Ruth E "Tonite I'm Missing You" (Melody Hill Records, 1981-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ed Cleek)
Dunno why she went by a stage name, but singer "Ruth E" was actually Mrs. Ruth Cleek, a gal from Kingsport, Tennessee, up in the far northeastern corner of the state. She's backed by a band called Flat Creek Revue which had released an album of their own a couple of years earlier; on their album they played a lot of country covers, although here the repertoire is packed with originals penned by Flat Creek Revue's lead singers Bobby Schaffer and Carter Stanley. (Leading, perhaps to some confusion about whether this is bluegrass music: the famous bluegrass icon Carter Stanley had passed away in 1966, and the originals here were written by Flat Creek's lead guitar player....) There are also a few cover tunes on here, notably oldies from folks such as Pee Wee King, Ray Price and Hank Williams, as well as a version of Kris Kristofferson's "One Day At A Time," which gives you a sense of where Ms. Cleek was coming from .

Stacey Earle "Simple Gearle" (E Squared Records, 1999)

Stacey Earle "Dancin' With Them That Brought Me" (Gearle Records, 2000)
(Produced by Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart)
Steve's little sister Stacey is an endearing performer who's been pegged as having a more than slight vocal resemblance to Nanci Griffith, yet on this sweet, self-released record we find Earle moving steadily away from the Nanci-soundalike style of her previous album, into broader musical territory. Her voice still registers as chirpy, but with warmer and more confident phrasing. Likewise, her arrangements have expanded to include the sort of compelling pop-folk melodicism that lures listeners towards artists such as Slaid Cleaves and Dar Williams. Most importantly, Earle's a great songwriter, with a knack for a bouncy melody and a memorable chorus (particularly on the album's centerpiece, "Is It Enough?"). Like her well-known older brother, Stacey Earle's lyrics have an elusive, almost mystifying, quality -- along with a faint whiff of an autumn breeze on a back porch swing. Keep an eye on this gal.

Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart "Must Be Live" (Evolver Records, 2003)
A nice live set with Earle and her touring/life partner, guitarist Mark Stuart. Live, her likeness to Nanci Griffith becomes even more pronounced ("Thank yeww!") although her folkiness is also more to the fore. I guess I prefer her studio work, although these are fine, fragile, friendly folk performances. Fans will be pleased.

Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart "Never Gonna Let You Go" (Evolver, 2003)

Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart "S&M Communion Bread" (Funzalo, 2005)

Earline "This Is Earline" (Shade Tree Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Jerry Sims)
Country gospel with vocals by Earline Scevers, daughter of Rev. Thurman Scevers, from Springfield, Oregon. Earline and her family scampered down to Modesto, California to record this album at the studio of Jerry Sims, with help from bassist Bill Carter, of the Christian Troubadours. Carter had been splitting his time between California and Oregon, seems to have been the driver of these session, and contributes liner notes as well. Backing the young Ms. Scevers were Bill Carter on bass, Roger Ely (lead guitar), Paul Landrus (piano), and Cal Veale on drums,

Easy Pickin' "Live At The Country Tavern" (Easy Pickin', 197--?) (LP)
Not to be confused with the Easy Pickins bluegrass band (below), Easy Pickin' were a bluegrass group hailing from Stamford, CT, and are recorded here playing at the Country Tavern restaurant, where they performed regularly for over twenty years. The group is led by singer Barbara Allen, along with bassist Linda Shackleford and banjo plunker Joe Knowlton, as well as Bill Allen on guitar and Dave Rausher playing mandolin. They had an intriguing repertoire, with lots of bluegrass standards, as well as contemporary country and pop-AOR hits such as the outlaw anthem, "Luckenback, Texas," the Kendalls' classic "Heaven's Just A Sin Away," Keith Carradine's "I'm Easy," Harry Chapin's "Circle" and Paul Anka's "It Doesn't Matter Anymore." Banjoist Knowlton was also in the folk duo, Joe & Bing, who recorded several albums in the '60s, and was apparently still gigging with Easy Pickin' in the early 1990s.

