Genie Mack "The Magic Lady Goes Trucken, v.2" (Magic Country Music, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Phil York)
Yes, she did spell truckin' with an "e," but she's from Oklahoma, so we'll forgive her. This is an album of mostly original material from a red dirt gal who had a regional hit with a song called "We're Independent Truckers," dedicated to striking semi drivers in 1979... Ms. Mack grew up in Centerville, Oklahoma, and was local performing star back in her teens, before becoming a licensed professional truck driver in 1979, juggling a parallel music career that included a bit of national buzz that lasted for a couple of years. This set was recorded in Dallas, Texas, with a backing band that included steel guitarists Ray Austin and Johnny Blue... Presumably a "Volume One" album also exists, but so far I've only been able to track down a few singles...

Kate MacKenzie "Let Them Talk" (Red House Records, 1994)

Kate MacKenzie "Age Of Innocence" (Red House Records, 1996)

The Bobby Mackey Show "...Featuring Nancy Lee Nelson" (T Records, 1978-?) (LP)
(Produced by Chuck Rogers)
Independent twang from the greater Cincinnati metro region... Kentuckian Bobby Mackey first hit town around 1970 when he became a member of Delbert ("Red") Jenkins' band, the Country Lads. A few years later he set out on his own, and even bought a nightclub in Wilder, Kentucky, just on the other side of the Ohio River. There's no date on this album, but it definitely looks very late 'Seventies, and since Mackey bought the club in '78, I'd guess it was from right around then. Now, about that club... Apparently Bob Mackey's Music World is the subject of a lot of super-lurid stories of vengeful ghosts and gory murders, satanists and suicides, and has been profiled on numerous television shows and such as one of the "most haunted places in America." Make of that what you will; personally, I'm more bothered by the dingy shag carpet and acoustic tiles. Anyway, this album was produced by a guy named Chuck Rogers, who wrote seven of the ten songs; the others are by Tom Ghent, Ken Westberry and there's one by Carol Jones called "To Satisfy The Weakness In A Man," which sounds awful darn groovy. Other than gal singer Nancy Lee Nelson, none of the musicians are identified, which is a pity. Though Mackey later recorded an album in Nashville, I would assume these were all local guys, possibly one of Rusty York's studio groups. Also worth noting: country singer Jack Reno contributes the glowing liner notes; at the time he was working as music director for radio station WUBE, Cincinnati. As far as I can tell, this was Nancy Lee Nelson's only record.

Natalie MacMaster "Blueprint" (Rounder Records, 2003)
A sweeping, masterful fiddle album, ranging from tightly interlocked reels to slower, more moody aires. Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas and others from the Rounder stable of "usual suspect" superpickers chime in on various tracks. A nice, solid set, mixing Celtic-derived Canadian with a variety of styles and moods.

Natalie MacMaster "Yours Truly" (Rounder Records, 2006)
Canadian fiddle whiz Natalie MacMaster is as technically dazzling as ever, although the popped-up arrangements that define this album aren't really my cup of tea... A nice mix of Celtic-based and bluegrassy/newgrassy styles, mixed with a heavy backbeat and some super-slick chord progressions... Most of the songs are McMaster originals, although she still finds time to saw through a medley of raw-sounding Strathspey reels and other traditional material that reflects her Cape Breton roots... McMaster's fans will dig this one.

Rose Maddox - see artist discography

Janice Maddy & Roger Maddy "The Place Of My Dreams" (Voyager Records, 1979) (LP)

Janice Manny & Roger Maddy "Become As Little Children" (SPBGMA/John's Recording Studio, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Maurice Killenbeck)
A real gem. This independently-released set of sweet, melodic old-timey/bluegrass tunes features the husband-wife duo of Janice and Roger Maddy who, as far as I can tell were originally from Washington state (where this album was recorded) but moved to Iowa to be closer to family, and where they performed regularly at folk and bluegrass festivals. They dig deep into the sweeter side of the music, with a heartfelt sound that fans of Jim & Jesse, the Stanley Brothers and the Blue Sky Boys should appreciate. To my ears, she had the more rural-sounding voice, although they harmonized nicely and their repertoire is perfect. Most of the songs are covers or traditional material, including a nice version of Don Helms' "Sweet Little Miss Blue Eyes," and the Maddys add a few new songs to the genre, including the sentimental "Memories Of Mother," which they co-wrote, and two more that are credited to Roger Maddy, and one track, "Dakota Jane," that was composed by their fiddler, Craig Keene. The picking and fiddling is quite good, including some slick licks from banjoist Dan Young, although this isn't really the drag-racing kind of bluegrass, but rather the more sentimental, old-fashioned style... Which, by the way, I totally love. This album is definitely worth looking for!

Janice Maddy & Roger Maddy "Become As Little Children" (CD Baby, 2003)
Though I discovered the Maddys on vinyl, I was surprised -- and quite pleased -- to see that this old stuff is also available on CD. This disc includes the music from both of the albums above, Become As Little Children and The Place Of My Dreams. Sweet!

Liz Madison "Doin' Time: Live!" (Treehouse Records, 1978-?) (LP)
A country gal from Indianoplis, Indiana going the Johnny Cash route with a prison concert recorded live at the nearby Pendleton Reformatory. The set list was all cover songs, including both country and pop numbers such as "Poor Poor Pitiful Me," "You Light Up My Life," "I Got The Music In Me," a couple of Fleetwood Mac songs, Dolly Parton's "Two Doors Down," and "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue." She also covers one by Kenny (Sauron) Rogers, but it was the 'Seventies, so we'll forgive her. We have to. Oh, and there's also a version of Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" -- of course!

