CD-Charts Position 61
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I See a Darkness

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Will Oldham

Release Date January 25, 1999
The comparison to early Neil Young is relevant, with the songs underpinned by a full-toned piano and vibrant strings. Will even sings in the same key in places but introduces a fracture and vagueness in his voice that give the words a sense of being random thoughts - as a man walks through this world listing the events of his life, putting them in some sort of order. In the title track we hear about a man with a drive for life, "a love for everyone I know" who openly talks to his best friend about suffering from depression. Miserable? No! I found this record life-affirming. There is hope and Will Oldham sings in way that suggests what goes through his mind comes out of his mouth. A real cut above the herd this one.

CD-Charts Position 62
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Texas Troubadour

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Townes Van Zandt

Release Date March 21, 2005
Townes Van Zandt has a lot of CDs available and not all of them are good. Be careful what you buy. Check out the reviews and track listings on Amazon first. In my opinion there are too many later CDs which are just repacked old songs with little or no new material. I love his music but I am not prepared to pay full album price for one or two songs. Therefore I was unsure where to start with his back catalogue then I found this boxset.

The box set is amazing value. You get Townes first 7 albums (and arguabley his best) plus a live CD for £14. All of these CDs contain Townes songwriting at its most prolific and his best. The first CD contains his first two albums and is possibly the weakest (but by no means weak) of the set. This is ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 63
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The National - a Skin, a Night and the Virginia Ep [2008]

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: The National

Release Date May 19, 2008
Hate to give my favourite band only four stars, but the music is the highlight here. The EP is stunning, moody and engrossing, a great roundup that includes live tracks and a quite different lyrical version of Boxer's Slow Show. Makes me eager to explore more of their back catalogue and look forward to newer material.

I first saw the film having read a review that it's largely arty nonsense. True, the images are disjointed and jumpy, it probably goes on too long and the combo of music with narrative makes it difficult to hear either. But the interviews shed some light on what makes the band tick, individually and collectively. The mood you'd expect from their recorded work or live show runs through the film. Watching the painstaking ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 64
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Wrecking Ball [Us Import]

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Emmylou Harris

Release Date September 26, 1995
If you have listened to Emmylou's 70's albums, you may be disappointed in this album but give it a chance. It is slower and more difficult than the first albums but it has its moments. The songs like "All My Tears" and "Orphan Girl" are great!

CD-Charts Position 65
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The Bluegrass Collection

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Dolly Parton

Release Date October 27, 2003
I wouldn't say that this was the most 'Bluegrass' style CD that I have ever come across, but you will love this. Every track is fantastic.....a must have selection of tracks if you like Dolly Parton.
I love Bluegrass, and today's Bluegrass is very unlike the real true Bluegrass. So don't expect this album to give you that wonderful old sound....with incredible Banjo work etc.
But!....buy it anyway....it is a wonderful CD with that great Dolly singing voice.

CD-Charts Position 66
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The Very Best Of The Mavericks

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: The Mavericks

Release Date November 22, 1999
The last eight tracks (beginning with Dance the night away, which gave them a UK top five pop hit) summarize, in reverse order, the career of the Mavericks during the nineties. It includes three tracks from What a crying shame (the title track, There goes my heart, I should have been true), which remains the most popular of their albums in America. My favorite album, Music for all occasions, is represented by two tracks (Here comes the rain, All you ever do is bring me down). Two tracks from their commercial debut, From hell to paradise (the title track, This broken heart) complete a look at their music from 1991 to 1998.

This European compilation is based on an American compilation (Super colossal hits of the nineties) but has three extra tracks, (World without ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 67
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The Caution Horses

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Cowboy Junkies

Release Date January 29, 1994
Interesting musical arrangements good musicianship good lyrics and an unusual female voice all combine for one of the best albums I have heard in a long time. Not the sort of music to make the party rock but in the right setting its great.

CD-Charts Position 68
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Old Number One/Texas Cookin'

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Guy Clark

Release Date June 13, 1998
Among roughly two dozen CDs recently ordered, that are taking me more and more to the roots and outer reaches of country music, this one really sticks out most. It's two original albums packed onto one disk. Just having the first would well be worth the money. It's a debut of such monumental quality it really amazes, that it's gotten so little attention, especially because I really think it does get you hooked on the very first listening. Texas Cooking doesn't fully keep up, especially because the clarity of Guy's voice gets very slightly muddled in the production and it's not as distinctly Texan. The storytelling is on par with the stuff Johnny Cash put into the American Recordings, only its all Guy Clark original songs. A must buy for the lonely island. 6 stars.

CD-Charts Position 69
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Cardinology [VINYL]

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Ryan Adams

Release Date November 10, 2008
Whether its commercially successful or commercial suicide no one can deny the talent of Ryan Adams. I've seen him at his best around the time of `Heartbreaker', `Gold' and his worst at the gig the day before he fell off the stage in Liverpool and broke his arm and his pissing about to piss of the record company `Rock N Roll' and just recently his reinvigoration with his band The Cardinals which continues where last album Cold Roses left off. Here where Ryan puts the name of the band first before his own you do get a sense of collaboration rather than ego and a sense that the songs wouldn't be as good if all weren't pulling their weight equally, with that said this then is his most accessible songs in ages. They are catchy and fun, emotional without plunging the depth of his `Love ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 70
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It's Not Big It's Large: +DVD

CD-Charts > Music > Alt.Country
by: Lyle Lovett

Release Date January 23, 2008
Lyle's last album (of his own songs) was so similar to the previous one I could barely tell them apart so I only listened to it a couple of times. Seemed a bit of a waste of money. Then Lyle cancelled his UK tour and I wasted more money on the hotel I'd booked... The reason cited for the cancellation was that it clashed with his recording schedule. If that's true then presumably this is what he was recording when he should've been entertaining me in person. So it had better be good!
It starts well enough with the big band sound of Tickle Toe. Takes you back to the other Large Band album. But it's weird: you never hear that sound again, so why on earth is it there? It doesn't fit.
The rest of the album is standard Lovett, with bits from several albums of the past decade ... Read More: