This One's For the Girls

I find that I often prefer to listen to female country singers.  In fact, when I first discovered Pandora online, the first few radio stations I set up were Blackmore's Night, Great Big Sea, and Country Women (this station being specifically classic country women). I find my preference for female country singers even more pronounced with modern country these days, so here's a A-Z collection of modern female country singers (1990's to present).

The Napster playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.

1. Ashley Monroe   "Like a Rose"
2. Brandy Clark "What'll Keep Me Out of Heaven"
3. Cam  "Burning House
4. Danielle Bradbery "The Heart of Dixie"
5. Elizabeth Cook  "Rainbows At Midnight"
6. Faith Hill "Piece of My Heart"
7. Gretchen Wilson  "Salt Mines"
8. Heidi Newfield  "Johnny and June"
9. Ira Wolf  "The Devil and Me"
10. Jana Kramer  "I Got The Boy"
11. Kacey Musgraves "Biscuits"
12. Lucy Hale  "Loved"
13. Maren Morris  "80s Mercedes"
14. Nora Eckler "This Road"
15. Olivia Lane "Love Thing"
16. Patty Loveless "Blame It On Your Heart"
17. Quenby  "Sean Sweeney"
18. Reba McEntire "I Keep On Lovin' You"
19. Sarah  Jarosz "Tell Me True"
20. Tammy Cochran "Angels in Waiting"
21. Underhill Rose "Sublime Charm"
22. Victoria Shaw "Just To Say We Did"
23. Wendy Newcomer "Going Til You're Gone"
24. LeXie Hayden "Rainin' On a Wednesday"
25. Yvette Landry "My Next Mr. Ex"
26. Zoe Louisa "Tangled"

27. Andrews, Jessica "Who I Am"
28. Ballerini, Kelsea "Peter Pan"
29. Carter, Deana "Strawberry Wine"
30. Dalley, Amy "Men Don't Change"
31. Evans, Sara  "Born to Fly"
32. Freeman, Adrianna "Either You Do or You Don't"
33. Gearing, Ashley "Out There Somewhere"
34. Hough, Julianne "That Song In My Head"
35. Isaacs, Sonya "I Know Where There's Water"
36. Judd, Wynonna "No One Else On Earth"
37. Krauss, Alison  "Paper Airplane"
38. Lambert, Miranda "Automatic"
39. Messina, Jo Dee "Bye Bye"
40. Nettles, Jennifer  "That Girl"
41. O'Neal, Jamie "Somebody's Hero"
42. Pickler, Kellie "Best Days Of Your Life"
43. Quinn, Alanna "The Other Side of the Hill"
44. Rimes, LeAnn "One Way Ticket (Because I Can)"
45. Swift, Taylor "You Belong With Me"
46. Twain, Shania "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?"
47. Underwood, Carrie "Temporary Home"
48. Vann, Vicki "Reckless Heart"
49. Womack, Lee Ann "I Hope You Dance"
50. BowersoX, Crystal "Better World"
51. Yearwood, Trisha "She's In Love With The Boy"
52. Zonn, Andrea "Ferris Wheel"

53. McBride, Martina "This One's For the Girls"

Month of Sundays 4

Welcome to the last and final list in our Month of Sundays.  This playlist is another collection of modern(ish) songs, with "modern" being defined as roughly 1990 to the present.  I think this may be my favorite of the sets.  There are some pretty great songs in here and a lot of the unknown artists on this list are hidden gems.  (I may put together one last, unofficial playlist of Sunday songs that I discarded for whatever reason, but I have a busy week ahead of me so we'll see if I have time for it.)