Easy Pickin' "Winning Combination" (Xerox Records, 19--?) (LP)

Easy Pickins "In On The Edges" (Noble Records, 19--?)
Not to be confused with the Easy Pickin' band (above) these Rust Belt bluegrassers hailed from Pontiac, Michigan, and featured the lineup of Nadine Toles, Rick Toles, David Williams and Jim Williams... The set list includes a bunch of Noles and Williams originals, as well as a handful of traditional tunes. Not sure when this one came out -- they thank their guru in the liner notes, which sounds so early 'Seventies, but the cover photo looks suspiciously early '80s.

Angela Easterling "Angela Easterling" (EP) (2002)

Angela Easterling "Love The Danger" (EP)

Angela Easterling "Earning Her Wings" (De L'Est Music, 2007)

Angela Easterling "Blacktop Road" (De L'Est Music, 2009)

Sheena Easton "Singles Collection" (Capitol Records, 1993)
I am forced here to mention Scotland's Sheena Easton because her duet with Kenny Rogers, "We've Got Tonight" -- one of the most horrible songs ever recorded -- went to #1 on the Country charts in 1983. Other than that one aural abomination, this highlands lassie ain't much of a country phenomenon.

Connie Eaton - see artist discography

Eden's Edge "Eden's Edge" (EP) (Big Machine Records, 2011)
An impressive debut -- even if it is just an EP -- by this talented trio. Lead singer Hannah Blaylock has a beautiful voice, not just technically strong, but expressive as well. Blaylock reminds me a bit of the Dixie Chicks' Natalie Maines: it sounds like there's someone at home in there, not just another country-pop singer going through the motions. Their repertoire is good, too... be nice to see what they do on a full-length album. This EP closes with a beautiful a capella gospel number, "Christ Alone," which shows the group's potential for branching out into the Christian music field, if things don't take off in Nashville.

Eden's Edge "Eden's Edge" (Full length) (Big Machine, 2012)

Ed & Jolene "Coal County Country" (Cattle Records, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Rudy Q. Jones)
That would be Coal County, Oklahoma, where Ed and Jolene Bullard owned a small farm and some cattle... They were true amateurs who had only started taking their music seriously late in life... But by the time they cut this disc for the German specialty label Cattle Records, they had landed a few infrequent gigs at regional "opry" shows such as Georgetown, Texas's Saturday Night Jamboree and the Bluegrass Opera Barn in Stillwell, Oklahoma. All the songs on this album were originals, penned by Mr. Bullard; he plays dobro and guitar, Mrs. Bullard played guitar, with backing by Buck Thetford (lead guitar), Wayne Martin (rhythm guitar) and Rudy Q. Jones (bass, dobro and fiddle). Jones also recorded these sessions at his studio in Tecumseh, OK.

Ed & Jolene "Glimpse Of Heaven" (White Dove Records, 1985) (LP)
(Produced by Rudy Q. Jones)
A gospel set, with backing from producer/multi-instrumentalist Rudy Q. Jones, vocalist Debbie Kirkpatrick, Vern Siemens on lead guitar, and perhaps most intriguing, hillbilly old-timer and Starday albummaker Lonnie Glosson on harmonica. Originally from Oklahoma, Rudy Jones had recorded an album or two of country gospel himself, and was best known as a dobro picker and luthier -- at some point he moved to Florida, possibly sometime after this album.

Ed & Jolene "Country Boy With Country Song" (Coal County Country Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Ben McCuller)
Not sure when this one came out -- there's no date on the disc -- but it's a whole different group of musicians joining the Bullards, including multi-instrumentalist Don Cox, Tom Gamble on banjo and Ted Hudson on bass. The Bullocks give their home address in Tupelo, Oklahoma, a teeny place on the way to Ada. As far as I know the pickers were also all locals, maybe from Oklahoma City or thereabouts. The liner notes tell us this was Ed & Jolene's third album: anyone know if they made more?

