Four CDs I'll Put on Top of the Stack for 2007

I hear a lotta Americana music. Perhaps because of this I have become jaded, but my "Best Of" list this year is four discs, not ten. Only one of these is in the formal archives with the grownup label releases. The others are just edgy brilliant Americana singer/songwriters out there gigging on a shoestring, being for the most part ignored by the AMA until they can find a big enough investor.

Number One - Vinnie James - Songs for the Long Journey - Recorded in a British policeman's garage in Glasgow, Scotland, featuring among other things a stellar bit of piping by a member of the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band. I played a pre-release copy of these songs to a private party of friends last year. The guests included a record promoter, a multi-Grammy winner, a recording engineer, a Kung Fu master, and an independent studio owner. All of them were absolutely, honestly, and completely blown away by the quality, depth, and lyrical flow of every single song on this recording. Since then the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and Sacramento Bee have jumped on the bandwagon. I think Vinnie's music is where the Folk road of Americana has always been headed. He just got there first. Listen for yourself. Vinnie James

Number Two - Mat d. and the Profane Saints - Gasoline Rattle - Released in a bar called Sweet Fanny's, a Souix City hangout whose crowd would eat most of the Americana posers out there today alive. Mat's songs are funny, crusty, dirty glimpses into an America out beyond the strip malls. All writers hate to be categorized or compared, but in some ways Mat reminds me of a young Steve Earle, with a more powerful set of pipes. The subjects of his songs flash by like memories of a road trip, with recurring themes of faith, cynicism, and finding what love the world throws at us. One lyric describing a lover hit me, from the tune Midway Babylon: "The years they had not been too kind, but a ramblin' boy like me don't mind." Don't take my word for it, go and hear this guy! Mat d. and the Profane Saints

Dave Insley's Careless Smokers - Here With You Tonight - former farmer,whitewater rafter, and first-ascent mountain climber Dave has now moved to Austin and gotten serious. Dave has an open, unaffected, COUNTRY feel to his music that comes through as honest as sunshine. No affected drawls here, just good tunes from the heart of a decent guy on a long road. See y'all at the Yucca Tap Room next time you pass thru town, Dave, and you know it will be just as crowded as ever.
Dave Insley

Number Four - Buddy Miller - Universal United House of Prayer - Buddy is kinda the official sideman of the AMA, sort of a ubiquitous presence, and this recording proves why. His tune Worry Too Much just has it all together in my opinion, as if Buddy needs my opinion on anything he does. Don't Wait is a smoking little rockabilly side trip with some fine lyrics, I dare ya to sit still when ya hear it. Buddy will be touring with Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, and Shawn Colvin early next year. That should be one fine show to see. Buddy Miller