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. "1000 Miles from Sunday" by Aaron Copeland (Not on Youtube playlist)
2. "Another Sunday in the South" by Miranda Lambert
3. "Between Saturday and Sunday" by Allan Craig Miller
4. "Bloodshot Sunday Morning" by Jason White
5. "Church on Sunday" by Steven Metz
6. "Dad's Little Sunday School" by Jared Ramey
7. "Everyday Was Sunday in My Hometown" by Michael Ken
8. "Front Porch Sunday" by Pauline Reese
9. "Lemonade Sunday" by Brandon Chase
10. "Month of Sundays" by Megan Linville
11. "Seven Sundays" by Clay Walker
12. "She Misses Him on Sunday The Most" by Diamond Rio
13. "Southern Sunday" by Hill Country Jane
14. "Sunday Afternoon" by Rascal Flatts
15. "Sunday Best" by Chris Cummings
16. "Sunday Dress" by Sunny Sweeney
17. "Sunday Drive" by Davin James
18. "Sunday Drive" by Dean Brody
19. "Sunday Drive" by Colin Amey
20. "Sunday Every Saturday Night" by Aaron Lewis
21. "Sunday in the Country" by Jeffrey James Sutherland (Not on Youtube playlist)
22. "Sunday in Memphis" by Big House (Not on Youtube playlist)
23. "Sunday Kind of Love" by Reba McEntire
24. "Sunday Mornin'" by Brooke Eden
25. "Sunday Morning" by Elizabeth Cook
26. "Sunday Paper" by Ashley Gearing
27. "Sunday Shoes" by Chris Golden
28. "Sunday Song" by Weldon Henson (Not on Youtube playlist)
29. "Sunday That Didn't Have a Prayer" by Chuck Courtenay
30. "This Rainy Sunday" by Ashton Shepherd
31. "Tractor's Don't Roll" by Drew Baldridge (Not on Youtube playlist)

Month of Sundays 3

Happy Mother's Day and welcome to the third week of the Month of Sundays. This week features a collection of bluegrass and country gospel songs (though I had to stretch the definitions on a couple of them).  And of course, you can't forget about the Sundays in the titles.  I'll admit, a lot of the Sunday songs from these lists can be a bit heavy sometimes, but there are a couple of nice light-hearted ones on this list.  Listen to "No Beer on Sunday" and "Three Nights and a Sunday" for a bit of bluegrass humor. (Okay, okay, "Three Nights and a Sunday" is an Irish folk song, but this version fits very nicely in a bluegrass list, too).

The Napster playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.

1. "12 O'Clock Noon on Sunday" by Frank Kirsopp (Not on Youtube playlist)
2. "Black Sunday Blues" by Three Tall Pines
3. "Blue Sunday" by Jim Eanes
4. "Bluegrass Sunday" by Randall Kromm
5. "Chicken Every Sunday Dinner" by Ernie Penley
6. "Country Sunday" by Chuck Wagon Gang
7. "Country Sunday" by Delta Reign
8. "Everyday Will Be Sunday (By And By)" by The Statler Brothers
9. "Going Home On a Sunday" by Ange Boxall (Not on Youtube Playlist)
10. "Little Sunday" by Brownchicken Browncow Stringband
11. "Lonely Sunday" by Delta Reign
12. "Mama's Sunday Ride" by The Jeanette Williams Band
13. "Must Be Sunday Morning" by Thomas K. White (Not on Youtube Playlist)
14. "No Beer On Sunday" by Truckstop Honeymoon
15. "Ordinary Sunday" by The Hoskins Family
16. "Sad Sundays" by Snow Report
17. "Seven Sundays In a Row" by Blue Highway
18. "Smell Good on Sunday" by Benny Martin
19. "Someday Will Be Sunday All the Time" by Chuck Wagon Gang
20. "Something About a Sunday" by Janis Lindsey From The Heartland
21. "Somewhere South of Sunday" by Michael Perry
22. "Sunday Driver" by Blue County
23. "Sunday Morning" by Rankin Family
24. "Sunday Morning" by Ugly Cousin
25. "Sunday Sinner" by Caroline Monroe
26. "Sunday's Are Fun Days With My Lord" by Carl Perkins (Not on Spotify playlist)
27. "Sweet Sunday Bells" by Acorn Sisters (Not on Youtube or Spotify Playlist)
28. "Those Good Old Country Sundays" by The Lewis Family
29. "Three Nights And A Sunday" by Tommy Makem
30. "Two O'Clock Sunday" by Lee Forster
31. "We Missed You in Church Last Sunday" by Joe Mullins