Eddie & Bonnie "Our Most Requested Songs" (Big M Music Company, 1976) (LP)
This couple from East Okoboji, Iowa (near Spirit Lake) seem to have been performing together since at least the late 1960s, though as far as I know these late-'Seventies releases were their only LPs. Although their records and show listings didn't include their last names, I think they might have been Eddie and Bonnie Birchmier. As suggested by the title, their repertoire was mostly oldies and popular country hits.

Eddie & Bonnie "...Play The Best Of The Country" (Big M Music Company, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Durham)
This album includes early '70s songs such as "Me And Bobby McGee," "Never Ending Song Of Love," "Before The Next Teardrop Falls."

The Coon Elder Band "...Featuring Brenda Patterson" (Mercury Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Ed Norman)
Bandleader Coon Elder was a regionally popular figure from Memphis, mixing swampy white soul with country twang and chunkier Southern rock... This was his only album, and was also a showcase for singer Brenda Patterson, who had previously recorded three albums as a solo artist -- her throaty, bluesy style draws this album into Tracy Nelson/Maria Muldaur territory, while Elder's roadhouse rock'n'soul has a slight Delbert McClinton-esque feel to it, a Southern bar-band sound, but with some Muscle Shoals soul coming out in the horn section... I suspects that working with an old-time mainstream Nashville producer like Jim Ed Norman is partly what gives this album its mellow feel, though there are still some gritty lyrics and a distinctly rootsy undercurrent. For country fans, highlights include "Send Him Home To Mama," the bluesy "Grinnin' My Blues Away," and their version of "I Ain't A Cowboy (I Just Found The Hat)," one of the great musical satires of the '70s urban cowboy scene. An eclectic album, and a nice picture of the shifting boundaries where longhair country met Southern rock. Although Elder never made another album, he kept playing locally around Memphis, and released at least one single after this album, "The Russians Ain't Coming," on Pharoah Records. Elder was killed in a 2011 traffic accident.

Meredith Edwards "Reach" (Mercury Nashville, 2001)
(Produced by Richard Marx, Robin Wiley & Keith Stegall)
Bland, generic, Britney Spears-ish pop, half-heartedly masquerading as Nashville 'mersh... The teenaged Edwards was apparently a protege of Lance Bass, of the pop band 'NSync, and this record shows how the apple doesn't fall far from the tree... Other than a little bit of tacked-on pedal steel, there isn't much that's "country" about this album... Nor is there much that's interesting. Edwards is a pretty weak singer -- she could do alright on one of those TV talent shows, but her clunky phrasing sinks her every time. Apparently the Nashville establishment agreed: despite the studio work of producers Keith Stegall, et al, this disc went nowhere on the charts. Good thing, too.

Katrina Elam "Katrina Elam" (Universal South, 2004)
(Produced by Tony Brown & Jimmie Lee Sloas)
At the tender age of sixteen, Oklahoman Katrina Elam got her entry into Nashville as a published songwriter, and here on her full-length debut, the 22-year old wrote or co-wrote all but two of the songs; pretty impressive for a newcomer. I can't say I care much for her vocals -- too much soul-ish swooping and sexy cooing -- but she sure does have the current Nashville rock-pop formula down pat, complete with the bombastic, swelling orchestrations and wave after wave of electric guitars... I'm not into it, but it has the feel of something over-the-top enough that it might just go over really, really big. I'm sure Elam will go places, soon enough.

Katrina Elam "Turn Me Up" (Universal South, 2007)

Alecia Elliott "I'm Diggin' It" (MCA, 2000)
(Produced by Tony Brown & Jeff Teague)
An inoffensive, but insubstantial mix of modern teen-pop and glossy contemporary country. Elliott doesn't have a great voice, and her penchant for untwangy, mid-tempo power ballads only serves to underline her shortcomings. The songs mostly seem like wordy, B-list material, with a few exceptions, such as Matraca Berg's "Some People Fall, Some People Fly," which has a strong thematic hook, and the bluesy title track, which allows Elliott to explore her superficial similarities to the young Tanya Tucker. Her mild snarl is undercut, though, by her nice-girl image, particularly on abstinence anthems such as her self-penned "You Wanna What?," which has the album's most vigorous guitar work, but is lyrically a little over-obvious and speaks to a limited audience. Overall, she strikes me as an artist who has potential, but still is pretty callow and too young to really bring much emotional resonance to her songs. Similarly, her phrasing needs time to grow, she seems pretty limited, and in particular she seems unable to transcend the confines of the stock country-pop arrangements that surround her. Here on her debut, Elliott doesn't even qualify as a second-stringer, but I'd still be interested to hear what she does a few years down the line...

