while standing in a hotel hallway in front of an ice machine while a woman is waiting on him with a couple of drinks back in the room.
7. "The Runner" by Allison Russell
When it comes to music, I’m a lyrics guy first. The sound comes second for me. But it’s the sound of Allison Russell’s “The Runner” that I think caught my attention first – it just sounds so unique and interesting to me – like it’s all at once fresh and nostalgic. The theme of the song is certainly nostalgia with Russell recalling how music saved her from an abusive adoptive father and how she had to run across country from Montreal to Vancouver, Canada to escape him.
6. "Blackberry Winter" by James McMurtry
Nobody seems to do imagery in their songs the way James McMurtry does. Maybe it’s because he’s the son of one of America’s greatest novelists Larry McMurtry and the knack for terrific fiction runs in the family? After all, McMurtry told American Songwriter this year: “I’m a fiction writer. I don’t want to write about me. I’d rather make stuff up. I’m not interested in me.” The fact that his fiction seems so well-worn and lived in just means he’s really damn good when it comes to making stuff up. “Blackberry Winter” is a perfect example of this where he crafts a story of a woman whose children have all grown up and left the house and she feels depressed and alone and he assumes the persona of her boyfriend doing his best to take care of her, which mostly consists of telling her, “no.” It’s amazing the kind of brilliant melody McMurtry gets out of the simplest of all choruses.
5. "Right on Time" by Brandi Carlile
There’s just nobody in the Americana genre right now who can sing as good as Brandi Carlile. “Right on Time,” the lead single off her latest In These Silent Days, is the perfect song to belt. The song is a bit more Elton John, one of Carlile’s major influences, than some of her Americana or country influences, but, man, does it soar. Maybe the Elton John influence is why the Recording Academy decided to include the song in its pop categories, instead of Americana, but let’s be fair this doesn’t exactly sound like today’s pop hits. The song received three Grammy nominations recently for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.
4. "Amazing Grace - West Texas" by Jon Randall feat. Miranda Lambert & Jack Ingram
West Texas and its undoubtedly picturesque landscapes have brought a few of my favorite songs of the year, the highest ranking being “Amazing Grace – West Texas,” a Jon Randall contribution to the excellent The Marfa Tapes. It’s beautiful in its simplicity of small-town life that leaves you longing to watch a sunset on a porch swing with your loved one right beside you. Miranda Lambert’s backing vocals flow perfectly with Randall’s lead.
3. "Jesus Boogie" by Sturgill Simpson
Technically, “Jesus Boogie” from Sturgill Simpson’s bluegrass record Cuttin’ Grass – Vol. 2 was released at the very end of 2020, but I had already formalized this website’s best of 2020 list, so I saved it for the new year. “You never asked me if I wanted to be the son of God” is one of my favorite lyrics of the year. Can you imagine that burden? It’s so devastating, especially the way Simpson sings it. The track is filled out with beautiful bluegrass picking making for one of the most pleasantly sounding and thought-provoking tunes of the year.
2. "Canola Fields" by James McMurtry
I was kind of late to James McMurtry in 2015 when he released Complicated Game when I absolutely fell in love with his songs “Copper Canteen” and “You Got to Me,” which have undoubtedly become two of my most listened to songs of the last five years. McMurtry hadn’t released an album since then, which left me really wanting more from the songwriter who has creativity in his lineage (again, his dad was award-winning novelist Larry McMurtry). The Horses and the Hounds came out on August 20, and quickly became one of my two or three favorites of the year. The first single “Canola Fields,” released months earlier, instantly became one of my favorites of the year the very first time I heard the song about remembering a past love with its cinematic lyrics that truly paint a beautiful landscape.
1. "Ghost" by Miranda Lambert feat. Jack Ingram & Jon Randall
There’s a lot of good Miranda Lambert tracks on The Marfa Tapes collaboration with her songwriting buddies Jack Ingram and Jon Randall, but the one that stuck with me the most is “Ghost,” a break-up tune that TasteofCountry’s Angela Stefano brilliantly wrote “is a musical exorcism of sorts.” After a couple of high-profile relationships with fellow musicians it seems Lambert is finally at ease in life with her husband Brendan McLoughlan. Some of the best songs of her hall of fame career came out this year on The Marfa Tapes.
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