Try something from Corb Lund’s Five Dollar Bill album, maybe “Expectation and the Blues,” or “Short Native Grasses (Praires of Alberta).”
Lead singer Jenny Lewis has a solo project with the Watson Twins called “Rabbit Fur Coat” that’s pretty good, and has a sort of superstars-of-indie cover of the Traveling Wilburys’ “Handle With Care” featuring Ben Gibbard, Connor Oberst, and M. Ward.
I’m not much of a country music fan, but I liked k.d. lang’s Absolute Torch and Twang.
Jay Farrar & Jeff Tweedy (Uncle Tupelo) and Doug Sahm (Sir Douglas Quintet) have written some pretty intelligent country songs, IMHO. For more a obscure band, check out Go To Blazes, from Philly.
Maybe check out Big & Rich.
I’d say her first two albums – The Virginian and Furnace Room Lulllaby – most definitely fit into the country genre. The later stuff might be more folk or singer/songwriter stuff. But she’s generally classified as “alt country.”
Gram Parsons
The Flying Burrito Brothers
Gillian Welch
Emmylou Harris
Neko Case
Johnny Cash
I don’t think of myself as liking country, but all of these are awesome.
A few favorites are “Hot Burrito #1” by FBB, “Deep Red Bells” by Neko Case, and “Revelator” by Gillian Welch.
Will Oldham aka Bonnie Prince Billy aka Palace Brothers etc… might be your guy. *Very *intelligent…
Tennessee Ernie Ford’s “Sixteen Tons” seems like a good intelligent song to me.
The Dixie Chicks “Good Bye Earl” and “Sin Wagon” are both pretty good intelligent songs. Sons about cheating, abuse, and revenge can be intelligent.
I’m fond of Marty Robbin’s “El Paso.”
I don’t know if it’s “intelligent” or just different from the pap on the radio, but I love Dwight Yoakam, Jimmie Dale Gilmore (with or without the Outlanders), the Mavericks, BR549, and Jace Everett (he did the credits song for True Blood).
And another vote for Lyle Lovett (“She Wore Red Dresses”) and k d lang. And Steve Earle. His kid’s singing now too.
Two words --> Rosanne Cash. Her album Interiors is brilliant. It’ll give you nightmares.
Rodney Crowell
Anything by Son Volt.
Roseanne Cash and Rodney Crowell are ex-spouses and mentioned in back-to-back posts. That’s funny.
Absolutely anything by Lyle Lovett.
There’s an ‘americana’ label now. It’s part country, part blues, part gospel…
I call it Texas Music
Steve Earle is absolutely there. As is Robert Earl Keen.
A lot of country music is “Nashville Hat Acts”. Not real country music…
That’s just pop with a twang.
Junior Brown My Wife Thinks You’re Dead Or perhaps you’d prefer his version of Highway Patrol
Check out Uncle Tupelo, early Wilco, Andrew Byrd, Ryan Adams (especially the Whiskeytown albums), Atherton, and Townes Van Zandt.
I’m not nearly as well versed as the other’s in this thread wrt country music but the best country music I’ve heard hasn’t been musically complex or even lyrically challenging it just hits me in the gut harder then any other genre.
Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hung My Head” is a simple slow song about accidently shooting a stranger. I’m not a musician but it doesn’t sound like a complex song instrumentally. But the way it is sung by the end of the song you are hanging your own head. And to this day when I’m having a shit day at work “That Lucky Old Sun” starts playing in my brain.
I guess I’m not really answering your question but in my opinion country at it’s best makes you feel.
I woke up this mornin’ and none of the news was good
And death machines were rumblin’ ‘cross the ground where Jesus stood
And the man on my TV told me that it had always been that way
And there was nothin’ anyone could do or say
2 posts in a row! Whoopeee!
My name is billy austin
Im twenty-nine years old
I was born in oklahoma
Quarter cherokee Im told
