Back in the late 1980s and 1990s, as musicians became disillusioned with the rigid world of country music, a new genre of music emerged: “alt-country”, which blended various elements of country, rock, alternative and folk. Throughout the 1990s, various alternative country bands developed a strong cult following, although none of them ever hit the mainstream. In honor of this unique (and often underappreciated) genre, I decided to release a list of my 10 favorite alt-country albums from this era.
1. Anodyne, Uncle Tupelo: Uncle Tupelo’s fame mostly comes from the fact that one of their members, Jeff Tweedy, went on to form Wilco. The band’s fourth album, Anodyne, was the only one released on a mainstream record label, and the band ended up breaking up shortly after its release due to friction between the two main songwriters, Tweedy and Jay Farrar. Over the band’s short life, Uncle Tupelo worked to get the perfect balance of dusty production, acoustic folk and electric guitar, and Anodyne is arguably where they found it.
Suggested track: Give Back the Key to My Heart
2. Too Far to Care, Old 97’s: Too Far to Care, the third album by the Old 97’s, is considered by fans and critics alike to be the band’s best work. Over the course of the 13-track album, the band never stops a moment, coming out of the gate roaring with a tight guitar lick on the first track (Timebomb) and ending with a powerful duet with frontman Rhett Miller and guest singer Eugene Cervenka on the final track (Four Leaf Clover).
Suggested track: Just Like California
3. Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, Lucinda Williams: As she went through countless re-recordings and session musicians, it took Lucinda Williams six years to release this album, leaving fans wondering if she would ever finish. But with “Car Wheels on a Gravel Road”, it was well worth the wait. The album’s beauty lies in its simplicity, and Williams’ vocals are able to bring so much depth into every last track.
Suggested track: Right in Time
4. Short Man’s Room, Joe Henry: This magnum opus was able to perfectly blend country, folk and rock into a powerful mix that was simple yet highly effective. More than anything else, however, the sincerity in Joe Henry’s vocals are able to convey emotion like no other, and every track’s lyrics tell vivid stories that just beg to be heard over and over again.
Suggested track: King’s Highway
5. Hollywood Town Hall, the Jayhawks: Before the release of “Hollywood Town Hall”, this Minnesota-based band had been recording for 6 years, but it was with this album that they truly came into their own. The album’s easygoing vocals and strong instrumentals make it just a genuinely enjoyable listen.
Suggested track: Take Me With You When You Go
6. Strangers Almanac, Whiskeytown: “Faithless Street”, the debut album of Whiskeytown, revealed that this North Carolina-based band had a lot of potential, they just needed to prove themselves. And with their second album, “Strangers Almanac”, they were able to do just that. Never missing a beat, frontman/songwriter Ryan Adams churned out hard-rocking guitar riffs, catchy choruses and longful lyrics about wasted lives and broken hearts. Unfortunately, Whiskeytown only recorded one more album before breaking up,
Suggested track: Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart
7. I Feel Alright, Steve Earle: Back in the 1980s, Steve Earle had achieved moderate success as a country star, but legal trouble and crippling drug addiction threatened to ruin his career for good. After getting clean, he released “Train a Comin” in 1994, which proved that this old-timer could still make music. But two years later, he released “I Fell Alright”, which showed that a clean and sober Steve Earle was no less capable of rocking the house to its very foundations. Even as Earle has gone on to release some great material, this is arguably his masterpiece.
Suggested track: I Feel Alright
8. The Brooklyn Side, The Bottle Rockets: No alt-country group comes close to the Bottle Rockets when it comes to creating colorful, vivid characters through their lyrics. Whether they’re about over-enthusiastic cops or single mothers, their songs read like short stories about small-town people that are both touching and funny at the same time.
Suggested track: Radar Gun
9. Let’s Kill Saturday Night, Robbie Fulks: Robbie Fulks is one of those musicians who can be both a rocker and a country star, his music fitting perfectly into both genres at the same time while being something truly unique. The tracks on “Let’s Kill Saturday Night” just beg to be played over and over again until you get sick of them (spoiler: you never do). The title track, for example, may be one of the best “pump-up” songs out there.
Suggested track: Let’s Kill Saturday Night
10. I Guess I Was Hoping For Something More, Tarkio: While attending the University of Montana in Missoula, Colin Meloy formed Tarkio with a group of friends he met at a coffee shop open mike. While the band achieved a small but loyal following in western Montana, they never achieved real success, and broke up as the band graduated from college. Only after the success of Colin Meloy’s next band, “The Decemberists”, did people start to recognize their work. This was the only album that Tarkio released before breaking up, a fantastic mix of indie, rock, folk and country that can’t help but make you wonder what they would have released if they never broke up.
Suggested track: Sister Nebraska
Jeremy Bednarsh 