Last Year’s Best of Americana

by Andrew Elias

Charley Crockett

The Man from Waco

Lil’ G.L. Presents: Jukebox Charley

Few artists in the Americana and country music genre have garnered as much well-deserved acclaim in recent years as Charley Crockett. Playing what he calls ‘Gulf & Western’ music, he draws from the blues and Southern soul as much as tejano, traditional and honky-tonk country music influences. His songwriting is on par with the icons he reveres: Hank Williams, Willie Nelson, Web Pierce, Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash—yet has a compellingly unique vision.

Although touring endlessly, he somehow finds the time to release an album or two each year, with 2022’s Jukebox Charley and The Man from Waco among the best of his career. They both showcase his brilliant songwriting and confident yet vulnerable vocals as he extends his music into jazzier realms than in the past with delightful horn arrangements.

So many of his songs sound like the classics of the country music canon that many will be surprised to know he wrote them—and we can expect artists to be covering them for years to come. Although constantly performing—or maybe because of it—his voice seems to get stronger with each release.

‘Trinity River’, ‘Odessa’, ‘Cowboy Candy’, from The Man from Waco and ‘Make Way For a Better Man’, ‘Lonely in Person’, ‘Where Have All the Honest People Gone?’, and covers of Willie Nelson’s ‘Home Motel’ and George Jones’ ‘Out of Control’ from Jukebox Charley.

Zach Bryan

American Heartbreak Summertime Blues

Zach Bryan is a relative newcomer to the country music scene, but had the audacity to release a double-album, American Heartbreak, as his first major label debut. It pays off with 34 emotional songs about love, loss and life that highlight his sincere songwriting, albeit colored with darkness and angst.

Most tracks are intimate, with Bryan accompanied only by a guitar or two, sometimes accented with a fiddle or harmonica, but there are a few that prove that he has the chops to rock.

And as if an album of 34 songs outstanding songs wasn’t enough, Bryan also released a 9-song album a few months later, Summertime Blues, continuing to explore his damaged psyche with songs of exceptional tenderness.

Charley Crockett plays what he calls ‘Gulf & Western’ music.

Two albums without a weak track on either. Jukebox Charley features covers of songs by some of his biggest influences and leans towards honky tonk, with plenty of pedal steel guitar. The Man from Waco, features his own compositions, with plenty of twang, but a fews songs are more soulful, with delicious horn arrangements.

Recommended: ‘I’m Just a Clown’, ‘Just Like Honey’,

Bryan’s audacity is matched by his intensity and ability to write poetic songs that are both incredibly specific and easily universal—filled with wisdom and sorrow unusual for such a young man.

In ‘Corinthian (Proctor’s)’ he sings “I wanna’ die today, so I can learn to live for more.” Let’s hope that he lives a long life. He seems to have a lot to say that’s worth hearing.

R ecommended : ‘Corinthian (Proctor’s)’, ‘Open the Gates’, ‘Someday (Maggie’s)’, ‘Sober Side of Sorry’, ‘She’s Alright’, ‘‘68 Fastback’, ‘Something in the Orange’ on American Heartbreak , and ‘Quittin’ Time’, ‘Motorcycle Drive By’, and ‘Us Then’ from Summertime Blues.

Zach Bryan had the audacity to release a double album with 34 songs as his major label debut.

Live Forever

A Tribute to Billy Joe Shaver

Willie Nelson has said that Billy Joe Shaver was ‘definitely the best writer in Texas”. And Willie’s rendition of Shaver’s touching “Live Forever’ (with Lucinda Williams adding backing vocals) is a delicate and moving tribute to his friend. In fact, this entire album is overflowing with love—the love for an iconic songwriter and his moving songs. His cover of ‘I Been to Georgia On a Fast Train’ is a rowdy toast to Shiver’s wit and sense of humor (and features a wonderfully classic Willie guitar solo).

Tributes come from artists that knew him (George Strait, Rodney Crowell, Steve Earle) and others too young for the privilege (Nathaniel Rateliff, Amanda Shires, Ryan Bingham & Nikki Lane).

Shaver never had the commercial success of his contemporaries like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson. Most of his best known songs were hits with others.

Shaver passed away in 2020. This collection is proof that Billy Joe Shaver is one of the America’s great songwriters.

Recommended: ‘Live Forever’, ‘I’ve Been to Georgia on a Fast Train’, ‘I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’ll Be a Diamond Some Day)’ by Miranda Lambert, ‘Ragged Old Truck’ by Margo Price, with Joshua Hedly.

King Margo Waters Rise

King Margo is the duo of Lucciana Costa and Rachel Coat. They write songs with sly wit and a sense of the dramatic and play them with passion, bathing them in intricate arrangements and soaring harmonies

(reminiscent of The Secret Sisters and the Sweetback Sisters.)

The music is on the pop side of country, although they are comfortable with bluesy ballads (‘Your Fix’) and can rock pretty hard (‘Crazymakin’ Town’ and ‘Floodlights & Sequins’). Waters Rise is an impressive album that only hints at what is in store for these women.

Recommended: ‘Dishes Ain’t Done’ with Gabe Lee, ‘Floodlights & Sequins’, ‘Crazymakin’ Town’, ‘Your Fix’.

Something Borrowed, Something New A Tribute to John Anderson

Although John Anderson sold millions of albums over four decades, he is a pretty obscure name, even among country music fans. In 2020, Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) attempted to revive Anderson’s career, producing his first album in five years and adding his own rock sound to Anderson’s new songs. The album was well-received, but did little for to boost his popularity.

This collection of songs Anderson made famous, covered by some of the best of the current crop of Americana artists, reconfirms his considerable talents. With all the tracks recorded in Auerbach’s Easy Eye Studios, the album has a cohesive sound throughout rather than being a compilation of disparate tracks in various styles.

Tracks by newcomers like Sierra Ferrell, Brent Cobb, and Tyler Childers, and new ‘stars’ like Eric Church, Sturgill Simpson and Brothers Osbourne, ooze with reverence for Anderson.

Hopefully, these new artists borrowing old songs can introduce a new generation to Anderson’s old hits, and introduce older fans to exciting younger artists.

Recommended: ‘1959’ by John Prine, ‘Low Dog Blues’ by Nathaniel Rateliff, ‘I Just Came Home to Count the Memories’ by Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, ‘Straight Tequila Night’ by Ashley McBryde, ‘You Can’t Judge a Book by The Cover’ by Brothers Osbourne.

Plains

I Walked With You A Way

Plains is the duo of Katie Crutchfield (aka Waxahatchee) and Jess Williamson. Together, they sing gorgeous harmonies and individually, they write simple, smart songs. The harmonies are what grabs you at first, but after repeated listenings you come to appreciate their songwriting craft. The tasteful acoustic accompaniment and stark production enhance the sharpness of their lyrics and supports the sweetness of their singing.

Crutchfield’s ‘Problem With It’ is a gem, a rocking warning that stings with it’s directness. Williamson’s ‘Abilene’ is also outstanding, a rolling lament. Together, they’ve made an album that can be best described as folk-pop, sounding old-timey and yet thoroughly current.

R ecommended : ‘Problem With It’, ‘Summer Sun’, ‘Abiline’, ‘Last 2 on Earth’, ‘Easy’.