A Month of Sundays 2

This week's collection of Sunday songs has more of a classic country feel to them.  Some are truly classics by well known artists like Ernest Tubb, Patsy Cline, and Hank Williams (and who could forget "Sunday Morning Comin' Down" by Johnny Cash?).  On the other hand, some are rather surprising in that they are modern country artists creating songs with a classic country sound ("Sunday Daddy by Dennis Marsh" came out in 2015, but he just released a new album on May 5th, as in 2 days ago).  If you enjoy classic country, but hate the sound of modern country music, then this playlist is right up your alley. (By the way, I was that kind of person until 2010 when I spent a year commuting in a junk car that could only get one station in clearly--after a year of modern country I grew to enjoy it.)

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. "Another Sunday Morning" by Wes Homner
2. "Another Sunday Morning Hangover" by Ray Kiker (Not on Youtube playlist)
3. "As Long as There Is a Sunday" by Justin Tubb (The Youtube version is by Ernie Tubb)
4. "Blue Eyed Ruth and My Sunday Suit" by James Talley
5. "Chicken Every Sunday" by Dolly Parton
6. "Chicken Every Sunday" by Bobby Bare
7. "Daughter of the Seventh Sunday" by Jon Travers (Not on Spotify Playlist)
8. "Dear God (I Go To Church on Sunday)" by Patsy Cline
9. "I'll Be There Next Sunday" by Tommy Duncan
10. "I'll Try to Make It Home Next Sunday Night" by Mayf Nutter
11. "Lonely Sunday Morning" by Angela Lidin
12. "Lonesome Sunday" by Due South
13. "A Month of Sundays" by Ernest Tubb
14. "Next Sunday Darling Is My Birthday" by Hank Williams
15. "Overtime on Sunday" by Johnny Jones
16. "See You on Sunday" by Glen Campbell
17. "Singing on a Sunday" by John Greer
18. "Some Sunday Morning" by Patsy Riggir
19. "Sunday Barbeque" by Tennessee Ernie Ford
20. "Sunday Best" by Bobbie Gentry
21. "Sunday Daddy" by Dennis Marsh
22. "Sunday Down in Tennessee" by Red Foley (The Spotify version is by Tennessee Ernie Ford, the Youtube version is by Lefty Frizzell)
23. "A Sunday Kind of Woman" by Charlie Rich
24. "Sunday Morning Christian" by Tennessee Five
25. "Sunday Morning Comin' Down" by Johnny Cash
26. "Sunday School to Broadway" by Anne Murray
27. "Sunday Sunrise" by Anne Murray
28. "Week Full of Sundays" by John Randolph
29. "When Sunday Rolls Around" by Ron Hemphill
30. "Whiskey On a Sunday" by Dick Nolan (Not on Youtube playlist)
31. "Will You Visit Me On Sundays" by Merle Haggard

A Month of Sundays 1

A lot of country music has its roots in the folk music that initially came out of Appalachia. It's a genre likes to honor the good ole' boys, blue collar workers, and old fashioned values.  It's no wonder that this genre of music, which crosses through the Bible Belt and is written for hard working men who love to relax on the weekends, has so many songs written about Sundays.

This month I am showcasing those Sunday songs with my Month of Sunday playlists.  Each list has 31 songs (that seemed a fitting number).  This first playlist consists of modern country songs (modern being defined at roughly 1990's to present).  You'll notice some big names on list, like Keith Urban and Granger Smith, and of course we can't forget Craig Morgan with his #1 hit "That's What I Love About Sunday."

Check back next week for another list of Sunday songs.

Here is the Napster playlist.
Here is the Youtube playlist.
Here is the Spotify playlist.