Honey Lou Elliott & Tom Elliott "Wright County Country" (Artronics/Jem Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Art Boyd)
It might have been back in '71, but that big, old handlebar moustache wasn't a hippie thing, even if there was a goatee underneath it... At the time they recorded this album in Nashville, the husband-wife duo of Tom and Honey Lou Elliott had spent several years on the road as itinerant horse trainers and livestock wranglers, and decided to cut a country album kinda just for the fun of it... Originally from the tiny town of Buffalo, Minnesota, they moved all across the upper Midwest, and eventually settled down in Benson, Arizona (and, many years later, recorded a couple of cowboy/western albums celebrating their adoptive state...) But Tom Elliott's look has stayed pretty much the same: that's a real-deal cowboy face. This mostly-honky tonk album is a swell mix of cover tunes and originals, kicking off with the topically-tinged "Goodbye Saigon" -- he also wrote "Looking For Happy," both of which are great songs. The other originals come from a guy named Joe Allen, who seems to have been their contact person in Music City: the album was recorded in separate sessions in Minneapolis and Nashville, and Allen plays rhythm guitar in the Nashville crew, along with studio pros like Ken Malone, Hal Rugg and Buddy Spicher. Tom Elliott played bass and Honey Lou held down the rhythm guitar on the Minnesota sessions, but in Nashville they both just sang the songs. At any rate, this is a pretty cool record -- sometimes it sounds poorly recorded, but the music is a gas, and they sound like they had a lot of fun, particularly on a live track where Tom Elliott busts out with some fairly impressive yodeling. No fooling! Worth a spin if you can track it down.

Zelda Ellison "I Know The Feelings" (Texas Soul, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Don Caldwell & Lloyd Maines)
A Lone Star gal, singer-pianist Zelda Ellison was a member of the West Texas Opry, a loose-knit group that included Lloyd Maines and others in the late 1970s -- around that same time, she recorded this record at Maines's fabled Caldwell Studios in Lubbock, with a lot of high-powered pals to help out. The band includes Ponty Bone on accordion, Lloyd Maines playing banjo and steel, and several other local Texas pickers. The repertoire includes covers of Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, Freddy Fender and Jessi Colter's "I'm Not Lisa," as well as the title track and one other by C. Bishop and "Lollypops And Candy Dreams," which was co-written by Maines.

The Elly Maze "The Elly Maze" (Khat Bottom Records, 2002)
(Produced by The Elly Maze)
Bluegrass-tinged, pleasantly twangy country-folk from the Indiana team of Joanna Maze and Loretta Vinson, who mostly play as a duo, but get some assistance from various pickers on a few tunes, most notably fiddler Carolyn Dutton... Nice, low-key, no-muss, no-fuss material, with both artists sharing vocals and Ms. Maze as the principal songwriter; they also cover songs by artists as disparate as Marshall Chapman, Harlan Howard and George Harrison, and one by their friend, Tom Roznowski, and nice covers of "Jackson Ain't A Very Big Town," an old hit for Norma Jean, and Tom Petty's "The Waiting." Not earthshattering, but nice... About as straightforward and down-to-earth as DIY twang gets.

The Elly Maze "The Elly Maze, Volume II" (Khat Bottom Records, 2010)
(Produced by The Elly Maze)
As on their first album, this is a mix of originals by mandolin picker Joanna Maze, and well-chosen covers of twang songs from a variety of sources. Once again they dip into Marshall Chapman songbook, with a moody cover of "Somewhere South Of Macon," along with tunes by Brewer & Shipley, Peter Rowan, The O'Kanes, '60s folkie Eric Andersen, and a couple by cajun country star Doug Kershaw. Their sound is still pretty simple and stripped-down, though augmented this time by a bit f pedal steel, as well as more fiddling by Carolyn Dutton.

