2023 was a great year for ‘the album’ in Country music. A lot of artists produced bodies of work that were sequenced with thought and care and were perfectly designed to counter the ‘shuffle mentality’ of the streaming platforms.
We applaud any artist that doesn’t look to insert filler at tracks 7 and 11! We also applaud artists who are restrained enough not to produce albums that are 57 tracks long too. With that in mind here is part 2 (from numbers 10 down to 1) of our Country music albums of the year.
10. Riley Green – ‘Ain’t My Last Rodeo’
Throughout ‘Ain’t My Last Rodeo,’ Green skillfully combines traditional country elements with contemporary sounds, creating an album that feels both timeless and fresh. His ability to infuse each track with genuine emotion and relatable stories cements his position as one of country music’s most compelling new storytellers.
9. Ian Munsick – ‘White Buffalo’
Similar to the sacred animal itself, ‘White Buffalo’ is a rare and precious find. Spiritual in places, laugh-out-loud fun in others – it’s an album full of vivd brush strokes, drama and melody. Ian Munsick has taken the traditional Country template that pays homage to the styles and stories of the greats of the past and built his own sound on top so that the album sounds equal parts rooted in the origins of Country music and yet refreshingly new at the same time.
8. Chase Rice – ‘I Hate Cowboys and All Dogs Go to Hell’
‘I Hate Cowboys and All Dogs Go to Hell’ is an absolute triumph. Personal. Meaningful. Heartfelt. This is an album where you can almost touch, see and sense the effort, love and care that has gone into its creation. It’s a songwriter’s album and a lyricist’s album but it also does all sorts of wonderful things with melodies that are both clever and yet infectious at the same time. I can guarantee that you’ll have a favourite song on it with every different listen.
7. Ashley McBryde – ‘The Devil I Know’
‘The Devil I Know’ contains some of Ashley McBryde’s finest work and some of her most open and honest songwriting too. It’s also jam-packed with melody and some honest-to-goodness Country music. McBryde’s ability to bare her soul on what are essentially open wounds in song form is a rare gift and when you add in her knack of being able to produce a killer chorus and some crazy guitar work too, you’ve pretty much got a genre-defining artist on your hands.
6. Dallas Burrow – ‘Blood Brothers’
‘Blood Brothers’ is a triumph of style, class and invention. Dallas Burrow has taken everything he did so well on his previous self titled album and added in a diverse melting pot of influences to his sound whilst retaining that intrinsic storytelling nature and ability to draw you into the narratives of his songs. This Texas troubadour can weave tales of New Orleans magic, of hard won and heartfelt Americana and he can damn well rock out when he wants to, too!
5. Megan Moroney – ‘Lucky’
Her version of something that began in 2013 with Kacey Musgraves’ ‘Same Trailer Different Park’ is altogether more empowered and grounded in a relatable way. The melodies are strong and the storytelling even stronger as she twists and turns her way through these 13 tracks. There’s heartbreak aplenty but there’s also empowerment, purpose and love scattered throughout the beguiling tracks on this fabulous album.
4. Dierks Bentley – ‘Gravel and Gold’
‘Gravel and Gold’ is ‘peak ‘Dierks Bentley. It’s deep, meaningful, raw, honest and emotional. And it also rocks when it needs to. It’s the 10th album of Dierks Bentley’s career and it feels like the album he’s been building to since ‘Riser’. It has the commerciality of ‘Black’, the reflectiveness of ‘The Mountain’ and the impact of ‘Riser’. It’s a career-defining piece of work that invites the listener to grow, evolve and change alongside the artist himself.
3. Tim McGraw – Standing Room Only
‘Standing Room Only’ is a triumph of meaning and melody. For an artist of McGraw’s longevity it must be hard to keep motivating yourself to produce music of the highest quality but he’s gone and done it again. This album exists at that wonderful intersection where meaning and melody meet in a swirling morass of impactful, relatable lyrics and anthemic choruses that make you want to sing your heart out. It’s not a flashy, brash or showy album, it’s not an in-your-face project and it doesn’t shout or yell or demand attention like a noisy child: instead it works a quiet kind of magic with a chorus here or a bridge there.
2. Jelly Roll – Whitsitt Chapel
It’s not always an easy listen but there’s a spirit and a resilience that carries you through the album’s more uncomfortable moments. It’s an album that is way more commercial, in places, than I was expecting and yet way darker too. Jelly Roll lays bare his soul and invites you to hold a mirror up to your own behaviours in his quest to be a better man, husband and father.
1.Cody Johnson – ‘Leather’
The sincerity, depth and heft in every song makes the album a compelling and resonant musical endeavour. Each track is a brushstroke, painting a portrait of life’s highs and lows alongside the eternal search for strength, resilience and redemption. ‘Leather’ is also relatable and fun where it needs to be, making this album a compelling and memorable addition to Johnson’s burgeoning discography and one of the most impactful albums of 2023.
