Audiophile grade country

I agree with you jdoris, I have a couple of dixie Chicks albums and while I respect their obvious talent, the CD's are nearly unlistenable for any length of time. Shame

IMO, comming from one who doesn't like country a lot, a good recording and fun easy to listen to music for me and others who i have shared it with is Willie Neilson and Wynton Marsallis 'two men with the blues'.

Anyone who listens to country music should listen to Emmylou Harris. She's not old school honky tonk but she is definitely country and not country-pop or whatever it's called.

Her early albums were remastered by Rhino Records and all her work has good sound if not Audiophile grade.

She released a box set "Songbird" a few years ago, subtitled, "Rare Tracks and Forgotten Gems." I think this set probably has the best sound. Production credits note that the set was Mastered in Analog by Brian Ahern and Donivan Cowert. It may not be the best place for someone to start their Emmylou collection but the music on it is an excellent sampling of her work.

I'm not a fan of her "Wrecking Ball" album and I think her voice has declined since then. I'd check out anything prior to "Wrecking Ball" first.

Two Men with the Blues on vinyl is one of the better sounding records that I own. Emmylou's Wrecking Ball as well as Willie Nelson's Teatro are two of my favorite country-like cds of all time. The songs are outstanding. I have used both in demos because the sound is extraordinary on both thanks to Daniel Lanois.
Incidentally, Teatro prominently features EmmyLou on numerous duets.

From "Wrecking Ball" forward, Emmylou has some nice recordings, though after the follow up, "Red Dirt Girl," I've not been grabbed by the music. I prefer the "new age" Emmylou recording the older recordings I've heard, including the well-regarded re-issue of "Luxury Liner."

I'll definitely checkout "Songbird," which I don't know.

Lucinda Williams cares about sound, and has some good recordings: see especially the "delux edition" of "Car Wheels" (musically, the album is a masterpiece, IMO).

John