1. "Another Whiskey Sunday" by Rowdy McCarran (Not on Youtube playlist)
2. "Between Hell & Sunday" by Jaron Boyer
3. "Church on Sunday" by River City Gang
4. "Drinkin' In My Sunday Dress" by Susan Haynes
5. "Every Sunday Mornin'" by Megan Fowler
6. "Forever on a Sunday" by Megan Sidwell
7. "Hardly Wait for Sunday" by The Needhams
8. "It Snowed on Easter Sunday" by Mark Merritt
9. "A Month of Sunday's" by Wesley Dennis
10. "Next Sunday's Paper" by Clifton Brown
11. "Raining On Sunday" by Keith Urban
12. "Sacred As a Sunday" by Mark Chesnutt
13. "Sailing on Sunday" by Larry Joe Taylor
14. "Saturday Night Meets Sunday Morning" by Granger Smith
15. "Second Sunday" by Jessica Andrews
16. "Seven Sundays" by Rodney Pyeatt
17. "She's Good At Sunday" by Mike Short Jr.
18. "Slow Down Sunday" by Zane Lewis
19. "Something About a Sunday" by Lexi Larsen
20. "Sunday Afternoon" by Aaron Lines
21. "Sunday Ain't Enough" by Thomas Martinez
22. "Sunday Beers" by Sarah Hughes
23. "Sunday Drive" by Kirby Stailey
24. "Sunday Drive" by Alabama
25. "Sunday Drive in Dixie" by Cody Cooke and the Bayou Outlaws
26. "Sunday In the South" by Shenandoah
27. "Sunday Morning" by A Thousand Horses
28. "Sunday Shoes" by Beth Marie Anderson (Not on Youtube playlist)
29. "A Sunday Tune" by Paula Rhae McDonald
30. "Sundays & Interstates" by The Gaslights
31. "That's What I Love About Sunday" by Craig Morgan

"Celebrity" lyrics by Ross King

I had been debating whether or not to continue with this music blog, which is why I haven't posted in a couple of months.  Today as I was browsing through new music, I found the song "County Road 109" by artist Ross King.  After listening to it, I decided to check out the other music by him and found "Celebrity."  The lyrics really stood out to me and it seemed very timely (with Easter only a couple of weeks away).  After a quick internet search in which I couldn't find the lyrics, I decided to add them to my blog so that they would be out there.  So for the time being, this blog still exists!

Celebrity by Ross King  (Listen on Youtube)

You've only got your sin to blame
For how it all turned out
You went up on a great big hill
Invited everyone in town

You were putting on a show
You wanted everyone to see
Don't act so surprised
You made him a celebrity

You made it like a carnival
And he was like a sideshow freak.
You had to make a spectacle
To prove your great authority

So everybody watched him die
Now don't you see the irony
It's your own fault
You made him a celebrity

And there ain't no way to stop this now.
You can't shut him up or shut him down.
The secret's truly finally out
There's no room for denial

So you can tell your master down in hell.
and He can knock or ring that bell
and all his bragging only helped
To send this whole thing viral

And don't you see, you'll always be
standing in the shadow of a celebrity

You thought it was hilarious
You made him wear a thorny crown
You were laughing all the way
As you paraded him through town.

You beat him up with nine cats tails
Stuck him up with nine inch nails
Oh but that just gave it more publicity
He was fueled on the fire of a celebrity

And there ain't no way to stop this now.
You can't shut him up or shut him down.
The secret's truly, finally out
There's no room for denial

So you can tell your master down in hell.
And he can knock or ring that bell
And all his bragging only helped
To send this whole thing viral

And don't you see, you'll always be
Standing in the shadow of a celebrity

If you kill somebody
And go around telling everybody
What you did.
Better pray he doesn't rise again

And there ain't no way to stop this now
You can't shut him up or shut him down
The secret's truly, finally out
There's no room for denial

So you can tell your master down in hell
He never will come ring that bell
and all his bragging only helped
to send this whole thing viral

Oh don't you see
You'll always be
Standing in the shadow of a celebrity.




