936. Time (The Revelator)

Time (The Revelator)
Gillian Welch
2001

Tracks
1. Revelator
2. My First Lover
3. Dear Someone
4. Red Clay Halo
5. April The 14th Part 1
6. Elvis Presley Blues
7. Ruination Day Part 2
8. Everything Is Free
9. I Dream A Highway

We've been treated to excellent folk singers lately and the trend continues with Gillian Welch. This was a really catchy collection of songs that harkened back to the early days of American folk music. 

I enjoyed the dark mood of this album, and the simple arrangements that supported Welch's beautiful voice. Great folk artists can also keep their audience engaged no matter how mournfully they approach their somewhat meandering songs. Welch pulls that off really well here. 

I was reading about some of Welch's other collaborations with Ryan Adams, Emmylou Harris, and Sam Phillips. She's definitely an artist I will be checking out more after I am done with this List (will that day every arrive?).

RATING: 4/5

908. Red Dirt Girl

Red Dirt Girl
Emmylou Harris
2000

Tracks
1. Pearl
2. Michelangelo
3. I Don't Wanna Talk About It Now
4. Tragedy
5. Red Dirt Girl
6. My Baby Needs a Shepherd
7. Bang the Drum Slowly
8. J'Ai Fait Tout
9. One Big Love
10. Hour of Gold
11. My Antonia
12. Boy From Tupelo

Country is fairly underrepresented on this List. It's not my favorite genre, but it's still strange considering the amount of "essential" heavy metal albums on the List. Surely country music is a little more accessible than metal to the average listener. Anyway, I do like country folk, so I quite enjoyed this.

I was not suitably prepared for how devastating "Bang the Drum Slowly" was going to be, so thank you Emmylou, for that heartbreak. She has a really beautiful voice. I love it when vocalists perform songs they've written. You can really feel that extra connection with the words being sung.

A great album, especially in comparison with what is coming.

RATING: 4/5