Happy Valentine’s Day

Fake holidays usually put me in a fighting mood, but there's just no way to get worked up while listening to a song like "That's the Thing About Love." Don Williams is one smooth fella. … [Read more...]

New Country Album Releases for February 7

Dierks Bentley - Home

Dierks Bentley - Home Various Artists - Music Inside: A Collaboration Dedicated to Waylon Jennings, Part 2 Various Artists - Hearts Across Texas (includes Aaron Watson/Elizabeth Cook duet) Glen Campbell - Meet Glen Campbell (reissued with bonus tracks) … [Read more...]

Saluting Guy Clark and Merle Haggard

Just a couple quick tips on under-the-radar tributes to two country songwriting superheroes, Guy Clark and Merle Haggard. If you 'like' us on Facebook, you might have already checked these out based on links we shared earlier in the week, so this is mostly for all the folks that keep up with us by other means. Guy Clark Week > Shark Week The Los Angeles Americana music blog Turnstyled Junkpiled has named Guy Clark its 'Pimp of the Week,' and festivities over there have so far included a … [Read more...]

New Country Album Releases for January 31

Gretchen Peters - Hello Cruel World

Click any album cover to view (and sample) the release on Amazon. … [Read more...]

Awesome Stuff Department: Hear New Albums from Darrell Scott and Gretchen Peters

Darrell Scott - Long Ride Home

Boy, are you ever in luck. Two of the best-written albums you'll hear all year - which both happen to hit the market next Tuesday, January 31 - are available for streaming right now. Gretchen Peters has Hello Cruel World up at Performing Songwriter. If you grabbed that free sampler we steered you toward last month, you know that you need to give this a listen, stat. I have "The Matador" playing right now and it's a killer. There's a nice duet with Rodney Crowell, too. Don't miss … [Read more...]

New Country Album Releases for January 24

Tim McGraw - Emotional Traffic ($3.99 download)

Click any album cover to view (and sample) the release on Amazon. … [Read more...]

Dollars and Cents: A Playlist

In country music, it's less about the Benjamins (baby), more about having just enough in small bills and change to get by. If you manage to pay your bills and keep five dollars in hand for a wild Saturday night, you're living large. When a guy dies owing you 40 bucks, it throws off your financial plan for the whole year. Here are some of our favorite country songs about money matters. 1. Wynn Stewart - Another Day, Another Dollar 2. Chris Knight - Another Dollar 3. Tom T. Hall - Ballad … [Read more...]