We’re back for our second installment of the Roughstock Weekly Country Music Playlist. This week’s playlist features 10 of the best songs that we can think of of the moment. These are from mostly mainstream albums and some of the picks may surprise you. We would love to hear your feedback via @roughstock on twitter to let us know what you think of the playlist or what song you think we should include on a future playlist.
1. “Thank God For Hometowns” - Carrie Underwood:
Carrie and most of the world may be ready to move on from Blown Away to her follow-up album but we’re still very much digging “Thank God For Hometowns.” A beautiful story song written by Frequent Carrie Underewood collaborators Hillary Lindsey, Luke Laird, and Ashley Gorley, the song may not have been a single but it really could’ve and probably should’ve been.
2. “Lonely Eyes” - Chris Young:
One of our favorite tracks from A.M., “Lonely Eyes” has the potential to be a big single come this fall and his current radio single “Who I Am With You” has finished its run up the charts and it’s for good reason. The melody is vibrant while Chris Young’s vocal is even stronger as he emotes the lyrics with quite a bit of nuance and unique character.
3. “Play It Again” - Luke Bryan:
Likely to be the follow-up to “Drink A Beer,” “Play It Again” is Luke Bryan doing what he’s come to do best, that is sing mid-tempo songs about youthful couples falling in love and living in the moment, this time when a girl’s favorite song is played on the radio.
4. “Annie’s New Gun” - Gwen Sebastian
This ravin’ rocker has more personality and “swag” than perhaps any other new radio singles at radio except maybe The Cadillac Three’s “The South.” Gwen Sebastian’s voice has the appropriate amount of attitude on the barn-burner and that’s more than enough to make it part of this list.
5. “Young Love” - Kip Moore:
This is the newest single from Kip Moore and it once-again showcases why we think he can be the current generation’s version of Bruce Springsteen. He writes, intersting instrospective songs which don’t fall into the traps that other mainstream artists sometimes fall into (IE it doesn’t sound like everything else).
6. “Young In America” - Danielle Bradbery:
Danielle Bradbery is one of the most promising of new aritsts to appear on the scene with a natural talent that outgrows her 17 years of age. A critism of her debut hit “The Heart of Dixie” is that it wasn’t quite youthful enough of a song for her. We think “Young In America” is the kind of song that should squash those thoughts quite easily.
7. “Stay At Home Mother” - Sheryl Crow:
The closing track from Crow’s stunning Feels Like Home, “Stay At Home Mother” was written by Sheryl with Natalie Hemby and tells the story of a working mother who has to spend days away from her daughter and what she feels about being that mother away from her child. This brilliant track may never be a single but it deserves any and all attention it gets, which is why it’s on our list today.
8. “Town Drunk” - Love and Theft:
Love and Theft never got around to releasing the best track on their self-titled RCA Nashville debut but that’s more likely because it’s the kind of song that Country radio doesn’t play much these days, a story song that demands your attention. It’s a strong, traditional-leaning blend of harmony and certainly the kind of song we hope to hear more of when the duo’s follow-up album hits stores in the coming months.
9. “One Mississippi” - Brett Eldredge:
Another case of brilliant storytelling, this time from Tom Douglas and Brett Eldredge, a songwriter with hits like “The House That Built Me,” Collin Raye’s “Little Rock,” “I Run To You,” “Hello World” and Martina McBride’s “Love’s The Only House” (among others) and here is a case of a song that needs to be heard. It’s heartfelt and heart-wrenching all at the same time.
10. “Shame” - Keith Urban:
A mid-tempo song which showcases a different side to Keith Urban, a song written and produced by the production team Stargate and Benny Blanco along with Urban. This may have been the riskiest song on Fuse yet it may also be one of the album’s best. It’s moody, brooding and features a likeable melody and lyric.
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