Bonnie Makepeace "I'm A Song In The Wind" (19--?) (LP)
I could find very little information about this 12-string strummin' gal or about this album, which I believe was her only record. She was originally from Canadaigua, New York, and played there from the mid-1970s to at least the mid-'80s, playing at rodeos and county fairs, as well as venues such as the Lakeview Inn and the California Ranch nightclub. She sang traditional folk and country songs, but was also a prolific songwriter, copyrighting over a hundred songs during her career. She may have moved to Wyoming by the time this record was made, though, again, it's hard to pin down much information about the album itself.

Eleni Mandell "Country For True Lovers" (Zedtone Records, 2003) Records

Barbara Mandrell - see artist discography

Irlene Mandrell "Texersize" (Panda Productions, 1983) (LP)
(Produced by Andy Murphy)
Geez, really? A Lone Star line-dancing aerobics album? Well, sure, why not? What the heck. And, yes, Irlene Mandrell is actually the younger sister of Barbara and Louise, and joined them in the Mandrell Sisters road show... As far as I know, this was Irlene's lone solo album, and she appears appropriately svelte on the front cover, while the gatefold obligingly wraps around to display her pert heinie and well-toned gams on the back, as well as a pair of rad-looking red cowgal boots, complete with high heels and decorative spurs. (Lesson Three on Side Two tells you how to work out while wearing them...) Ah, the Eighties. And though you may laugh, this album is packed with top Texas talent, including steel player Jimmy Day, fiddler Danny Levin, Asleep At The Wheel's Ray Benson (doing some square dance calls!) and even indie twangster Kimmie Rhodes, singing in the chorus. So bust out your chaps, and feel the burn! Yee-haw!!

Louise Mandrell - see artist discography

Lorene Mann - see artist discography

Manuela "I Want To Be A Cowboy's Sweetheart" (CMH, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Martin Haerle, John Wagner & Jack Linnemann)
I'm not sure what her last name was, but despite being a young'un, Manuela was certainly devoted to traditional, old-school country sounds of bygone years... To start with, there's her version of the title track, a cowgal classic by Patsy Montana, along with other oldies such as "Born To Lose," "If You've Got The Money (I've Got The Time)" and "I Forgot To Remember To Forget." This album was partly recorded in Nashville, and partly at John Wagner's studio in Albuquerque, but it certainly shows a devotion to a style of twang that came decades earlier... Not all western stuff, by any means, but a nice echo of the country styles of the 1930s, '40s and '50s.

Rose Lee Maphis - see artist discography

Nancy Tabb Marcantel "Ma Louisiane" (Swallow Records, 197--?) (LP)
The first album by Nancy Tabb Marcantel, who has since become one of Louisiana's most prominent cajun-country singers. The set list is mainly of country and pop hits given a Acadian French update by lyricist James Domengeaux... Thus, Tony Orlando's "Tie A Yellow Ribbon" becomes "Pends Un Ruban Jaune," and "For The Good Times" morphs into "Pour Les Bons Temps." Other adaptations include "Petit Oiseau" ("Snowbird"), "Avec Toi" ("Let Me Be There"), and "Ma Louisiane" ("Take Me Home Country Roads").

Nancy Tabb Marcantel "Lagniappe" (Swallow Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Greg Marcantel, Fred Soleil & Joe Avant, Jr.)
Louisiana cajun country, in the tradition of Bruce Vin -- mostly French-language stuff, but about a third of the songs are English-language songs, solidly in the mainstream country style. The album was recorded with local musicians and seems to have been a family affair, with Greg Marcantel producing and Peter Marcantel on guitar; bassist Benny Graeff also helped mix the record, with Gary Graeff on guitar. Greg and Peter Marcantel also wrote half the songs on here, and presumably had a hand in translating into French hits by Merle Haggard ("Today I Started Loving You Again" as "La Fin De L'Amour") and Kris Kristofferson ("Help Me Make It Through The Night" transposed into "Aide-Moi A Passer A Nuit") and Hank Cochran ("Enleve-Moi Ce Chagrin," or, "Make The World Go Away.") If you're looking for local, this little jaunt down on the bayou might be for you! All told, Ms. Marcantel has recorded at least ten albums, performing well into the 21st century... but we'll just stick to the '70s stuff for now.

Carlotta Maree "Good Like Good Should Feel" (Fool's Gold Record Company, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Charles Bragg)
An independent artist from Olivia, Minnesota, Ms. Maree recorded one track, "Sunny Minnesota Morning" at Jay Sound Studios in Minneapolis before heading to Nashville to cut a whole album. She's supported by an a-list studio band, including folks like steel player Lloyd Green, Dave Kirby on guitar and Tony Migliore on piano, and backing vocals by the Nashville Edition. Not a ton of info about her online, though there is mention of her having won some local country music awards around the time this album came out...

