It's election day; big yikes. Vote, of course — be the annoying person asking your friends and family if they voted, wear your sticker, share all voting info widely because it's not everything but it is something. I hope you've all got something fun planned
It's almost November, which means we are on the eve of either the most wonderful or most awful time of year, depending on where you're coming from: List Season. I'm a list lover, personally - I love getting people excited to talk about music, and
Anderson's passing is a shocking one — he's gone at just 71 years old, days after attending the Country Music Hall of Fame Induction ceremony and just a couple years after I was lucky enough to see him perform. I chose the above photo of Anderson because
In 1978, Willie Nelson was at the top of his game — proclaimed the "King Of Country" in publications like the New York Times and the Washington Post (which have always had their finger on the pulse of what's happening in Nashville and Texas), he was both
Welcome back to Don’t Rock the Inbox. Here’s this week’s music recommendation post and playlist, which are for paying subscribers only. If you’re interested in paid content but not able to afford it, shoot us an email. The Good "Uncertain, TX," Kacey Musgraves ft.
Mary Bragg is a special kind of writer. If you've been kicking around Nashville for long enough like I have, you probably know that: there's an empathy in her work, a directness in the storytelling that instantly shoots you into place. Just listen to the opening
It's finally tolerable weather here in Nashville again, which means I've been trying to take a walk or run early in the morning before I start my day; just me, the local turkeys, the deer and whatever is coming through my headphones. Sometimes I choose music
A country music newsletter.
Brit Taylor is a wonderful Nashville singer-songwriter responsible for two of the best, most consistent front-to-back country albums of the past five years; the vocals are flawless, the sound is a well-honed '90s-country-bluegrass-pop blend that, of course, is that amazing sweet spot
Taking down the paywall this week to just share a bunch of new, great music that you can buy — it's Bandcamp Friday, which means that every cent you spend goes directly to the artists (instead of Bandcamp taking a cut). Marissa did a Bandcamp-centric post a couple
This past Americana Fest, I was lucky enough to moderate a great panel with Raye Zaragoza, Chris Pierce, Mary Bragg and Mon Rovîa about art and activism. And one of the things we spoke about, naturally, was protest music. It's something we're obviously interested in here
The historic reign of "Choosin' Texas" (as of this week it's officially the longest-running Hot 100 No. 1 song ever, without a clear end in sight) is sparking all kinds of takes — that it's slop (all respect to Robin James, whose work
Welcome back to Don’t Rock the Inbox. Here’s this week’s music recommendation post and playlist, which are for paying subscribers only. If you’re interested in paid content but not able to afford it, shoot us an email. The Good "Bound To Ride," Dolly Parton
I will confess: there is so much going on at Americana Fest in Nashville this week, it is hard to get your head around it all. The insane heat wave and spread out nature of the venues makes navigating it all a bit tricky (and hot). That said, there is
Let's start off by admitting that I don't know if anyone reading this newsletter is actually skeptical of Roger Miller. His box set is called "The Genius Of Roger Miller," after all. But I find that his name gets mentioned a little less often
Over the past few months, I've been really enjoying sharing some archival interviews from people I spoke with for my book Her Country, which will finally be available in the UK on September 24 via Omnibus Press. You can preorder a copy here, which has a new cover,
Today marks an unfathomable loss: Dolly Parton has died. Brilliant artist, devoted philanthropist, remarkable human; to list her achievements here feels redundant, as the cult of Dolly has long since gone national. Here, I've collected some of my writing on Dolly that has been scrubbed from the web;
It's sort of a surreal time to be writing this newsletter. (Also, a surreal time to be alive I suppose but when isn't that the case…) For years now, Marissa and I have jointly been banging the drum: Appreciate the women in country music, and make
Welcome back to Don’t Rock the Inbox. Here’s this week’s music recommendation post and playlist, which are for paying subscribers only. If you’re interested in paid content but not able to afford it, shoot us an email. The Good "If I Was An Outlaw,"
Over the past few months, I've been really enjoying sharing some archival interviews from woman I spoke with for my book Her Country, which will finally be available in the UK this fall, on Omnibus Press. You can preorder a copy here, which has a new cover, extended