The Daily Country's 35 Best Albums of 2015

-Tara

Country music as a genre seems to be wide open, yet it still (sans a token artist or two) seems to find it difficult to be inclusive of what one would consider traditional music. The genre has welcomed hip-hop and R&B sounds, yet finds it laborious to open the door for artists and instrumentation that place fiddle or pedal steel as a main player, not a supporting or gratuitous one. If the genre is going to include Sam Hunt and FGL, then it must certainly expand and welcome artists like Turnpike Troubadours, The Black Lilies and Courtney Patton. That said, 2015 was a great year for music…. but most of the truly good stuff came from outside of Nashville; not the fringes of EDM/Pop/Rap…but the fringes of Texas, Oklahoma, North Carolina and Knoxville where the thriving music scenes are filled with artists putting out tremendous work. If you are willing to dig deeper, there’s much to be found.

So for me, a great album is one that moves you, literally, but also, and more importantly, emotionally. An album that reaches in and draws out feelings from bliss and joy to crocodile tears. These ten albums did just that. They were the ones I consistently and repeatedly found myself returning to all year long....and the ones I will surely be playing well into 2016 and beyond.

1.The Black Lillies Hard To Please The Black Lillies (Cruz Contreras, Trisha Gene Brady, Bowman Townsend, Sam Quinn, Mike Seal and Jonathan Keeney.) return, reinvigorated on their latest release. It’s signature Lillies, but funkier, more vibrant, with a thick, welcome infusion of organ, saxophone, trumpet, and glorious guitar riffs. There’s a current flowing through this record; that is the push and pull of love: desire, dissolution and complications, pushed along by a soulful, bluesy groove. From the fabulous foot stomper “Hard To Please” to the gorgeous “Mercy” and the beautiful “Fade,” the songs are...visceral. Contreras and Gene Brady’s vocals have always complimented one another and both consistently convey what a song calls for whether it’s warmth, sorrow, honesty, or joy. TBL have poured their heart and soul into Hard To Please. You’ll not only hear it, but you’ll feel it in every track as you automatically sense that swell in your chest, recall a memory or notice your foot tapping. Don’t let the title deceive you, Hard To Please is anything but.

2. The Statesboro Revue Jukehouse Revival  While many artists claim their latest albums as their best work yet, here that phrase absolutely rings true. Jukehouse Revival finds the band honing in even further on their one of a kind sound. It is a groove fueled, soulful, joyous, forty minutes of “funky country” that celebrates life, love and hard work. It’s an album that will reinvigorate your musical soul whether you are in a juke joint, a dive bar, listening alone in your car or sitting on someone’s front porch.

3. William Clark Green Ringling Road One of those rare, complete records with keen observations on life, love, and society. Vividly detailing everything from circus life (“Ringling Road”), to society’s new norms (“Old Fashioned”), and delving into the intricacies of relationships with sharp, and often biting, lyrics. His writings are witty; filled with humor, heart, anger and truth….and will eventually find him being known as one of the best songwriter’s of his generation. 

4. Jamie Lin Wilson Holidays & Wedding Rings

5. Courtney Patton So This Is Life Pairing these women (amd real life friends) up because they just get it. Glorious and gorgeous voices paired with honest and impactful story songs of real life and real women that just hit your heart.

6. Turnpike Troubadours (Self-Titled) The OK band’s latest, and best to date, album is a solid listen start to finish whether the pace is frenetic (“The Mercury”) or slowed to a beautiful crawl (“Fall Out of Love”). Once you have given them a listen, they will become your new favorite band. 

7. American Aquarium Wolves  BJ Barham and the boys keep true to the AA sound, yet are more often than not, (refreshingly) looking for the positive. There’s growth and maturity in the songwriting that will surely keep them around for years to come.

8. Eric Church Mr. Misunderstood I waivered a bit with The Outsiders, but Church’s scaled back album was the surprise of the year. It is the Chief in fine form (harkening back to Sinners or Carolina) consisting of tender ballads about his son to odes to the "weird kid" and beyond. He may have been the title character years ago, but he’s definitely now seen as one of the genre’s top tunesmiths.

9. The Honeycutters Me Oh My An extremely balanced album in terms of tempo and theme, merging Americana, roots, country and even honky tonk into a delightfully unique combination. Front woman Amanda Anne Platt, who is in her twenties, has an ability to write relatable and straightforward lyrics conveying feelings and experiences so simply and honestly that the listener instantly connects. It’s a highly recommended, refreshing and enjoyable listen from the first track to the last.

10. Sam Outlaw Angeleno The California marketing exec with a smooth as honey voice thankfully quit his day job and produced the exquisite Angeleno which finds shades of mariachi music blended with waltzes, shuffles and a humorous nod to Jesus in a twelve track collection that was often on repeat.

Read on for 11-35

11. Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen Hold My Beer and Watch This Vol 1

12. Mike and The Moonpies Mockingbird

13. Ward Davis 15 Years In A 10 Year Town

14. The Supersuckers Holdin’ The Bag

15. Bart Crow The Parade

16. Dalton Domino 1806

17. Ray Wylie Hubbard The Ruffian’s Misfortune

18. Levi Lowrey My Crazy Head

19. Whitney Rose Heartbreaker Of The Year

20. Eilen Jewell Sundown Over Ghost Town

21. Cory Morrow The Good Fight

22. John Moreland High On Tulsa Heat

23. Cody Jinks Adobe Sessions

24. Jeff Crosby Waking Days

25. Dwight Yoakam Second Hand Heart

26. The Damn Quails Out of The Birdcage

27. Jonathan Tyler Holy Smokes

28. James McMurtry Complicated Game

29. Jason Boland & The Stragglers Squelch

30. Shane Smith & The Saints Geronimo

31. Corb Lund Things That Can’t Be Undone

32. JD McPherson Let The Good Times Roll

33. Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats (Self-Titled)

34. Anderson East Delilah

35. Charlie Stout Dust And Wind: Flatland Murder Ballads And High Plains Hymns