Margaret & The Country Kids "Margaret And The Country Kids" (Artco Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Tom Hartman)
A family band led by Margaret Stewart, a rancher from Cottonwood Falls, Kansas who also was a well-known square dance caller in the Oklahoma-Kansas region. She sings and plays mandolin, with a cast of dozens both backing her up and sharing the spotlight. The album includes songs written by her daughter, Judith Roper ("Granny's Teenage Queen," "It Started From A Dream," "John's Old Sal") and producer Tom Hartman ("Gingerbread Man," "Good Old Country Music," "Down Home"). The group performed at local rodeos and other events, and this album, which was recorded at Associated Recording Artists studio in Oklahoma City, and was written up in Billboard magazine, as part of an overview of the Oklahoma country scene of 1973.

Jean Marie & Doug LaValley "Wheeling Jamboree" (ARC Music, 1963-?) (LP)
Popular in Canada, honkytonker Doug LaValley (1934-1999) was born in Boston, Massachusetts, though like many New Englanders, his career crisscrossed the border, as evidenced on this LP on the Arc label. A talented multi-instrumentalist and robust vocalist in the Johnny Bush style, LaValley's career dated back to the early 1950s, when he worked in Montana Slim's band before forming his own group and recording as a solo artist. LaValley and his wife, Jean Marie Varno, joined the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree and were in the show's cast for several years; they also did some time in Nashville, where Mr. LaValley did session work and cut a string of singles on various labels. As far as I know this was their only full album.

Carolyn Mark "Party Girl" (Mint Records, 2000)

Carolyn Mark & The Room-Mates "Terrible Hostess" (Mint Records, 2003)
Meditations on social drinking, late night parties, dirty dishes, bad sex and the more intoxicating side of the night life. Downbeat, kinda depressing, material, but with a wicked sense of humor and a more accomplished feel than other Mark outings. It seems like these are subjects nearer to her heart than the trailer trash-isms of her alt.country work... She also veers into jazzish torch singing and a bit of melodic indiepop. The stylistic variety helps, as does the moodiness of the bummerific songwriting. Probably her strongest work to date.

Carolyn Mark & The New Best Friends "The Pros And Cons Of Collaboration" (Mint Records, 2004)

Carolyn Mark & The Room-Mates "Just Married: An Album Of Duets" (Mint Records, 2005)

Carolyn Mark "Nothing Is Free" (Mint Records, 2007)
Although I'm not a huge fan of Carolyn Mark as a vocalist, I certainly accept her as a paragon of the DIY ethos in its more mature phase: she writes the songs she wants to write, she makes the records she wants to make, she gets very talented people to play with her, and in pursuing some odd song topics, she doesn't write the same-old, same-old kind of songs. Purists can debate her bona fides as a "real" country singer, but she certainly has a pleasant little rasp, and knows her way around the twangier tones -- I suppose it's easier to think of her as an urban alt-folkie, mining a certain vein of acidly-observed interpersonal barbs and party-going vignettes that bring Joni Mitchell to mind, in a way. There are several noteworthy tracks on here, notably the tart, double-edged "Point O View" and the galloping, bluegrassy "Get Along," as well as the scathing, sinister "Pink Moon And All The Ladies," which may or may not be some sort of commentary on the late Nick Drake and his legions of fans, but is certainly one of the stronger tracks on the album... Mark's lyrics can be a bit uneven, though -- the song "The 1 That Got Away With It," for example, opens with a couplet, "There's two kinds of women you let in your life/exciting new mistress and boring old wife..." that holds a bitterness worthy of Linda Thompson's newer stuff, and a poetic economy that almost makes it sound like a grand, old honkytonk classic. She doesn't sustain it, though, and the song meanders into spacy, self-referential metaphors that detract from the promise of a song that could have really gone for the jugular. Most of her songs hew close to the insular self-expression of the Pacific Northwest's lo-fi scene -- if you value small-press poets and local legend musicians just for who they are, Mark is an undeniable hero, but if the glimmers of brilliant songwriting may make you wish for a more focussed, more craftsmanlike approach. Mark remains an intriguing, challenging artist, true to her indie roots, even if this means she sometimes shies away from the symmetry and concision that make pop songs so memorable.

Mary Ann Marshall & Terry Flannery "Little Bit Country" (MTF Productions, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Sargon N. Yonan)
The lounge duo of Terry Flannery & Mary Ann Marshall -- also known simply as "Terry & Mary Ann" -- recorded this album at the Sargon Recording Studios in Skokie, Illinois and they give a shout-out on the cover to the folks working at the O'Hare-Kennedy Holiday Inn, where I'd assume they had a regular gig. Terry Flannery did the arrangements and plays most of the instruments -- guitars, bass and keyboards -- along with Ms. Marshall on 12-string and 6-string acoustic guitars and drummer Ron Baron rounding out the sound. They cover stuff like "Me And Bobby McGee" and "The Gambler" as well as oldies like "Danny Boy" and "Ghost Riders In The Sky," and Flannery even gets all choppsy with a run-through of the Spanish guitar standard, "Malaguena." The Kenny Rogers cover places this one at least 1979, if not later. They were not great, but this is a very authentic album from a typical '70s lounge act.

