Favorite Albums of 2017: Mid-Year Report

This is Trailer's list of favorite albums. The year-end list will look a lot different because all 

Farce the Music's contributors will vote on it, there will be actual write-ups of the top albums, and besides... there are 6 more months in the year.  There's an Americana/Country-only list at the bottom.

 

1. Shinyribs - I Got Your Medicine



2. The Steel Woods - Straw in the Wind


 

3. Pallbearer - Heartless


 

4. John Moreland - Big Bad Luv


 

5. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sessions


 

6. Steve Earle & The Dukes - So You Wannabe An Outlaw


 

7. Jason Eady - s/t


 

8. Daddy Issues - Deep Dream



9. Chris Stapleton - From A Room: Volume 1



 

10. White Reaper - The World's Best American Band


 

11. Lillie Mae - Forever and Then Some


 

12. Zephaniah OHora and the 18 Wheelers - This Highway


 

13. Colter Wall - s/t



14. Black Joe Lewis - Backlash


 

15. Vagabon - Infinite Worlds


 

16. Sunny Sweeney - Trophy


 

17. Dalton Domino - Corners



18. The Shins - Heartworms



19. Valerie June - The Order of Time



20. Son Volt - Notes of Blue

And here's a Top 20 list for Americana & Country only:

1. Shinyribs - I Got Your Medicine
2. The Steel Woods - Straw in the Wind
3. John Moreland - Big Bad Luv
4. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sessions
5. Steve Earle - So You Wannabe An Outlaw
6. Jason Eady - s/t
7. Chris Stapleton - From A Room
8. Lillie Mae - Forever and Then Some
9. Zephaniah OHora and the 18 Wheelers - This Highway
10. Colter Wall - s/t
11. Sunny Sweeney - Trophy
12. Dalton Domino - Corners
13. Valerie June - The Order of Time
14. Son Volt - Notes of Blue
15. Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives - Way Out West
16. Robyn Ludwick - This Tall to Ride
17. Strand of Oaks - Hard Love
18. The Kernal - Light Country
19. Nikki Lane - Highway Queen
20. Angaleena Presley - Wrangled

New Video: Sunny Sweeney "Bottle By My Bed"

Ray Wylie Hubbard's New Album Cover Revealed!

or maybe this is it...

or was this it?

John Rich's Songwriting Tips #81

Back in the olden days when Mr. Johnny Rich here was a studly young country singer and songwriter, the biggest piece of advice I ever got was the hardest one. "You have to write songs better than those you hear on the radio." said the old codgers and biddies. When you're young and dumb and full of shit, you've gotta compete with the big timers, the ballers, the OGs, if you will. Artists and labels are more willing to work with who they know. Those writers who've made it tend to get settled in and lazy and start pumping out hits like a hot dog company pumping lips and ears and ballsacks into their juicy wieners.

That used to be quite a chore. Hell, as a twenty-something, I was competing with the likes of Jim Lauderdale, Charlie Craig, and Don Sampson. It was a trial by fire, my friends. You had to come into the writers' room full of piss and vinegar and pacing like a damn silverback, or you'd get torn to shreds by these bad asses.

Nowadays, I turn on my radio and scratch my head when pondering that old piece of advice. This is a sampling of some of the lyrics I've heard lately: "Ooh she got me like yeah baby girl, you gone and done it again." Alrighty then. And "Dang girl look at you, stopping me in my boots, what's a country boy to do but say uh uh." Look, I'm part of the establishment. I'm "The Man," so I hate to talk bad about another cog in the machine, but let's get real. An ADD riddled 9 year old with a D average could come up with more coherent lyrics than that. I could let my cat walk across a computer keyboard and she'd write better poetry.

So basically what I'm saying is… that old advice is pointless as a bowling ball. If you write songs that are better than the ones on the radio, you're probably not getting anything cut. If you write songs worse than those on the radio, you're not getting enough brain function to put on velcro sneakers. I don't know what to tell you. Be famous. Have a dad in the business. Know people. Or get me a couple of extra ketchup packets for my curly fries.

JR out.




*not actually written by John Rich

Monday Morning Memes: Luke Bryan, Waylon, Johnny, Jason Derulo