On a side note, most of Ross King's music is beautiful and worth listening to.  You might also be interested in his webpage.

Spotlight on George Strait

George Strait is a rather big name in country music. While his popularity peaked in the 80's and 90's, he's still making music that hits the charts over 40 years after his first single.  As it turns out, George Strait owns a few records in country music. He has the most No. 1 hits of any country artist, which also includes the record most consecutive years in a row (19 years, from 1982 to 2000) with at least one songs that hit Number 1 on the country charts.

Below you will find the collection of George Strait's Number 1 hits, in order of release.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.

1982   1. "Fool Hearted Memory"

1983   2. "A Fire I Can't Put Out"

          3. "You Look So Good in Love"

1984   4. "Right or Wrong"

          5. "Let's Fall to Pieces Together"

          6. "Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind"

1985   7. "The Chair"           

1986   8. "Nobody in His Right Mind Would've Left Her"

          9. "It Ain't Cool to Be Crazy About You"

          10. "Ocean Front Property"

1987   11. "All My Ex's Live in Texas"

          12. "Am I Blue"

1988   13. "Famous Last Words of a Fool"

          14. "Baby Blue"

          15. "If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')"

          16. "Baby's Gotten Good at Goodbye"

1989   17. "What's Going On in Your World"
          18. "Ace in the Hole"

1990   19. "Love Without End, Amen"

          20. "I've Come to Expect It From You"

1991   21. "If I Know Me"

          22. "You Know Me Better Than That"

1992   23. "I Cross My Heart"

1993   24. "Heartland

          25. "Easy Come, Easy Go"

1994   26. "The Big One

          27. "You Can't Make a Heart Love Somebody"

1995   28. "Check Yes or No"

1996   29. "Blue Clear Sky"

          30. "Carried Away"

1997   31. "One Night at a Time"

          32. "Carrying Your Love With Me"

1998   33. "Round About Way"

          34. "I Just Want to Dance with You"

1999   35. "Write This Down"

2000   36. "The Best Day"
2002   37. "Living and Living Well"

          38. "She'll Leave You With a Smile"

2004   39. "I Hate Everything"

2005   40. "She Let Herself Go"

2006   41. "Give It Away"

          42. "It Just Comes Natural"

2008   43. "I Saw God Today"

          44. "River of Love"

2016   45. "Forever Country"

           

Colors of Country: Artists

The record-setting snowfall this winter has turned my world monochromatic.  It's time to rectify that with some colorful country artists.  We've got everyone from the well known Zac Brown Band to some hidden gems, like Gold Heart whose beautiful music is deserving of much more popularity than the meager 29 Youtube views it currently has.


The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.

1. Redhead Express-- "When I Find It"
2. Mandolin Orange-- "Rounder"
3. The Yellow Kites-- "A Tree Love Song"
4. Green Mountain Grass-- "Going Nowhere"
5. Blue Broussard-- "Muddin'"
6. Indigo Summer-- "Not To"
7. Nina Violet-- "Way Down Washing Dirty Dishes"
8. Purple Mountain-- "Jesus, When You Return, Bring Elvis" (Not on Youtube playlist)
9. Little Pink-- "Rocking Horse" (Not on Spotify playlist or Youtube playlist)
10. Zac Brown Band-- "Chicken Fried"
11. Blackhawk-- "Goodbye Says It All"
12. The White Ghost Shivers-- "White Ghost Shivers Ball"
13. Gray Stream-- "Bull Rider"
14. Tin Silver-- "Dear Susan"
15. Gold Heart-- "Memories of My Past"
16. Crimson County-- "Cold as Hell"
17. Cerulean Groove-- "Second Thought"
18. The Scarlet Furies-- "Young Goodman Brown"
19. Brian Lavender-- "Good Ole Country Boy"
20. Maggie Rose-- "Preacher's Daughter"

Country Artists Cover The Eagles

The Eagles were a pretty impressive group of musicians.  Rolling Stone Magazine listed them as number 75 in their list of 100 Greatest Musicians of All Time--I'm frankly surprised they weren't higher. Regardless of where they are ranked, their music has certainly inspired a lot of other musicians across multiple genres. The following playlist is a collection Eagles songs covered by various country artists.  For this list, I chose to order the songs the same way as the Eagles Greatest Hits Volumes 1 and 2.  I was unable to find country covers of some of the songs (so I just left them out) and the last two songs on the list are covers of songs that were not on their Greatest Hits albums.

