Here’s some the best Americana and roots-type music releases for August 18th, 2023. Click the artist or album links to find out more. The artist’s names link to their websites and the CD title links go to either Amazon, iTunes, Bandcamp or the artist’s site for ordering or downloading. A + sign means although not a featured release, it’s a notable album that’s still worth checking out. Also, this page will be updated as I find out about other new releases so check back again.
Rhiannon Giddens
You’re The One (Nonesuch Records)
Giddens, the singer, songwriter, banjo player, fiddler and actress has devoted herself to serious, high-concept, deeply researched projects. You’re the One is Giddens’s closest approach to pop material since her 2015 solo debut album, Tomorrow Is My Turn, which was filled with songs made famous by some of her idols. Giddens’s songs reflect music she admires and add her own twists. “Me, I don’t do genres. I just do songs,” she continued. “Some songs have a twang and some songs have a scoop and some songs have a vibrato, and I just follow what they need.” Dirk Powell, a longtime collaborator who co-wrote three songs and plays multiple instruments, said, “One of the beautiful things about Rhiannon is that vocally and musically and energetically, she can step into so many different spaces. It’s not a matter of putting on a different garment for a different style. She literally has the ability to go all the way in and sing from that place, from that source. She completely inhabits this full range of who she is.” Giddens has only gradually emerged as a songwriter, and You’re the One may turn out to be her only full-length original album. “I’ve already started getting complaints that it’s too poppy,” Giddens said with a shrug. “I just think it’s catchy, and it came straight out of my banjo.” (edited from NY Times review)
Teddy Thompson
My Love of Country (MRI Records)
Country music is in Thompson’s DNA, even though he was born in London. His parents, Richard and Linda Thompson, are revered British folk rockers who found room for a few Nashville standards in their 1970s stage shows. Their son has long been partial to classic country, and his zeal for the peal of a pedal steel — and mandolin, and fiddle — is evident on this album. Thompson’s disciplined, almost reverent interpretations shun showboating in the vocals or arrangements; his vibrant tenor is more than enough to make the songs shimmer. Most are weepers. They range from Patsy Cline tunes and the Charlie Louvin hit “I Don’t Love You Anymore” to more unpredictable selections. Among those contributing backing vocals are Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell and Aoife O’Donovan. Producer David Mansfield provides subtle support on multiple instruments while keeping the focus on the lead singer. (edited from AP News review)
Also new this week…
Taylor Ashton – Stranger To The Feeling (Signature Sounds Recordings)
Sandy Bailey – Daughter of Abraham (Red Parlor Records)
Philip Bowen – Old Kanawha (self-released)
David Dondero – Immersion Therapy (Fluff and Gravy Records)
East Nash Grass – Last Chance to Win ( Mountain Fever Records) +
Josh Gray – Walk Alone (self-released)
Gregory Alan Isakov – Appaloosa Bones (Suitcase Town Music) +
Dennis J. Leise – Fightstarter (Towering Gringo Records)
Mapache – Swinging Stars (Innovative Leisure Records)
The One Eighties – Minefields (self-released)
Christian Parker & Earl Poole Ball feat. Jaydee Maness – Sweethearts: A Tribute to the Byrds’ Sweetheart of the Rodeo (Edgewater Music Group)
Bobby Rush – All My Love For You (Deep Rush Records) +
Sofia Talvik – Center of the Universe (Makaki Music)
Nathan Mongol Wells – From A Dark Corner (State Fair Records)
Woody Woodworth & The Piners – Outlaws & Saints (PineHoller Records) +
Coming out soon… Buck Meek, Mipso, The Clements Brothers, Margo Cilker, The Kennedys, Turnpike Troubadours, Nina De Vitry, Brent Cobb, Willie Nelson, Briscoe, The Two Tracks, The Waymores, Viv & Riley, Charles Wesley Godwin, Old Crow Medicine Show, Cruz Contreras, Owen Temple, Nick Shoulders, Allison Russell, Tyler Childers, Steep Canyon Rangers, Buddy & Julie Miller, John R. Miller, Tré Burt and more!
