The 50 Best Alt-Country Albums of All Time (Paste)

[Smitty]

Just saw it; no Gourds? And goddamn Avett Brothers in the top ten?!?

After a quick look over, it's about half right, half ridiculous. If you're gonna include pre alt country bands like the Mekons, Jason and the Scorchers, Lone Justice etc you may as well go back to Gram.

I get Gram as a progenitor but I've always fought the notion that Uncle Tupelo was the first in the genre instead believing it was Jason & the Scorchers. There is no alt-country without them and I can't say there's no Jason & the Scorchers without Gram.

Maybe not, but they didn't exist in a vacuum. At the same time they were punking up country in Nashville, so we're bands in LA and Texas, among other places. If you go that route then you have to include the other cowpunk and roots bands that came up alongside or even before the Scorchers, that's why I prefer to start it with UT. Otherwise it gets extremely tangled about how far you stretch it, which is the problem with this list.

[Smitty]

My favorite album from that pre-alt country era is probably Danny and Dusty's Lost Weekend.

Los Lobos, Dwight Yoakam, the Replacements, the Georgia Satellites and X all factor in as well

[John A Arkansawyer]

My favorite album from that pre-alt country era is probably Danny and Dusty's Lost Weekend.

Los Lobos, Dwight Yoakam, the Replacements, the Georgia Satellites and X all factor in as well

I love throwing people like that into a List Like This (it's a shame most folks never will know, isn't it?) just to fuck with people. But I am a bad human being.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Another take on this list

http://ajaxdinerbookclub.com/2016/08/08 ... its-by-me/

[Zip City]

Another take on this list

http://ajaxdinerbookclub.com/2016/08/08 ... its-by-me/

He's parsing alt.country vs Anericana, and his substitutions could still be picked apart on those lines.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Another take on this list

http://ajaxdinerbookclub.com/2016/08/08 ... its-by-me/

He's parsing alt.country vs Anericana, and his substitutions could still be picked apart on those lines.

with the possible exception of Lucinda Williams I don't think any of his additions could be called Americana, at least not overtly so.

[Zip City]

Another take on this list

http://ajaxdinerbookclub.com/2016/08/08 ... its-by-me/

He's parsing alt.country vs Anericana, and his substitutions could still be picked apart on those lines.

with the possible exception of Lucinda Williams I don't think any of his additions could be called Americana, at least not overtly so.

Some that he left on could, though. Heartbreaker for starters

[Iowan]

To me, Jason and the Scorchers are alt-country the way The Who is punk.

[dime in the gutter]

If you're gonna include pre alt country bands like the Mekons, Jason and the Scorchers, Lone Justice etc you may as well go back to Gram.

except there's about a decade or so that separates them.


who was flying the flag for the sound in, say, 1979?

jj cale

if that's the sound you are talking about.

or is jjc early weirdo fringe?

[dime in the gutter]

To me, Jason and the Scorchers are alt-country the way The Who is punk.

cow punk

[cortez the killer]

https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/alt ... f-all-time

Updated and expanded to seventy.

[Iowan]

My least favorite Hayes Carll album is the one that makes the cut, and leaving out Todd Snider and Turnpike Troubadours seems like egregious oversights, but that’s not a bad list otherwise.

[Zip City]

With all due respect to Lucinda, Car Wheels is in no way the #1 album

[brettac1]

With all due respect to Lucinda, Car Wheels is in no way the #1 album

IMO not even the #1 Lucinda album.

[cortez the killer]

Car Wheels wouldn't be my #1 Alt-Country album, but it's not really a controversial choice. I imagine it would be a Top 10 album on many Alt-Country fans' lists.

[Clams]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

[brettac1]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Wow that's comical.

[cortez the killer]

Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Nothing like an alt.country discussion to get the juices flowin' on 3DD. Bring back LJ & Kudzu & it'll be like old times.

[Zip City]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Recency bias is a helluva drug

[beantownbubba]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Recency bias is a helluva drug

Where's the line between recency bias and cooler than thou?

[Iowan]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Yeah, that shocked me. Forgot about that.

It’s great, but Christ, let it marinate a little.

[Iowan]

Car Wheels isn’t my #1, but it’s a very reasonable pick. Especially when you assume there’s at least a little desire to not put a white man at the top, and I suspect Paste is going to skew towards a more woke sensibility (I have no issue with that). For example, I don’t recall any Ryan Adams in the list, and I don’t care how awful of a person he is, Stranger’s Almanac needs to be here.

I think the best alt-country album of all time is Trace. My favorite is Decoration Day.

[Jonicont]

No argument from me about Car Wheels at #1. Putting this year's debut by Wednesday at 16 is ridiculous though.

Someone's sniffin' glue

[Zip City]

Waxahatchee, Big Thief and Wednesday are all to high.

[brettac1]

Car Wheels isn’t my #1, but it’s a very reasonable pick. Especially when you assume there’s at least a little desire to not put a white man at the top, and I suspect Paste is going to skew towards a more woke sensibility (I have no issue with that). For example, I don’t recall any Ryan Adams in the list, and I don’t care how awful of a person he is, Stranger’s Almanac needs to be here.

I think the best alt-country album of all time is Trace. My favorite is Decoration Day.

Strangers is like an unquestioned top 5 on a list like this, IMO. I would probably say Anodyne is the best alt-county album but I wouldn't argue with Trace or No Depression, either. (I honestly am not even arguing with Car Wheels for that matter)

[Mundane Mayhem]

Waxahatchee, Big Thief and Wednesday are all to high.

I’ll defend the placement of Saint Cloud. I think that record is completely brilliant and stands up very well. The others are a bit aggressive, or at least premature.

[Jonicont]

Waxahatchee, Big Thief and Wednesday are all to high.

I’ll defend the placement of Saint Cloud. I think that record is completely brilliant and stands up very well. The others are a bit aggressive, or at least premature.

[Clams]

[youtube][/youtube]

Waxahatchee, Big Thief and Wednesday are all to high.

I’ll defend the placement of Saint Cloud. I think that record is completely brilliant and stands up very well. The others are a bit aggressive, or at least premature.

I think Paste mistakenly put Waxahachie on the wrong list. They meant to include it on the “50 best alt country records for taking a snooze" list but put it here by mistake.

[chuckrh]

50 records is too many.

[brettac1]

[youtube][/youtube]

I’ll defend the placement of Saint Cloud. I think that record is completely brilliant and stands up very well. The others are a bit aggressive, or at least premature.

I think Paste mistakenly put Waxahachie on the wrong list. They meant to include it on the “50 best alt country records for taking a snooze" list but put it here by mistake.

Puking at the disrespect.