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)

Memphis-style R&B, fuzzed-out psychedelic rock and low-down blues on this collection of 14 original tunes, which Auerbach self-produced and recorded with friends and family at his family at his newly built studio, Akron Analog.  (less)

"Lady of the Well." But he can up the volume a little, turning out a version of his own "Take It Easy" that outdoes the Eagles and cranking up the bar-band boogie on "Redneck Friend." For the most part, though, it's late nights in the dark and candlelight, and Jackson Browne did it well. --Chris Nickson  (less)

merely mocking the hot jazz stylings of the '20s and '30s. But having put a couple more albums and some trying times (the defection of singer-guitarist Tom Maxwell and passing of horn player Stacy Guess) under their belts, it's clear that musical affection was no mere passing affectation. The Zippers have honed both their chops and their courage here, with subtle new influences from the 20th-century American musical pantry (a dash of country, a pinch of Spanish guitar, more Crescent City bump) tastefully simmered into the stew. Katherine Whalen's vocal turns are as convincingly smoky as the lighthearted material is jokey--an inviting balance that's equally true to its historical sources. More than mere opportunistic swing revivalis...  (less)

idea, since it allows Twain the freedom to dress a song in whatever arrangements and instrumentation she pleases--without setting herself up for criticism as to whether Canada's Queen of the Bare Midriff spat on the Holy Grail of Nashville. Often, the only difference is the substitution of pedal steel, fiddle, and banjo for strings, guitars, and keyboards. In these situations, where she employs the same riffs and melodic strains, the country version usually pales in comparison; however, the green disc wins on those songs where the subject matter hits closer to home, especially the unwed mother tune "I Ain't Goin' Down." Twain was never truly a country singer--she was merely marketed that way--and her red disc particularly pleases, while making no excuses. She is ...  (less)

Auditorium, long the hallowed home of the Grand Ole Opry, makes it plain that Griffin is among friends for this concert recording, with kindred spirits Emmylou Harris and Julie and Buddy Miller joining her onstage to lend vocal support. Despite the setting, Griffin’s music resists categorization as country (or folk or rock), with acoustic guitar, accordion, and piano providing exquisite settings for her expressively edgy vocals on a range of striking material--from the suicide of a tormented gay boy in "Tony" to the plight of an unhappy heiress in "Christina" (which Griffin explains to the crowd came to her in a dream about Christina Onassis) to the hint of ragtime in "Mad Mission." A bonus DVD of backstage scenes and videos complet...  (less)

Grammy Award winner gained recognition not only for a successful solo career but also as an actor and ace session guitarist. One of Nashville's finest "pickers", Reed was also adept at writing hit songs. Elvis Presley successfully covered `Guitar Man', `U.S. Male' (with Reed on guitar) and `Talk about the Good Times'. Featuring Reed's original RCA Victor recordings, When You're Hot 1967-1983 comprises 26 Top 40 Country hits (including three #1s, `When You're Hot, You're Hot', `Lord, Mr. Ford' and `She Got the Goldmine') plus classic albums tracks (including his own renditions of his signature tunes `Guitar Man' and `U.S. Male') - 28 tracks in total. Other highlights include `Tupelo Mississippi Flash' (his tribut...  (less)

and is survived by his family and the litany of musical heroes he called friends and collaborators. Upon learning of his diagnosis, Chris' close friend and musical compatriot Dave Alvin set forth reaching out to roots music's finest players to put together an album of Gaffney's songs to raise money for his mounting medical bills. Unfortunately, the project became a posthumous tribute after Gaffney's passing, but that only gives more meaning to these interpretations of Chris' songs from some of American music's most influential artists. The track list reads like a who's who of country, rock and Americana, with heavyweight friends like Alvin, Joe Ely, Los Lobos, Calexico, Alejandro Escovedo, Boz Scaggs, Tom Russell, James McMurtry, fello...  (less)

only been featured on Ally McBeal: A Very Ally Christmas . Nevertheless, it's on the traditional songs--including never-can-go-wrong usual suspects like "White Christmas," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and "The Christmas Song"--that Womack's evocative vocals come across most memorably. A "big band" album in the vein of holiday offerings from some of the greatest crooners of the '60s, this moves the 2002 Country Music Association's Female Vocalist of the Year even further away from her country roots than her more recent pop-oriented discs did. Accordingly, Harry Connick Jr. shows up to duet with the singer on a version of "Baby, It's Cold Outside" that seems destined to become a holiday staple, even if it's a bit corny. --Bill Holdship  (less)

would have had it all: redneck country-rock with in-your-face class consciousness and cockney punk-rock with swing and guitar chops. It would have sounded a lot like the BottleRockets on their second album, The Brooklyn Side . When the BottleRockets' chief singer-songwriter Brian Henneman wants to sing about the American class structure, what does he do? He tells jokes about buying a "1000 Dollar Car." "A thousand-dollar car ain't gonna roll," he sings over grinding, Neil Youngish guitar chords, "till you put at least another thousand in the hole/Sink your money in and there you are:/The owner of a two-thousand-dollar thousand-dollar car." -- Geoffrey Himes  (less)

confident collection of sassy barnburners and heart-rending ballads, all delivered with intense feeling, gorgeous tone and unbridled exuberance. Featuring stellar support from producer Carl Jackson, duet partner Bradley Walker, J.D. Crowe, members of Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Blue Highway, The Dan Tyminski Band and The Infamous Stringdusters, Hillbilly Goddess is a major step forward from one of the great new voices in American music: Alecia Nugent.  (less)

she co-wrote with David Andrew Sitek (TV on the Radio), who produced the album and lent his instrumental skills throughout. The title track comes from Waits’ 1985 opus Rain Dogs, and Johansson’s set also pulls cuts from Alice, Swordfishtrombones, Big Time, Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards, Real Gone, Small Change and Bone Machine. David Bowie adds backing vocals on two tracks, "Falling Down" and "Fannin Street," and the disc also features the talents of Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner and multi-instrumentalist Sean Antanaitis from Celebration, among others.  (less)