Linda Martell "Color Me Country" (Plantation Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Shelby S. Singleton Jr.)
Oh, the indignities. That one of the first female African-American country stars should have such a humiliatingly obvious album title... And that it came out on the Plantation label, no less. Anyway, coming at country from a background singing gospel and soul with her family band in South Carolina, Linda Martell (nee Thelma Bynem) is said to have been the first African-American woman to play the Grand Ole Opry... She made a few appearances on Hee Haw in the early '70s, as well, and was a pretty striking performer, with a big, bright voice and cheerful personality. She sometimes drifts into soul-vocals showboating that puts her at odds with the minimalist economy that is more often than not the hallmark of country music craftsmanship... Then again, at the time contemporary big-voiced gals like Lynn Anderson were also pushing against the demure edges of the Nashville Sound, and in retrospect if you stack Ms. Martell's vocals up against the white-soul warblings of more modern stars such as Faith Hill, Wynona Judd or Martina McBride (et.al) it's hard not to see Martell as a groundbreaking artist. I prefer her more restrained performances, but it's all pretty solid, including the top-flight musical backup. Sadly, Martell faced some unsurprising challenges as a black female country artist, ranging from racial harassment at her shows to a major conflict with her management and label: after she confronted Shelby Singleton about what she considered underpayment and lack of promotion, Martell was dropped from the label and Singleton used his influence to blacklist her in Nashville. It's kind of surprising she didn't move into a career as a mainstream pop vocals artist; she certainly had the pipes for it, though I guess she'd gotten her fill of show business after her forays into Music City. Regardless, this album certainly is fine legacy.

Bobbi Martin "For The Love Of Him - Anthology" (Crash Records, 2007)
A nightclub singer who "went country" in the late 1960s, Bobbi Martin probably really belongs more in the "pop" camp, but she definitely did a lot of country stuff and had real success on the Nashville charts. This album (of dubious provenance) appears to be one of very few collections of her stuff on CD... Also, it tilts more towards her country material, so for twangfans, this would be the one to shoot for...

Bobbi Martin "Harper Valley PTA" (United Artists, 1968) (LP)

Bobbi Martin "For The Love Of Him" (United Artists, 1969) (LP)

Janis Martin "The Female Elvis - Complete Recordings: 1956-60" (Bear Family Records, 1987)
Being nicknamed "the female Elvis" sure would be a hard reputation to shake. Still, worse things could happen. And make no mistake, Martin was a hella ripsnorting gal, and if anything she may have outdone The King in the rocker department. This excellent retrospective of her old RCA material goes a long way to explain Martin's enduring legend in the rockabilly scene -- though it gets a little repetitious after a while, on the whole this is well worth checking out. (By the way, Martin came out of retirement a few years back, and cut a few duets with Rosie Flores, which got released on the Hightone label... also worth tracking down...)

Janis Martin "My Boy Elvis" (Jasmine Records, 2014)
The late Janis Martin was one of early rock'n'roll's most sizzling singers, male or female, and left a great legacy in the two-dozen-plus tracks she cut for RCA in the late 1950s and early '60s. This fab, generously-programmed collection reprises the same material as Bear Family's The Female Elvis best-of, although Jasmine one-ups the Bear Family folks with the inclusion of several live tracks taken from a radio appearance, with versions of three songs, "Crackerjack," "Love Me To Pieces" and "Two Long Years," which are also heard in the studio versions. A must-have for rockabilly fans, particularly if you didn't already own the original Bear Family disc.

Janis Martin "The Blanco Sessions" (Cow Island Music, 2012)
(Produced by Rosie Flores & Bobby Trimble)
Let's hear it for social media: A Kickstarter campaign brought this album to fruition, a sizzling set of bluesy rockabilly from 'Fifties firebrand Janis Martin, one of the wildest rockabilly singers of the original rock'n'roll era, who passed away in 2007, just months after completing these sessions. She was an old lady then, but also a total badass who threw herself into the songs, and infused them with vigor and soul. Backing her were several stalwarts of the Americana-indie scene, including guitarist Dave Biller (ripping it up on classic 'billy riffs), pianist T. Jarrod Bonta, and drummer/producer Bobby Trimble, who drove the band hard. Martin sounds great -- she's got a gruff granny voice, but the kind of granny voice you'd expect from a truck driver or the world's sweetest linebacker, with plenty of expressiveness and power. Joining her on a tune or two are hillbilly fillies Rosie Flores and Kelly Willis, who compliment Martin while never stealing focus from her powerful performances. If you loved Janis Martin's old stuff, you'll want to pick this up too: you'll really dig it.

Judy Martin "Straight Shootin' Cowgirl" (BACM, 2004)
Solo recordings from 1940s cowgirl Eva Overstake, who recorded under the stage name Judy Martin. Martin was a sprightly singer who had once been part of a family trio called "The Little Country Girls," along with her two sisters, one of whom grew up to be the famous songwriter, Jenny Lou Carson. Martin's story is tragic: as her own career took off, she met and married country star Red Foley, a marriage that ended horribly when Martin committed suicide after learning that he was having an affair. It's a pity, really, since she was such an appealing singer and could have gone on to make more great music, had the fates allowed.

Judy Martin "...And The Mountain Rangers" (BACM, 2005)
More transcription disc recordings from the M.M. Cole company... Martin didn't record much in the studio, so these radio shows were her prime legacy. Includes some recordings with Red Foley, and more of her sweet, soulful singing.

Judy Martin "...Presents Red Foley And The Mountain Rangers" (Binge Disc/Cattle Records, 19--?)