The Elly Maze "Near South" (2011)

Elmo & Patsy "Elmo & Patsy" (Homestead Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Richard Greene & Jack Leahy)
Success can really be a bitch, sometimes. Although Dr. Elmo Shropshire and his (then) wife, Patsy Shropshire were members in good standing of the California bluegrass scene of the early 1970s, after they had a national hit with "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer," the duo was forever to be associated with a one-note novelty song that many people consider one of the most annoying holiday songs ever recorded. They had a long history before that, though, including a couple of albums with their first band, the Homestead Act. This disc features a high-powered backing band, with Joe Goldmark on pedal steel, and Richard Greene and Brantley Kearns both playing fiddle. And FYI, the "doctor" in Dr. Elmo's name is for real: in addition to being a novelty song legend, he was also a practicing doctor of veterinary medicine. Which is probably how he knew so much about reindeer, right?

Elmo & Patsy "Will You Be Ready?" (Oink Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Elmo Shropshire & Patsy Shropshire)
Again, defying our retroactive stereotypes, the Shropshires proved themselves to be able bluegrassers, upstanding acoustic/folkie roots musicians, and also pretty good at selecting their repertoire. This disc spotlights several Dr. Elmo originals, as well as a couple by Joe Crane and, of course, a cover of Loudon Wainwright III's "Dead Skunk," a novelty number released as a single and apparently meant to capitalize on the success of their "Grandma" single, which came out the year before. Notable among the backing band are fiddler Darol Anger and bassist Bill Amatneek, who played with the Shropshires in the Homestead Act; by the time this album came out, Amatneek and Anger were both key members of the Bay Area "spacegrass" scene led by David Grisman, and both played on Grisman's groundbreaking Hot Dawg LP.

Elmo & Patsy "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" (Oink Records, 1982/Epic Records, 1984)
Though the song... you know which song... was originally written in 1977 and first recorded by Elmo and Patsy in 1979, it didn't become a national hit until the winter of 1983, when the video version was released to MTV. Then came this album, which also features other strained novelty numbers such as "Percy, The Puny Poinsettia" and "Senor Santa Claus," as well as some country-grass covers of holiday standards such as "Jingle Bells" and "Silent Night." By the way, Randy Brooks, the guy who wrote "Grandma" was also in a band called Young Country, and released his own version of... the song... which you can track down as well.

Myra English "Drinking Champagne" (Hula Records, 1968-?) (LP)
(Produced by Don McDiarmid Jr. & Bill Lang)
The first album by Hawaiian country singer Myra English (1933-2001) whose 1968 version of "Drinking Champagne" became a huge regional hit on the islands. English started out as a child performer -- growing up in Paia, Maui, she led her own band and performed regularly during the 1940s. She moved to Honolulu after she graduated high school in 1951 and sang and played ukulele at military service clubs before moving to the mainland with her husband, a military man who moved around a great deal. In 1968, while living in Seattle she heard Cal Smith's version of "Drinking Champagne" and recorded a Hawaiian-ized version of the song after moving back to Honolulu. The success of her single led to a gig at the Outrigger Hotel, and to the recording of this full-length LP, which features a few Hawaiian-themed songs, such as "Ku'u Sweetie" and "Aloha Ka Manini," along with a bunch of country covers, including Bill Mack's "Drinking Champagne" and contemporary hits such as "For The Good Times" and "Many Happy Hangovers To You." Riding her local celebrity, Ms. English became a tourism spokesperson and was friends with several of Hawaii's biggest stars, such as Genoa Keawe and Melveen Leed.

Myra English "Oh How I Miss You Tonight" (Hula Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Don McDiarmid Jr.)
It's mostly Hawaiian-themed songs this time around, although there's some country material as well... the tracks include "Remember My Island," "Biding My Time," "Maui Moon," "Kuulei," "Pu'u Anahalu," and of course the title track.

