North Carolina fundamentalist preacher, hits those Piedmont consonants hard, and looks like a cross between a contemporary Christian singer and a devotee of Trace Adkins, whose speaker-rattling baritone is an obvious inspiration. With producer Don Gehman (John Mellencamp) mixing Carroll's sensitive originals with hearty commercial songs from proven Nashville hitmeisters (Craig Wiseman, Casey Beathard, Jeffrey Steele), it's hard to get a good fix on Carroll's persona, and he lives and dies by the material. One schizophrenic moment: "No Good in Goodbye," his duet with Nashville convert Jewel, who co-wrote the song with Carroll and Shaye Smith. The fading pop icon has no idea how to phrase a song like this, a...  (less)

country music's grand tradition & has the skill to give powerful vocal performances and draw all the emotion from his selected material effortlessly. In 1976, Watson released his second LP on the Capitol label, Because You Believed In Me, the title track of which was a Top 20 hit single. Beautiful Country, released the following year, included the hit singles 'The Old Man & His Horn', 'I Don't Need A Thing At All', and 'Cowboys Don't Get Lucky All The Time', which was a hit in 1978. This latter song also appeared on the soundtrack of the Sam Peckinpah movie 'Convoy’. The two albums on this CD are drawn from the most commercially successful period of his career and capture Watson in his prime. Both released here on CD for the first time. Hux. 2005.  (less)

twist to the vintage genre. Vinicio Capossela and Gianmaria Testa prove that Italy’s appreciation for the fine arts extends to song weaving as well as winemaking. Spain’s Amparanoia sings about a love paradox that could apply to drinking wine as well. Portugal’s Jorge Fernando provides the perfect soundtrack for a glass of his country’s famous port wine. Though now living in exile in France, Chile’s Mariana Montalvo and her music have remained steadfastly rooted to the land where Bordeaux grapes thrived in the 19th Century. Argentina’s Melingo offers as much variety in his music as his country does in its vineyards. On the opposite side of the world, the sunny locales of South Africa and Australia offe...  (less)

Folk, Creating a Wildly Entertaining and Eclectic Form of American Music. Bob Wills and Milton Brown Popularized the Genre in the '30s, and Wills Became Known as the Father of the Genre, Since He Remained Popular for Several Decades, During which He Had a Remarkable String of Hit Singles.  (less)

remind listeners how a fusion of styles and influences from both black and white musicians defined American country music in its formative decades. Included here are gems, both familiar and obscure, by the likes of Jimmie Rodgers, the Delmore Brothers, Jimmie Davis, Cliff Carlisle, and other country musicians who were clearly inspired by their blues cousins. Backed by the Nashville All-Stars, a supersonic string band comprising bluegrass masters Sam Bush (mandolin), Jerry Douglas (Dobro), Béla Fleck (banjo), and Byron House (stand-up bass), all playing on vintage 1920s and '30s acoustic instruments, Kaukonen revives and vividly reinterprets these blues-drenched country classics for a new generation of listeners. --Bob Allen  (less)

deep South. "The resulting documentary," says Variety, "reps a very European look at quintessentially American milieu, a marriage exemplified by its cool, painterly visuals and southern gothic cast of characters." Searching For The Wrong-Eyed Jesus is a thought-provoking road trip through the American south - a world of churches; prison; coalmines; truck stops; juke joints; swamps; and mountains. Along the way the viewer encounters various musicians, including the Handsome Family, Johnny Dowd, 16 Horsepower and David Johansen; old time banjo player Lee Sexton, rockabilly and mountain Gospel churches and novelist Harry Crews telling grisly stories down a dirt track. The film is a collage of stories and testimonies, almos...  (less)

an enormously talented keyboardist. On this collection, Jools is joined by some of the most distinctive voices and finest musicians in British Rock music including Tom Jones, Solomon Burke, Mark Almond, Mark Knopfler, Brian Eno, Lulu, Dr. John, Bob Geldof, Paul Carrack (the singer/keyboardist who replaced him in Squeeze!) and many others. Radar.  (less)

album includes the hits 'Thank Your Lucky Star' and 'Rocking Chair'. EMI. 2006.  (less)

spent more weeks at #1 than any other Country album this year: 24 weeks! Taylor is the only Country female artist to have five Top 10 singles from a debut album and the only Country female vocalist this decade to reach the Top 5 on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart. Needless to say, she's a sensation that has only just begun to show what she is capable of. 13 tracks including the single 'Love Story' and 'Change', first heard during the 2008 Summer Olympics. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.  (less)

the fully formed soul of a life well-lived. Ray LaMontagne belongs with the latter. On this, his debut, LaMontagne has crafted a handful of quietly devastating meditations on life and love--and delivered them with a raspy vocal all his own. The simple, mournful lyrics of "Burn," "Shelter" and the title track recall a Hank Williams ballad, and the reserved production by alt-country/americana genius Ethan Johns (the Jayhawks, Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon) make this a great disc for smoky Saturday nights, and rainy Sunday mornings. --Ben Heege  (less)

Jackson, however, treating the musical past as present has been a way of life, as it is with these 15 timeless hymns from his youth. Recorded with just two acoustic guitars and a piano, it was originally a private Christmas present to his mother. The spare instrumentation is surprisingly robust behind his flawless readings of "I'll Fly Away," "Softly and Tenderly," "How Great Thou Art," "Are You Washed in the Blood?," and "The Old Rugged Cross," all as beguilingly unpretentious as any of his country hits. Instead of an all-star duet, wife Denise and daughters Mattie and Ali join in on "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus." In the end, what began as a private bequest becomes a moving, eloquent gift to Jackson's entire audience. --Rich Kienzle  (less)