Sandy Martin "Does Lovin' Come That Easy?" (19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Sandy Martin & Myron Smith)
Mostly covers, but one original (the title track) from a gal singer who seems to have been part of Denny Hilton's Country Shindig show, one of Missouri's many mom'n'pop Ozark "opry" venues... Martin penned the title track, and also sings country hits such as "Blanket On The Ground," "Break My Mind," "Don't Touch Me," "Satin Sheets," and of course, yet another version of "Rocky Top." She's backed by several musicians associated with Country Shindig's early/mid-1980s lineup, including David Nace on drums, Jimmy Nace (bass), James Pennebaker (fiddle), Myron Smith (steel guitar), Stanley Stidham (lead guitar), Sarah West (piano), and Steve West playing banjo. I couldn't find a release date for this album, but based on her fabulous perm and the overall look of the record, I'd guess somewhere around 1983-84, maybe later.

Marty & Carla "It's Gonna Be Sunny In Nashville" (Nevell Music, 19--?) (LP)
Minnesota-born keyboardist Carla Elliott and singer-comedian Marty Nevers formed a musical duo in 1969, and performed together for over forty years (with Nevers passing away in 2012). I don't think all their stuff was country, but this album definitely had a twangy twist to it, as seen by the cowboy hats on the cover, and songs such as "Rodeo Cowboy," "Country Boy" and the title track. They were married and lived in Minnesota, but would spend half each year in Mesa, Arizona, performing in the Southwest as well.

Mason Bricke "...With Peter Masi and Donna Brickie" (Cactus Records, 1976) (LP)
This Arizona band takes its name from a composite of songwriter Peter Masi and singer Donna Bricke, who are joined by pedal steel player Gary Morse... This album is kind of all over the map, a mix of hippie country, starry-eyed folk and iffy acoustic blues. Donna Brickie had a very Judy Collins-y folkie vocal style, which doesn't do much for me, particularly on songs such as her cover of Graham Nash's "Wounded Bird." From a country-lover's perspective, probably the best track on here is the album's opener, "Janie," which has some really groovy pedal steel work, but mostly this is a bit too much in folkie territory for me.

Mason Dixon "Homegrown" (Premier Records, 1987) (LP)
(Produced by Dan Mitchell)
The Texas trio of Jerry Dengler, Frank Gilligan & Rick Henderson flipped the script on the increasingly corporatized world of 1980s Top Country, cracking into the Top 40 with a single off this indie album... They remained a presence on the charts throughout the decade, but even when they were signed to a major label, they ultimately failed to click on the national level...

Mila Mason "That's Enough Of That" (Atlantic Records, 1996)
Kentuckian Mila Mason is an adequate singer, backed by fairly run-of-the-mill country-pop arrangements, roughly in the Martina McBride/Shania Twain neck of the woods. Didn't really rock my world, but there are some glimmers of ruggedness and vigor in her presentation, though mostly it's pretty glossy and generic. Nothing special, really. The title track was a Top 20 hit, as well as a career highwater mark.

Mila Mason "The Strong One" (Atlantic Records, 1998)

Mila Mason "Stained Glass Window" (Twinbeat Records, 2003)

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "Brother's Keeper" (Soundtrack) (Angel, 1993)
Re-released under the title, Waltzing With You.

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "The Lover's Waltz" (Angel, 1997)

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "Civil War Classics: Live At Gettysburg College" (1994)

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "Harvest Home: Songs For All Seasons" (Angel Records, 1999)

Molly Mason, Jay Ungar & James Galway "Song Of Home: An American Musical Journey" (RCA, 2002)

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "Waltzing With You" (Soundtrack) (Angel Records, 1998)
Music from the film, Brother's Keeper. Previously released under the title of the movie.

Molly Mason & Jay Ungar "Relax Your Mind" (Angel Records, 2003)
A perfect mix of all that is great and good about American acoustic music. The album title is a nostalgic nod towards the old Jim Kweskin/Leadbelly anthem, and like the early '60s jug bands, this disc is a model of versatility and stylistic depth, mixing bluegrass, blues, folk and acoustic jazz with equal ease. On my first listen I thought I'd heard the influence of guitarist David Bromberg: turns out it wasn't just his influence: Bromberg plays on several tracks, and the album is drenched with his good-natured, boozy bonhomie. There are soft, melodic fiddle tunes and waltzes, a bit of Bob Wills swing, goofy folk-club novelty songs like Mason's "Bad Attitude" and Guy Clark's "Homegrown Tomatoes," and touches of sheer genius such as the New Orleans jazz woven into the old Delmore Brothers hit, "Blues Stay Away From Me." The band, Swingology, is playing at the top of its game, yet has that aw-shucks, front porch informality that the bluegrass/old-timey crowd so wisely values. This is a really sweet record, well worth picking up.

Sandy Mason "Out There And In Here" (Good Music, 2008)
Perhaps best known as a songwriter (and a very successful one at that!) Sandy Mason Theoret had a rather, um, modest voice, although she did record about a dozen singles during the 1960s and early '70s, her songwriting will be her greater legacy. Later in life, Mason shifted her focus towards more of a jazz/introspective sound, and these later recordings are definitely an acquired taste... I wouldn't exactly recommend them, but they are unusual, particularly this album, which has a gentle but weird folkie-Christian vibe. As far as I know, her earlier country singles have not been collected anywhere...

Louise Massey And Her Westerners "Swing West" (Binge Disc/Bronco Buster)
Corny cowboy tunes, polkas, and a smattering of western swing from this Depression-era family outfit. This disc has a strong Tin Pan Alley pop feel to it -- western music similar to Bing Crosby's version of "Don't Fence Me In", etc. Louise Massey is certainly one of the forgotten female country music pioneers, though if the truth be told, her vocals are a bit schmaltzy -- her brother Curt is more of a good time than she is. Each sibling solos on a handful of tunes, and there are several instrumental tunes on here as well.

