I was planning to unveil Adobe & Teardrops’ very first Spotify playlist this week regardless — but! I’ve totally lost my voice thanks to an inopportune case of laringytis, so the playlist is what we’re getting this week!
I was inspired to create this playlist by Croy and the Boys’ “Don’t Let Me Die in Waco, a kick-ass honky-tonk romp that I learned about from Marissa Moss and Natalie Weiner’s country music newsletter Don’t Rock the Inbox. (It hasn’t been active in a few weeks but the posts that do exist are well worth a read.) The song is about needing to move at all costs.
I couldn’t have a country and Americana playlist about moving without Hank Snow’s classic “I’ve Been Everywhere.” When I toured Studio B in Nashville, the very sweet and enthusiastic tour guide insisted this song is an early example of rap. I think a bout that guy a lot.
Chicago’s Wild Earp has just unleashed an amazing compendium of vintage-style country with Dyin’ For Easy Livin’, and “I Wanna Go” is a song for those who have lived through lockdown, and, in the future, those who didn’t need to but are amped to get a move on their wanderlust. Similarly, Nobody’s Girl’s self-titled album is a tour de force of ‘90s country pop. The supergroup is comprised of Rebecca Loebe, Grace Pettis, and BettySoo, and “Kansas” continues with the energy of finding joy in new places.(PS — I reviewed that album for No Depression.)
Of course, not everyone can move when they want to. Dominique Pruitt’s “Things Take Time” capture that yearning when you want your life to move forward but feel stuck. (You can read our interview with Dominique Pruitt here.) Ro Myra’s “Railroad Weed” similarly captures the pain and frustration of small town life in Nowhere, Nebraska, which is full of rockers but this one fit the theme best. John R. Miller’s glorious album Depreciated is also a meditation on motion and stillness, with “Faustina” a sort of thesis statement for the whole album. (Oh, hey — I reviewed that one for No Depression, too!)
And sometimes, we move because our special someone’s don’t want us around! Lauren Anderson’s got a fantastic blues rock album out with Love on the Rocks and “Back to Chicago” showcases her voice like nothing else. Cowboy Mouth’s “Always Leaving” guides us to the end of our adventure with one of the sweeter tour songs I’ve heard, while Marca Cassity’s “Free” sends us on our way with a powerful groove.
- “I’ve Been Everywhere” — Hank Snow
- “Don’t Let Me Die in Waco” — Croy and the Boys (Don’t Rock the Inbox)
- Wild Earp — “I Wanna Go” (Dyin’ For Easy Livin’)
- Nobody’s Girl — “Kansas” (Nobody’s Girl)
- Dominique Pruitt — “Things Take Time” (Praying For the Rain)
- John R Miller — “Faustina” (Depreciated)
- Lauren Anderson — “Back to Chicago” (Love on the Rocks)
- Ro Myra — “Railroad Weed” (Nowhere, Nebraska)
- Cowboy Mouth — “I’m Always Leaving” (Easy)
- Marca Cassity — “Free” (Songs From the Well)
I think that following me on Spotify is a thing you can do to make sure you get a new playlist from me every Friday! In the next few weeks, I’ll also be launching a playlist of awesome songs that refreshes every Tuesday! As always, buy music and/or merch directly from the artists because Spotify is a horrible and exploitative platform!
You can support Adobe & Teardrops by buying merch or hitting the ol’ Patreon or Ko-fi links!