Sunday Selections: February 21, 2016
This week is all about that country grammar. And the Grammys.
Lucinda Williams
Album Review: Buddy Miller & Friends, Cayamo Sessions at Sea
With a steady job as executive music producer for ABC-TV’s Nashville, as well as a hectic schedule in his own studio, Buddy Miller does not often release a new album. When he finally does, it’s bound to be excellent. Buddy Miller & Friends: Cayamo Sessions at Sea features Miller supporting some of Americana’s top artists. It demonstrates not only his sublime artistry, but his talent of nudging great singers into even greater performances.
Sunday Selections: February 7, 2016
We just kind of can’t with this year’s ACM nominees.
Favorite Females’ Covers of Females’ Songs
We can thank the shortsighted radio consultant Keith Hill for one thing: drawing attention to the women of country music in a year where so many of them are making outstanding music. As their mainstream counterparts cycle through a series of one-note styles and themes, female country artists are putting out diverse and decidedly more progressive music, even as they draw influence from previous generations. That they do so while supporting each other makes it all the more impressive.
Album Review: Emmylou Harris, Wrecking Ball: Deluxe Edition
Emmylou Harris
Wrecking Ball: Deluxe Edition
Nonesuch has released an impressive deluxe edition of the landmark Emmylou Harris album, Wrecking Ball. For those who are new to the set, this is the edition you should buy. But it’s also worth the upgrade for those who already have this set in their collection.
Produced by Daniel Lanois, this album was a stunning departure for Harris, so much so that she personally requested that it not be eligible for the country charts. That’s funny in retrospect, given that alongside legends like Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, and Neil Young, the album was anchored by compositions by up-and-coming songwriters like Gillian Welch, Lucinda Williams, and Julie Miller. With further cuts by writers like Anna McGarrigle, Steve Earle, and Rodney Crowell, Wrecking Ball helped set a template for what would become a vibrant Americana scene over the years that followed.