Robin English "Hello Me" (Global Row, 2004)
'Way back in 2001, Ms. English had an flash-in-the-pan hit single, "Girl In Love," which hit #10 on the charts and then apparently she parted ways with her label at the time (Columbia), reemerging a few years later with this indie album, which she has since re-jiggered a couple of times to try and hit the right formula... Not sure what the whole story is, but folks who like rootsier-than-usual mainstream twang might want to check her out...

Robin English "Robin English" (Aspirion Records, 2006)
Five of the songs on here originally appeared on 2004's Hello Me, including the song that seems to be her anthem, "Cotton Field Girl." In turn, all of the tracks on this album are reprised on the indie-again Velvet-Covered Brick album, below. There's some nice stuff, but be careful not to get the same material over and over again if you liked what you heard the first time around. Anyhoo, either version of this album would probably be fine.

Robin English "Velvet-Covered Brick" (2007)
An intriguing mixed bag. This disc opens with a bluesy, rootsy number called "Cotton Field Girl" that has a swampy feel worthy of old, classic Tony Joe White. After that, she leaps into some perky, generic pop-country fluff, and then into a few anguished ballads. She gets back to twang with a cheeky spoof of Willie and Waylon, "Mamas Don't Let Your Cowboys Grow Up To Be Babies," and closes with an aggressively popped-up radio remix of "Cotton Field Girl." There's an interesting mix of roots and Nashville savvy here, hinting at a Lee Ann Womack-like approach... Worth checking out if you go for both mainstream and indie-ish material.

The Enneking Family Singers "We Are The Ennekings" (Joel Recordings, 1967) (LP)
This was a family band from Stearns County, Minnesota, with patriarch Al Enneking along with Tom, Lenore, Gene, Marv, Renee, Bob Enneking playing a set that might include several(?) originals along with covers of "Tippy Toeing," "Ballad Of The Green Berets" and "My Dirty, Low-Down Rotten Cotton Picking Little Darling." (Certainly the song "Enneking Family Farm" counts as an original?) The album was recorded in Mankato, with session musicians including Tony Farr on steel guitar, Jim Ruud playing lead, and Lowell Schyerer on banjo. Testimonial letters on the back cover place this one as a 1967 release; possibly early '68.

Jan Esty "Too Much Of You Still On My Mind" (Diamond Tape Productions, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Fournier & Jeff Levine)
Not a ton of information about this gal out there... Jan Esty (1935-2014) was the stage name for Janice Hanscom, a New Englander born in Maynard, Massachusetts who grew up in New Hampshire. In 1977 she led a band called The Happy Days which played regular gigs at a venue in Nashua called the Loyal Club, which I think was some sort of country club or fraternal order. The liner notes by her daughter Sally Nordle are charming, though not super-informative -- mostly Ms. Nordle talks about how she was into rock music, but her mom dug country, and how it took a while for her to appreciate the genre. Esty's range was fairly wide: she sang a mix of oldies such as "I Still Miss Someone" and "Sugar Coated Love" along with more contemporary hits like "Let Me Be There" and Kris Kristofferson's "Lord Help Me, Jesus." Unfortunately, the production notes don't tell us who was backing her, although the backup singers are identified as the Songsmiths, a trio including Lucy Devino, Pauline Downing and Gene Raschi. As far as I know, this was her only album, though she did record at least one single as well.

Val Esway & El Mirage "Lovers, Losers, Liars" (Self-Released, 2005)
A charming self-produced 7-song EP from an SF Bay Area local has a strong whiff of Tarnation-style twang-meets-torch. A veteran of rock's Ramona The Pest and twang's Loretta Lynch band, singer-writer Esway scores a base hit (if not a homer) with the catchy opening track, "Someone I Used To Know," which has a nice, old-school country feel to it, and shows ever deeper roots on the sweet, Carter Family-flavored "Birds." This is neighborhood bar, open-mic night stuff, and that's a big part of its earnest, open-hearted charm. If you like your twang to be locally grown, then you might want to check this gal out.