Louise Massey And Her Westerners "Ridin' Down That Old Texas Trail" (Binge Disc/Bronco Buster)

Louise Massey & The Westerners "Ridin' High: 1933-1941" (BACM, 2005)

Liz Masterson & Sean Blackburn "Swingtime Cowgirl And Tune Wranglin' " (Western Serenade, 1995)

Jan Mathews "This Little Texas Girl" (19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Kay Raper, J. L. Burgin, Jan Mathews & Mark Duvall)
An interesting album with a really long backstory... Jan Mathews was the daughter of Jay L. Burgin (1926-2011) and Sylvia Burgin (1927-2008) a fairly obscure country music duo from Denison, Texas who were fairly well known in the local music scene north of Dallas. They cut at least one single in the mid-1960s and gained national exposure when they nearly won the Ted Mack Amateur Hour TV talent show in 1968 (performing a novelty act with their dog Hortense, who yodeled...) Although Mr. Burgin was a working man, the couple managed to go on tour with several major Nashville artists, and were even booked on The Merv Griffin Show. The Burgins also put together a family band, with their daughter Jan playing steel guitar; her parents perform on this album (bass and vocals), and her sister, Aneita Kay Raper, was involved as well. Some of the songs were written by Mr. and Mrs. Burgin, including "I Wanna Sing Like They Do" and the title track, "This Little Texas Girl." Can't tell you much about Jan Mathews herself, though -- she plays keyboards on this disc instead of steel, and I believe she changed her name to Jan Pannell somewhere along the way. As far as I know, this was her only record.

Kathy Mattea - see artist discography

Guerry Matthews "Guerry Matthews" (Tayma Records, 19--?) (LP)

Guerry Matthews "Phase Two - Closer" (19--?) (LP)

Tokyo Matsu "The Country Lady From Japan" (Scorpion Records, 19--?) (LP)
Originally from Japan, Matsu Shockley (aka Tokyo Matsu) was a classically trained violinist who got hooked on country music, and first found an audience in the 1960s and early '70s performing for American servicemen in Europe and Asia, including USO tours in Vietnam. She emigrated to the United States and found work touring with various Nashville stars, as well as in regional "oprys" such as the Wheeling Jamboree. As with many fiddlers, one of her signature numbers is "Orange Blossom Special," where she showcases her improvisational skills and hot licks. Matsu eventually laid down roots in Nashville, with her husband George Shockley.

Tokyo Matsu "From Tokyo With Love" (Fifer Records, 1980) (LP)

Maxi Maxwell "Interstate 40" (Custom Fidelity, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Burton A. Decker)
I'm not really that into making fun of iffy, obscuro albums or the people who made them, though I have admit that this vanity pressing from the early 1970s probably has to fall into the "so bad, it's good" category, with nods to Mrs. Miller and the Shaggs. It was recorded at Glendale, California's vanity-pressing label, Custom Fidelity back in 1972 or '73, (according to the handy Forbidden Eye website -- thanks, fellas!) and other than that, there's not a lot of info to be found on this one. The brief liner notes mention that Maxwell grew up in Tennessee and that she had what sounds like a fairly religious upbringing, though the songs are generally speaking secular country and country-folk material. Maxwell had a pretty thin voice, with a fair amount of echo thrown on it by the producers, so the closest comparison I can come up with is Skeeter Davis, although this session was hardly up to RCA's standards. The backing band -- which included West coast picker Dee Corby on lead guitar and future Nashville agent Bill Quisenberry on rhythm guitar -- provided pretty lackadaisical, perfunctory accompaniment to a set of nine original songs and a half-dozen covers... There's some decent though under-recorded pedal steel from a guy named Paul Barfels, who apparently lived on the Central California coast and played a bit locally; it's possible that this is the only record he played on. Anyway, Ms. Maxwell did put her heart into this album and wrote some goofy songs with searching, philosophical lyrics, but there's not really anything on here that I'd go back and listen to for fun... It's a curio, but hardly an obscuro-country classic.

Imelda May "Mayhem" (Decca Records, 2010)
(Produced by Imelda May, Andy Wright & Gavin Goldberg)
Groovy, high-tech, modern-day rockabilly from this feisty Irish firebrand... Although there's a clear alt-rock modernism in the production style, this Dubliner has a gritty rootsy-retro vibe that brings Holly Golightly to mind, if maybe she had a major-label budget. Fun stuff, and almost all the songs are originals, written by Ms. May herself. Check it out!

