and set about introducing it to the country's college kids. Four decades later, the members of OCMS fit the profile of those early revivalists, yet if anything they have tapped deeper into the primal elements of an American art form. As demonstrated on their debut, they have assimilated not just the sound--banjos, harmonicas, acoustic guitar and bass--but more importantly the haunting spirit of music that was made to keep hard times at bay. How else to explain their ability to take a well-worn chestnut like "CC Rider" and infuse it with an energy that reveals once again why it is a classic? Not content to live completely in the past, they wrote "Big Time in the Jungle," which, though it is about Vietnam, could easily be transposed to 2004's de...  (less)

In 1892, he created a traveling show, "The Old Virginia Plantation Negro," including banjo tunes, nostalgic dialect stories and a lecture, without resorting to farce or black-face. The show glorified the plantation music and Negro spirituals that America was hungry for in the 'Gay '90s.' Mark Twain, upon hearing Miller and his Quartette exclaimed, "I think that Polk Miller, and his wonderful four, is about the only thing this country can furnish that is originally and utterly American." It is in this historical context that Tompkins Square reissues a CD of seven 1909 Edison cylinder records and seven 1928 QRS/Broadway disc recordings. The booklet includes photos and memorabilia with notes by African-American music scholar Doug Seroff. The CD package is designe...  (less)

of Iceland, he has already won Album of The Year and this album showcases the best of his acoustic and electronic talents alongside good, old-fashioned song writing.  (less)

Overall, it's a set of amiable country pop, but the title track and "What About Georgia?," which open the disc, are rock songs at heart--driven by a hard-smacked snare drum and layers of guitar. But what's really at the core of these excellent performances is Lambert's romantic lyrics and versatile singing. When she's playing the angry lover in "Kerosene," she's loaded with punky attitude. When she's brokenhearted and moving on in "New Strings," her soft, delicate tones and gentle phrasing perfectly capture a rich blend of sadness and hope. There's even a bit of Dolly Parton's sweet vibrato and rustic charm in "Me and Charlie Talking," a nostalgic contemplation on love and life's simple virtues. Lambert authored or co-penned 11 o...  (less)

, the official elimination song on the Speed Channel's show Pinks , and finalists for Bon Jovi's 'Have a Nice Day' band competition, The Nadas have been steadily touring the country in Meatloaf's old tour bus, curiously dubbed...Meatloaf. Each release builds on a brilliant catalog of rock-meets-alt-country, and their ever-growing fanbase proves that their talent is truly authentic.  (less)

Combining a strong background in classical and experimental music with a broad knowledge of pop styles, Blechdom travels between and coalesces Country jangle, Broadway show tunes, old-school R&B, and many other styles into a cohesive and true musical story. The autobiographical and interpersonal themes revolve around introspection, longing, doubt, hope, and ultimately, human transformation.  (less)

, the official elimination song on the Speed Channel's show Pinks , and finalists for Bon Jovi's 'Have a Nice Day' band competition, The Nadas have been steadily touring the country in Meatloaf's old tour bus, curiously dubbed...Meatloaf. Each release builds on a brilliant catalog of rock-meets-alt-country, and their ever-growing fanbase proves that their talent is truly authentic.  (less)

dance-with-ants-in-your-pants blend of back porch country blues, hippity-hop country, and wiggly old-timey swing is bound to please any child or adult--OR any insect, amphibian, reptile, mammal or other creature within earshot. The Wee Hairy Beasties first performed at Brookfield Zoo in Chicago--and being under the mistaken impression they would be playing FOR the animals, they wrote all their songs about animals. But there were children and parents there too, and--from what the Beasties could tell with their highly tuned instincts--the humans seemed to enjoy the show a great deal, and so it was agreed that a CD of this music must be concocted. The resulting buggy-bumping Beastie music on their debut album, Animal ...  (less)

career--accord him a respect that few other major labels show to past country greats who once enhanced their profits. That's why the 87-year-old Arnold's return to the studio for album #100 is nothing less than courageous. His producer, legendary Nashville eccentric Cowboy Jack Clement, combines low-key acoustic accompaniment with vintage material, including a remake of Arnold's 1956 hit "You Don't Know Me" and Roger Miller's "King of the Road." While Arnold imparts class, dignity, and youthful spirit to every tune, even this vocal master isn't exempt from aging's inevitable toll on every human voice. Hearing him valiantly struggle to achieve what once seemed effortless is profoundly moving and occasionally painful. Nonetheless, his magni...  (less)

two days in New Mexico, just four years before Travis's death. Travis coproduced the sessions, and the results, if never equal to his classic Capitol sides from the '40s and '50s, are still well worth hearing. At 62 years old, Travis could still pick with agility and grace, and his electric and acoustic runs show the joy he must have felt revisiting his classics with friends Herb Remington, Johnny Gimble, and Curly Hollingsworth (among others) along for the ride. No fancy overdubs, no overproduction, just stone country music. Absenting any other overview of the Kentuckian's best songs, this set suffices and charms in its own right. --Roy Kasten  (less)

side man, and averaging a show a week in NYC over the last 3 years, TK came to this record as a man determined and you can hear it in the music. The resulting work is an almost instant classic; versed in the American musical tradition with perfectly structured songs littered with imagery woven out of everyday experience. His voice is riddled with the kind of gruff character that speaks volumes and contradicts the passive androgyny that permeates so much indie-rock today.  (less)

includes songs that were never aired on the original TV broadcast. Maybe it was an epiphany of sorts. As Buck tells it, One day I was watching Austin City Limits and Dwight Yoakam was on, then he dedicates the program to Buck Owens. So I said, I m going to see what this kid is like. It wasn t long after that he was on stage with Dwight singing his old hits. Buck was bitten by the bug to return to music, after calling it quits almost ten years earlier. This man from Sherman, Texas probably best-known as the wide-grinning rube on Hee Haw for so many years started a country music revolution. Or more accurately, a counter-revolution. It was called the Bakersfield Sound, He and fellow revolutionary Merle Haggard were cranking out raw, hard-driving honky-ton...  (less)