WalCast 3 (Americana/Alt-Country)

For the third installment I've gone with a theme instead of just random pop-rock. Ranging from pop-with-a-steel-guitar-thrown-in to full-blown country and western tunes, this session is sure to satisfy the Americana music lover and the country-wary alike. Please leave a comment below to let me know what you think, and don't forget to subscribe via RSS feed to stay on top of my latest postings. Yee-Haw!



Track Listing:

Daylight Fading - Counting Crows - From Recovering the Satellites (my favorite CC album), one of the few songs of theirs with a slightly alt-country twang.

Burnout - Ox - Canadian country-rockers from their 7 track album (EP?) by the same name.

Waiting for the Sun - The Jayhawks - I could have gone with any number of songs from these Americana-rock mainstays, but I wimped out and went with the obvious choice from their first album Hollywood Town Hall. (not that there's anything wrong with this song)

I'm Not Here - The Wheat Pool - I recently discovered this Canadian alt-country outfit and I am just plain hooked on their latest release, Hauntario.

Black Lungs - The New Frontiers - Anyone who I've told about this band knows that they rock my world. Their one album career ended in Jan of 2008 and I have been sad ever since. One of my top albums of all-time, this is the opening track from Mending. (sob)

The Latest Rights - The Strugglers - Title track off the most recent album from Australian songster Brice Randall Bickford.

A Horse in the Country - Cowboy Junkies - Canadian (I know, right?) bluesy/folky/country-y indie group that's been around since the late eighties. Margo Timmins and her two brothers (and the bass player) serve up delicious tunes consistently. I saw them at the New Daisy in Memphis about 10 or 12 years ago and got to talk to Margo after the show, which was a real treat. This is from Black-Eyed Man.

Faster Days - Velvet Crush - Half of the album Teenage Symphonies to God is great, and the other half is phenomenal. This is from the phenomenal half.

Wiser Time - The Black Crowes - I shouldn't have to say anything about this track from Amorica, but to the uninitiated, just know: It's great.

Looking For a Way Out - Uncle Tupelo - Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy (and a drummer) blazed the path for modern alt-country in the early nineties during their short-lived career together, and luckily their legacy continues in their subsequent endeavors, the following two bands. This is from Still Feel Gone.

Catching On - Son Volt - Trace, the first album from Jay Farrar's post-Uncle Tupelo band is unbelievably good, and this is one of my favorite tracks from it.

Pick Up the Change - Wilco - Jeff Tweedy's group has been more popular than Son Volt since the breakup. AM, their first album, came out about the same time as Trace, and I couldn't decide which I liked more (and still can't). This is from that album.

Appaloosa - The Black Crowes - From their most recent release, the double CD Before the Frost...After the Freeze. This album is definitely their most rootsy, Americana album (have I used that word enough yet?)

One Hundred Years From Now - The Byrds - Sweetheart of the Rodeo pretty much started the whole country-rock movement. Couldn't do this 'cast without something from it.

Evangeline - The Band (with Emmylou Harris) - From The Last Waltz, a recording of their final concert. Levon Helm, Robbie Robertson and company set a new standard for country-roots-rock in the early 70's, and remain an influence to many groups today.

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain - Willie Nelson - If you don't know this song, I can't help you. One of my all-time favorite songs.

Coming up in future WalCasts, more themes - Covers, Pacific Northwest Bands, Female Vocals, Chillin' on the couch on a Sunday afternoon, Shoegazing and other slacker sports, and more. And of course, lots more random pop goodness. Next WalCast: getting back to relative obscurity with Diggin' Deep in a Pile of Pop.

As always, you can download this show for posterity or just for away-from-computer listening here.

Thanks for being you.

-Wal