Tricia May & CaliCo "Mountain Wood" (Special Occasions Ltd., 1988) (LP)
(Produced by Dennis Bethuy & Ron Brady)
Southern California's indie country scene was booming in the late 1980s when singer Tricia May Bethuy was named the state's 1988 Female Entertainer Of The Year... She and her band CaliCo toured extensively between 1987-89 and recorded this album with May backed by Peter Climes on banjo and guitar, Skip Edwards (piano), Ray Austin (pedal steel), and Nat Wyner on fiddle. Although the band seems to have had a regional profile, I gotta say the album didn't really live up to my expectations -- the production sound pretty flat, and has a lot in common with "bad" independent pop/rock albums of the era, particularly those coming out of LA in the '80s... I think there were a lot of studio engineers back then who were just punching the clock, and didn't always give their best efforts for folks they perceived as small fry... Plus, the tinny electric guitar riffs favored at the time don't do much for me. Ms. May's vocals also seem a bit clunky, though that may partly have been because of the band's Top Forty inclinations, with a preference for slower and mid-tempo ballads, which often can expose a singer's limitations... There are hints that the band had more dynamism playing live, notably on up-tempo tracks such as "Lonely Country Folk," and on the album's perky closing number, "Hands On Your Heart," May hits a more comfortable, folk-pop mode that brings her line with '80s country gals like Nanci Griffith or Kathy Mattea. I'm not sure what happened to these folks after this album came out... they also put out a few singles, including some earlier recordings. Most of the songs were written by Dennis Bethuy -- who I think was her husband -- and he seems to have moved to Nashville and settled down there. Although this isn't an album I'd go back to very often, it is a nice snapshot of an 'Eighties band with big hopes, one of many working at the same level.

Toni Jo McAlester "Toni Jo McAlester's Back" (Word Weaver Records, 1984-?) (LP)
(Produced by Sonny Deaton & Jim Thornton)

Kimberly M'Carver "Breathe The Moonlight" (Philo-Rounder Records, 1989)

Kimberly M'Carver "Inherited Road" (Philo-Rounder Records, 1994)

Kimberly M'Carver "Cross The Danger Line" (Prime CD, 2001)
The vocal (and stylistic) similarity to Dolly Parton is the very first thing you'll notice with this Houston gal... Debts to Nanci Griffith and Rosie Flores also seem likely. At any rate, even though her material is patently derivative, she has her moments. Tunes such as "Death and Texas" and "When I Hear Trains" may point to future greatness... who knows?

Janet McBride - see artist discography

Martina McBride - see artist discography

Lila McCann "Lila" (Asylum Records, 1997)

Lila McCann "Something In The Air" (Asylum Records, 1998)

Lila McCann "Complete" (Warner Nashville, 2001)

Lila McCann "Super Hits" (Warner Nashville, 2002)

Amy McCarley "Amy McCarley" (Self-released, 20141)

Amy McCarley "Jet Engines" (Self-released, 2014)
(Produced by Kenny Vaughn & George Bradfute)
At first, indiebilly auteur Amy McCarley might be a little hard to get into... She has a very atypical voice -- muddy, rugged, a bit brusque -- that defies conventional thinking about female singers. Also, her lyrical and melodic approach is notably downcast and depressing -- on her previous album it was hard to avoid comparisons to Lucinda Williams, both because of her rough, conversational delivery and because she seemed like another alt-country bummer-queen. That record also had an unfinished feel, very DIY production values, although here she finds much stronger framing, courtesy of producer-guitarist Kenny Vaughn, whose day job is anchoring Marty Stuart's band, the Fabulous Superlatives. The musical boost helps a lot: McCarley emerges as a powerful, laconic songwriter in the style of Guy Clark, and as a swampy Southern singer, almost in the tradition of Tony Joe White. This is a powerful, uncompromised set of hardcore country lo-fi -- difficult, rough-egged stuff that might appeal to fans of those old Freakwater albums, not easily categorized or digested, but quite rewarding if you give it the time.

Jenny McCarter & The McCarter Sisters "This Old Guitar" (Pinnacle Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Ben C. Humphries & Paul Turner)
Sweet, melodic, acoustic-based country by a family band from Sevierville, Tennessee, featuring lead singer Jenny McCarter on guitar, along with Gerald McCarter (banjo), Lisa McCarter (vocals), Teresa McCarter (vocals) and Bobby Loveday on autoharp, bass and flattop guitar. The song selection seems heavily influenced by late 'Seventies/early 'Eighties Emmylou Harris albums, packed with a bunch of songs off various Emmylou albums that we love singing to, and Ms. McCarter probably did as well: "The Darkest Hour," "Gold Watch And Chain," Green Rolling Hills," "Green Pastures," "To Daddy," and others. Songs outside of the Harris-sphere include Bob McDill's "Louisiana Saturday Night," Gail Davies' "Soft Spoken Man," and one original from Jenny McCarter, "You'll Never Hold Me Again."

The McCarters "The Gift" (Warner Brothers, 1988)

Jennifer McCarter & The McCarters "Better Be Home Soon" (Warner Brothers, 1990)
(Produced by Paul Worley & Ed Seay)

Mary McCaslin - see artist discography

Charly McClain - see artist discography

The McClymounts "Wrapped Up Good" (Universal/BSM Records, 2011)
(Produced by Adam Anders & Nathan Chapman)
This Australian trio packs a big punch, with plenty of uptempo country-pop, ranging from catchy anthems like "Kick It Up," which opens the album, to softer acoustic weepers like "He Used To Love Me" and the Fleetwood Mac-ish "Take It Back." A couple of songs seem overly formulaic, like the thudding, rock-flavored "Rock The Boat" and the glossy title track, "Wrapped Up Good," (sure to be a hit, if I don't like it...) but several others are pretty catchy. There's even a bit of swing and twang, heard on "I'm Not Done With You Just Yet" and "Cannonball," and "If You're Gonna Love Me" seems like a pretty catchy, chartable tune. I can see these gals making a dent here Stateside, particularly among fans of Gretchen Wilson and the Dixie Chicks -- we'll see what the future brings!

