# Hey alt.country fans **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 20, 2001, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602 "2001-10-20T18:00:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dasceder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3d9bf3/32.png) [@dasceder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasceder)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/1 "2001-10-20T18:00:53Z")
gimme your top five AC albums. mine: 1. Wilco: Being There 2. Whiskeytown: Faithless Street 3. Uncle Tupelo: Anodyne 4. The Blood Oranges: Corn River 5. Lucinda Williams: Car Wheels… (honorable mention to The Gourds who aren’t really “alt”) ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2001, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/2 "2001-10-20T18:17:29Z")
1. Steve Earle: “El Corazon” 2. Lucinda: “Car Wheels” 3. Whiskeytown: “Stranger’s Almanac” 4. James McMurtry: “Walk Between the Raindrops” 5. Various Artists: “Return of the Grievous Angel: A Tribute to Gram Parsons” ---
**Author:** ![chief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df788c/32.png) [@chief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chief)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/3 "2001-10-21T00:45:22Z")
The Jayhawks: Tomorrow the Green Grass Wilco: Being There Jayhawks: Hollywood Town Hall Jayhawks: Sound of Lies Wilco: AM ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/4 "2001-10-21T01:17:10Z")
I’ll echo: Steve Earle: “El Corazon” Lucinda Williams: “Car Wheels On A Gravel Road” and add: Jimmie Dale Gilmore: “One Endless Night”…any JDG for that matter. Wilco/Billy Bragg: both “Mermaid Ave.” albums. Iris DeMent: everthin’ Cheri Knight(of The Blood Oranges) “The Northeast Kingdom” Dale Watson: “The Truckin’ Sessions”— Dale is the possessor of the most full-bodied traditional Country voice to come down the pike in awhile. He doesn’t kowtow enough to Nashville however, so has been overlooked. Same could be said of Jimmie Dale Gilmore. ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/5 "2001-10-21T01:23:45Z")
And, Damn, hafta add Kelly Willis, too. She’s got the voice of a traditional country angel, tried the Nashville route, and ended up back in Indy Austin. That gal can pure-fire \* Sang\*!!! ---
**Author:** ![Survey1215](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@Survey1215](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Survey1215)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/6 "2001-10-21T03:20:39Z")
Well, crap, I only listen to one alt country band, and they’ll tell you they aren’t alt country. The Bottle Rockets. “Brooklyn Side” is a super disc, and “Brand New Year” and “24 Hours a Day” are very strong, as well. The lead singer was a guitar tech or something like that for Uncle Tupelo, IIRC. Anyway, they play great music and they are awesome live. ---
**Author:** ![jmonster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/dbc845/32.png) [@jmonster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jmonster)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2001, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/7 "2001-10-21T19:34:50Z")
Have you guys heard the Townes Van Zandt tribute album? It is seriously good. And I really like Lucinda’s “Essence”, but I understand if you think it’s too slow. ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2001, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/8 "2001-10-22T04:26:13Z")
Survey, I almost put The Bottle Rockets, too. They’re one of my favorite bands- the only bumper sticker on my car- but I’d categorize 'em as a Great American Bar Band. Anyone with altcountry leanings would probably love 'em though. The fine Daddies of Nashville N’ere Do Wells would be: Townes Van Zandt Joe Ely Butch Hancock Doug Sahm Steve Earle ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2001, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/9 "2001-10-22T15:48:23Z")
Well, depending on how you define “alt country” … [ol][_]Trace - Son Volt[_]Reverb Deluxe - The Derailers (Includes a great hidden track: a country cover of “Raspberry Beret.”)[_]Dog Days- Blue Mountain[_]Fair & Square - Jimmie Dale GilmoreTulare Dust (a tribute to Merle Haggard) - Various Artists[/ol] ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2001, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/10 "2001-10-22T18:33:07Z")
Eight posts in, and no one has mentioned Robert Earl Keen? I thought he was the King, or at least the crown prince, to you alt-country folks. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Big\_Cheese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@The\_Big\_Cheese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Big_Cheese)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2001, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-alt-country-fans/88602/11 "2001-10-23T00:07:06Z")
Ahh, my kinda thread… 1. Gillian Welch - Hell Among the yearlings 2. Gillian Welch - Revival 3. Whiskeytown - Strangers Almanac 4. Uncle Tupelo - Anodyne 5. Son Volt - Trace honorable mention: Brother Where Art Thou