Jason Isbell, Charley Crockett Among Best Americana, Country Music from 2025's First Quarter4/10/2025 by Julian Spivey  Photos: Island Records, Tony Logue, Southeastern Records & Jesse Welles “Anything But Me” by Jesse Welles Jesse Welles, a folk singer from Arkansas, has burst upon the scene relatively quickly, thanks to some songs that have gone viral on social media apps like TikTok. Don’t let the way he’s found stardom fool you, though; he’s the real deal when it comes to songwriting. One of my early favorites from his latest album, Middle, is “Anything But Me,” which is about everything he wishes he could have been but himself. It includes the excellent chorus: “I should’ve been a bird/a sparrow or an eagle/a crow or a seagull/flyin’ over the sea/I should’ve been a sailor/a cowboy or a jailer/anything but me.” The vocal flow of the chorus is beautiful. “Bury Me” by Jason Isbell Jason Isbell’s solo album Foxes in the Snow is the early candidate for Album of the Year in the Americana genre. The album is just his voice and guitar and features some of his career's most emotional songwriting and singing, with tracks split between his divorce and his new relationship. I’m not sure if “Bury Me” will be my favorite track on the album – it’ll probably be a bit more personal – but with it being the first single released, it’s the one I’ve listened to the most so far. “Bury Me” has Isbell beginning with just his fantastic voice for the first verse before his guitar accompanies him on the second. It might be the countriest (particularly country & western) of his discography, with images of swinging bar doors, windy plains and typical Western artifacts. However, he admits he’s neither a cowboy nor an outlaw. “Casseroles” by Hailey Whitters I don’t understand how Hailey Whitters hasn’t broken through to be a star yet in mainstream country music, but it might have something to do with how her songwriting (though she didn’t have a hand in this one) and performance are true to real life, both the good and the bad. She has the tragedy down pat with “Casseroles,” off her upcoming album Corn Queen. “After the casseroles stop coming” is a terrific line about how life follows a tragedy, and such a small-town way of putting it, with the tradition of neighbors and friends bringing over food like casseroles in the aftermath of devastation. Written by Hillary Lindsey, James Slater, and Tom Douglas, anyone who has suffered a loss can understand this. “Cinnamon Blonde” by Tony Logue Tony Logue had one of my favorite songs of 2023 with “Thundertown,” a Bruce Springsteen-esque tune off his album, The Crumbs. He’s returned this year with another terrific album of heartland country-rock called Dark Horse, filled with songs that could’ve made this list. “Cinnamon Blonde” is the one I’ve chosen. The song is about thinking of the one you love back home, while you’re out on the road making a living for the two of you. If you’re a fan of early Steve Earle records, you’ll enjoy this. “Game I Can’t Win” by Charley Crockett Charley Crockett’s output is unmatched among his peers. He released two albums in 2024, including one of my favorites of the year, $10 Cowboy. He’s now back with another, Lonesome Drifter, which will surely be one of this year’s highlights. “Game I Can’t Win” is one of the standout tracks on the album. It’s not a stranger of a theme for Crockett as he croons about the state of the music business and relationship with the quip: “I’ve always loved a game I can’t win.” “Hands of Time” by Eric Church Eric Church has been worrying some longtime fans, whether right or wrong, due to changes in his sound, which has leaned more toward soul and gospel lately. “Hands of Time,” the first single from his upcoming album Evangeline vs. The Machine should go a long way in quelling those worries, as the North Carolina country-rocker feels in his sweet spot with a tune about helping him remain young by reliving all the great moments and songs of his past with terrific name and song drops of Bob Seger, Tom Petty, Waylon and Willie and more. “Memory Bank” by Drew Holcomb & Ellie Holcomb One of the best, and surely underrated, musical couples today is Drew and Ellie Holcomb, who both have successful singer-songwriter careers solo, but have made magic coming together with Memory Bank. The title track sees the husband and wife duo singing about how moments spent together lead to long-lasting memories that make a relationship fun and successful. I particularly like the opening lines: “Singing Fleetwood Mac, reading Kerouac/with an old Kodak on the dashboard.” “Old Melodies” by Paul Thorn I haven’t heard a line from a song yet this year that exemplifies 2025 more than: “’Amazing Grace’ used to be our favorite song, but now it’s ‘We Shall Overcome’.” The line from Thorn’s “Old Melodies,” the final track on his latest album Life Is Just a Vapor, blew me away the first time I heard it, and it has ever since. It’s a perfect statement about the country we’re currently living in, but came out of something experienced in Thorn’s life, according to his website: “We had a family problem a long time ago, a relative that ran off the tracks with drugs and everything. When my dad was dealing with the pain of the heartache that somebody he loved was in a dark hole, he was just standing there, crying. And he said, ‘Man, ‘Amazing Grace’ used to be my favorite song, but now it’s ‘We Shall Overcome.’ Boy, that just hit me right between the eyes. They’re both great songs, but ‘Amazing Grace’ is more like a praise song. ‘We Shall Overcome’ is, ‘We got something we gotta deal with, and we’re gonna deal with it, and we’re gonna get past it.’ I thought that was a beautiful thing he said.”
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