Val Esway & El Mirage "Pretend To Believe" (Staggering Siren Records, 2007)
The SF Bay Area's indiebilly scene is well represented on this new album from songwriter Val Esway, formerly of the twangband Loretta Lynch... The disc opens with some thumping honkytonkers, "Whiskey Trail" and "Sweet Thing," and settles into a more introspective, poetic mode, on songs like "Birthday" and "Pretend To Believe," songs that bring melancholy folk divas like Linda Thompson, et al to mind alongside twangsters... With the exception of a Doc Watson tune at the end of the album, all the songs are Esway originals... Most of the lyrics tap into the sad side of the country tradition, but there's an underlying feeling of joy, doubtless the artist's own satisfaction from a job well done! (Available through Esway's own website, www.staggeringsiren.com)

Ethel & The Shameless Hussies "Born To Burn" (MCA Records, 1988)
(Produced by Jimmy Bowen)
Rollicking, rowdy country novelty songs, often expressing a female viewpoint... Lead singer Kacey Jones went on to make a career out of this sort of thing, carving out a comedy niche that's kept her going for years.

Evangeline "Evangeline" (MCA Records, 1992)
An all-gal band from Louisiana, with a somewhat simplistic musical sound, tending towards perky, upbeat material with group harmonies, or slower songs with individual bandmembers taking lead on different songs. One has a voice kind of like Linda Ronstadt; another has a bluesier approach, and delivers a clunky cover of Jesse Winchester's "Rumba Man." Odder still is an almost-liturgical rendition of the roots reggae oldie, "Rivers Of Babylon." Some songs have a cajun flavor to 'em, but mostly this is fairly bland, commercially-oriented material that never really found an audience.

Evangeline "French Quarter Moon" (MCA Records, 1993)
An exceedingly dreary album; includes their lone chart single, the cajun-flavored "Let's Go Spend Your Money Honey," an uptempo tune that's okay, but underwhelming. The rest of the record is pretty terrible... Some of it has a slightly alt-y, Lucinda Williams-ish feel, but the production is so generic it's hard to connect with any of it.

Dale Evans & Roy Rogers "16 Great Songs Of The Old West" (Drive Archive, 1998)

Dale Evans & Roy Rogers "Say Yes To Tomorrow" (Homeland, 1995)

Dale Evans "Sweetheart Of The West" (Collector's Choice, 2003)

Dale Evans "Rage Of The Sage" (BACM, 2005)
(Available through the British Archive of Country Music specialty label.)

Sara Evans - see artist discography

The Evans Sisters & Carl "Sing And Play 14 Of Your Requests" (V Records, 1966-?) (LP)
A folk and country trio from Manitoba, Canada, consisting of Shirley and Anne Evans, along with Carl Cherak, who joined the duo in 1964, after the sisters had been performing together for several years. No date on this disc, alas, but I'd guess it was around 1966 or so, maybe '67. They covered country oldies like "Satisfied Mind" and newer mid-'Sixties tunes such as "Howdy Neighbor" and "Once A Day," along with goofier coffeehouse material like "Malguena" and "Bongos And Banjos." Hep, daddy-o.

Even Dozen Jug Band "The Even Dozen Jug Band" (Elektra Records, 1964)
A folk-revival proto-supergroup which featured David Grisman on mandolin, along with other luminaries such as acoustic blues picker Stefan Grossman, singers Maria Muldaur and John Sebastian (later of the Lovin' Spoonful), guitarist Steve Katz and even arranger/pianist Joshua Rifkin. The album was full of salty old-time blues tunes, and presaged the work of Muldaur's next port of call, the Jim Kweskin Jug Band. Interesting early stuff from the heyday of the folk revival.

Everett & Arella "Now And Always" (19--?) (LP)
The husband-wife heartsong duo of Everett Hanvold (1951-2007) and Arella Mae Potter recorded several albums, though I think this one was the first, and possibly the only one that came out on vinyl. Originally they were from back East -- she was born in Kentucky and he was from Virginia, where they got married, though more recently Arella was living somewhere in Missouri. Everett Hanvold also recorded at least one solo album under his own name, called Pretty Words, which seems to have come out in the digital era.

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Hick Music Index
Sisters Who Swung: Women In Jazz & Blues

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