Three Chords and the Truth UK

Taken from the Top 20 Favourite Albums of 2014 , these are just a sample of the tracks that made the releases special. Take a listen, whether you are acquainted with the album they are from or not, and hopefully you will appreciate their merit.

It would be wrong to call this list the best albums of 2014, and do a disservice to those many fine releases that haven’t crossed my path yet. So this year it is renamed favourite albums to reflect those records which had the most prominent listening effect on me over the last twelve months. Not all have been reviewed on the site as reviews are restricted to submissions only, but all have provided immense enjoyment during 2014 and deserve their place on this list. So sit back, enjoy and as always,your reading presence for this bout of self-indulgence is highly valued. 1.Miranda Lambert – Platinum                      A career best release that succeeded in uniting both ends of the country music spectrum. The mainstream revelled in the success of the singles and collaborations, while the true depth of the record was in its core and soul. Sixteen tracks presented a hefty release but the top quality numbers hit double figure...

Upon attending over 80 gigs this year, it is only courteous to commend those I come across on the circuit who far exceed this number and refrain from the vanity of a blog. Yet with little shame, the Top Gigs of 2014 has been extended to that other round number of 20 to give further praise to the ever increasing quality of live music that frequents venues of vastly contrasting sizes. So here goes and it’s a pleasure to share a fare portion of my favourite concert experiences of the last twelve months: All individual reviews are linked to the artist. 1 Old Crow Medicine Show – Ritz, Manchester A crossover audience needed to appreciate that they had just been in the presence of as pure and true country music as you could ever likely see. The whole show fizzed from start to finish and evolved into a perfect jamboree of roots instrumentation. When the Old Crow Medicine Show land upon our shores they rarely fail to disappoint and left an imprint of high quality music on a packed a...

The 2014 festival season was vastly curtailed from the previous year when a Canadian road trip saw seven days spent at various outdoor musical gatherings. However where the quantity was lacking, the quality more than made up. So at the eleventh hour, here is a reflection of the best ten sets seen at events during the year, which to supplement the lower number included the C2C Festival: 1.Rosanne Cash – Cambridge Folk Festival Opinion was divided on Rosanne’s Saturday evening headline slot at Cambridge. One respected observer likened it too much to listening to the album but for me it brought one of the year’s best records to life. The stories surrounding Rosanne’s mystical journey around the South were captivating alongside the near perfect band presence led by her husband John Leventhal. 2.Jason Isbell – Cambridge Folk Festival This first opportunity to see Jason live met all the expectations of an artist fast heading towards legendary status in the world of Americana...