While only half over, 2011 has already provided a wealth of great Americana music to listen to. In just over 7 months, we've got "album of the year" contenders from perennial favorites like Gillian Welch and relative newcomers like Sarah Jarosz.
Here we're going to take a look at what we think are the ten best Americana albums so far this year. If you've missed out on any of them, I'd strongly recommend giving them a listen. You can find 10-6 here.
#5. Jill Andrews The Mirror
Jill Andrews has blown us away for years as one half of the Johnson City duo The Everybodyfields and, after that band broke up, with her first solo EP. Now Andrews is back with her first full length solo album The Mirror. While considerably more polished than her self-produced EP, Andrews manages to keep the DIY feel that so endeared us to her in the first place. The Mirror proves that one of the best voices in Americana today has plenty of punch to go it alone.
#4. The Decemberists The King is Dead
Folk rockers The Decemberists shocked a lot of people when they released The King is Dead, a full on swan dive into the Americana waters they'd skirted the edges of in the past. Anchored by lead single "Down by the Water", which featured help from Gillian Welch and REM's Peter Buck, The King is Dead is a beautiful exploration of American Roots music in all its forms.
#3. Wanda Jackson The Party Ain't Over
When word came down that Indie darling and White Stripes frontman Jack White was producing an album for Queen of Rockabilly Wanda Jackson, many wondered if he could rebottle the lightning he captured with Loretta Lynn on Van Lear Rose. While Lynn had remained a legend in Country music, Jackson had mostly faded into the pages of history, relegated to the church circuit and occasional Hall of Fame appearances. But White worked his magic once again, helped immensely by a 73 year old lady who came locked and loaded. The Party Ain't Over is one of those rare records that just stays in your CD player for weeks and even when it leaves you find yourself reaching for it again anytime you need a mood boost.
Read our full review of Wanda Jackson's The Party Ain't Over here.
#2. Hayes Carll KMAG YOYO
As brilliant as Hayes Carll's Trouble in Mind was, nothing prepared us for the sheer fun of KMAG YOYO. From channeling Bob Dylan's "Subterranean Homesick Blues" with the title track to the love story through the lens of political enemies fun of "Another Like You", there isn't a bad song on KMAG YOYO. Top to bottom it is just plain old fashioned honky tonk fun.
#1. Sarah Jarosz Follow Me Down
Just edging out Carll is Sarah Jarosz's Sophmore effort Follow Me Down. While Jarosz's first album Song Up in Her Head was an excellent show piece for a child prodigy, Follow Me Down finds the 19 year old Jarosz more mature in her lyrics and arrangements. Jarosz's brilliant reworking of the classic Edgar Allan Poe poem "Annabelle Lee" is a haunting dirge that fits Jarosz's plaintive voice perfectly. If this is what Sarah Jarosz has to offer at 19, I thrill to think what she might do when she reaches her 30's. Follow Me Down is by far the album with the most spins on my Ipod from this list and it's going to be a hard task for any album during the second half of 2011 to unseat it from its throne.
You can read our full review of Sarah Jarosz's Follow Me Down here
What has been your favorite Americana album of the first half of 2011? Did we get it right? Or did we leave off your favorite altogether? Let us know in the comments section.
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