The Napster playlist is here.
The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.


1. "Take It Easy" by Craig Wayne Boyd
2. "Lyin Eyes" by Diamond Rio
3. "Already Gone" by Duck Gang
4. "Desperado" by Clint Black
5. "One of These Nights" by The Sunny Cowgirls
6. "Tequila Sunrise" by Buck Owens
7. "Take It To the Limit" by Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings
8. "Peaceful Easy Feeling" by Little Texas
9. "Hotel California" by Eliza Neals (Not on Spotify Playlist)
10. "Heartache Tonight" by Conway Twitty (Not on Spotify Playlist)
11. "Seven Bridges Road" by Alan Jackson
12. "Life in the Fast Lane" by Darryl Lee Rush
13. "I Can't Tell You Why" by Vince Gill
14. "The Long Run" by Pickin' On

15. "Love Will Keep Us Alive" by Jacqui Sharkey (Not on Youtube playlist)
16. "Please Come Home For Christmas" by Gary Allan

Celtic Snow

I'm sitting here staring out my window at the snow-covered fields and marveling at the fact that we still have a solid week of snow storms predicted.  This is easily the snowiest winter I can recall so it only seems fitting that my next playlist should be about snow.  I present to you a collection of lovely, snowy Celtic songs

The Spotify playlist is here.
The Youtube playlist is here.
The Napster playlist is here.

1. "Amid the Falling Snow" by Enya
2. "And Then Snow Fell" by West of Eden
3. "Angels in the Snow" by David Arkenstone
4. "Celtic Snow" by WhiteStone Rev. 2:17
5. "Dust of Snow" by Matt & Shannon Heaton
6. "First Snow" by The Columba Minstrels
7. "First Snow/ Snowshoes/ Clear Skies" by Katherine Moller
8. "First Snowfall of December" by Matt & Shannon Heaton
9. "Frost and Snow/ Snow On the Hills" by Magpie Lane
10. "Gently the Snow is Falling" by Bandari
11. "January Snows/ Laura Lynn Cunningham" by Lunasa (Not on Spotify Playlist)
12. "Like Melting Snow" by Paul Daly Band (Not on Youtube Playlist)
13. "A Raven in the Snow" by Brian Dunning, Jeff Johnson
14. "See Amid the Winter Snow" by Ceoil Cu Chulainn
15. "The Sheep Are Neath the Snow" by Magpie Lane
16. "The Silence of Snow" by Ashley Davis
17. "Snow" by Ardyth & Jennifer
18. "The Snow and Frost Are All Over/ Paddy Fahey's" by Horslips
19. "Snow Is Lightly Falling" by Nightnoise
20. "The Snow Lay on the Ground" by One Harp and a Flute
21. "Snow on Valafield/New Year's Eve" by Kith (Not on Spotify or Youtube playlist)
22. "The Snow Storm/Christmas Eve/Snow on the Hills" by Golden Bough
23. "Snowdance" by David Arkenstone
24. "Snowfall" by Marc Gunn
25. "Snowflake Hornpipe/ Bottom of the Punch Bowl/ Hogmanay Reel" By Katherine Moller
26. "Snowplow Set" by The Barra MacNeils
27. "The Snows" by Maighread Ni Dhomhnaill/Triona Ni Dhomhnaill
28. "The Snows They Melt the Soonest" by Cara Dillon
29. "The Snowy Path" by Altan
30. "Through the Bitter Frost and Snow" by Susan Mckeown and Lindsey Horner
31. "Whiter Than Snow" by Nightnoise