Georgia McCormack & Dick McCormack "Who Are We Trying To Kid?" (Noah's Ark Records, 1974--?) (LP)
(Produced by Jerice Bergstrom, Jon Bergstrom, Dexter Brown & Mike Kipp)

Mary McCoy/Misty Adams "Mary McCoy/Misty Adams" (Crazy Cajun Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Huey P. Meaux)
A split album, apparently cobbled together from old material from the Crazy Cajun vaults featuring two Lone Star gals who'd been around a while... Side One features four songs by Mary McCoy, a Houston area singer and radio personality from Conroe, Texas who'd been cutting singles since the early 1950s, and started her radio career in 1951. She sang on The Louisiana Hayride in 1955 and met Elvis Presley in both her capacity as a radio deejay and while performing on the same Hayride shows -- all at the tender age of sixteen! In 1967 she signed with a new label and became duet partner with another Conroe local, honkytonker Jimmy Copeland, who was also a country music deejay; they recorded several singles together, some of which are collected on an album he put together years later. Like Mary McCoy, Misty Adams cut several 45s on various labels associated with producer Huey P. Meaux -- including Jin Records, Princess Records and Skill -- and her six tracks here seem to be drawn from those mid-'Sixties singles, presumably McCoy's as well. I'm not sure if Misty Adams did much else, though Mary McCoy has released a few albums, including a self-released gospel set called Through the Storm. Every five or ten years, someone would write an article about how long she'd been working in radio -- the most recent one I've seen was an excellent profile piece in Texas Monthly dated August 2021, where they noted that Ms. McCoy was just months away from being named the longest-running female radio host in the world. Pretty durn cool, if you ask me.

Mary McCoy "Mary McCoy's Country Classics" (SRS Records) (CD)
I'm not sure if these are reissued older tracks or newer recordings, but I sure hope it's the latter.

Judy McCravy "Introducing Judy" (JBP/Joe Beard Productions, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Bill Green & Joe Beard)
I'm not entirely sure where this gal was from, or when this record was made, but it's definitely a country outing, with covers of hits such as "Stand By Your Man," "Rocky Top," "Silver Threads And Golden Needles," Kris Kristofferson's "One Day At A Time" and "I Fall To Pieces," as well as some gospel standards such as "Amazing Grace" and "I'll Fly Away." She's backed by Jon Carleton (steel guitar, banjo, mandolin), Joe Beard (keyboards, arrangements), Dave Stype (banjo), and Billy McCravy (bass) as well as some trumpet and saxophones... The liner notes doesn't say where she's from, alas, though it's possible she was from Spartanburg, South Carolina, or thereabouts. Any additional info is welcome.

Mindy McCready - see artist discography

Paula McCulla "You Tell Me" (Cheyenne Records, 1993)

Paula McCulla "No Stone Unturned" (Gateway Records, 1996)

Paula McCulla "Girl Inside The Woman" (Self-Released, 2007)

Sharon McDowell "Songs Of Love And Praise" (Benson Sound, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Benson)
This country-gospel singer from Merced, California headed back East to Oklahoma to record an album at the Benson Sound studios, with Okie artists such as Benny Kubiak on fiddle, label owner Larry Benson playing piano, and Billy Walker on lead guitar and Jerry Hall playing steel. The songs are all originals, almost all of them written by Mrs. McDowell, including some written or co-written with her husband and daughter. The arrangements vary between swooping string arrangements and genuine twang -- the Benson Sound label specialized in independent gospel artists -- and some tracks have a genuinely weird feel to them. This is an anthemic, super-Jesus-y, 700 Club-ish album, though what makes it interesting (and a bit kitschy) is McDowell's thick, ultra-rural voice -- this gal was country, even if her music was more old-school Contemporary Christian. Still, some nice pedal steel and chicken-pickin' on some of the tracks... so maybe it's "country" enough.

Maureen McElderry "A Fool Such As I" (Train On The Island Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dakota Dave Hull, Maureen McElderry, Peter Ostroushko & Jerry Steckling)
A passel of Minnesota folkies doing acoustic covers of country oldies... The band includes Dakota Dave Hull, Peter Ostroushko, Butch Thompson, Mike Cass on dobro, Bill Hinkley on banjo, with strong ties to the whole Twin Cities/Prairie Home Companion crowd. Good stuff!

Reba McEntire - see artist discography

Linda McFaye "...Sings At The Imperial Ballroom" (Gulf Coast Records, 19--?) (LP)
Sporting a bodacious miniskirt and go-go boots, Linda McFaye was the lead singer at Anthony "Doc" Castellana's 375-seat Imperial Ballroom, in Tampa, Florida. She's backed by the house musicians, Doc's Band, several members of which sing lead vocals on several tracks. Not all the band is identified in the liner notes, just the guys who sing -- this includes drummer Don Dee, guitar picker Jerry Smith, bassist Ken Waters, and Curly Ames, emcee. Castellana also performs on one track, a duet with McFaye called, "Cream Cheese And Jelly," one of two Castellana originals also released as a single on the Gulf Coast label, the other song being "My Baby's Gone." The rest of the record is heavy on covers, and not all of them from the country field, including versions of "Rocky Top," "Sittin' On The Dock Of A Bay," "Swanee," and "When The Saints Go Marching In." The album closes with a song credited to Curly Ames, "Good Rockin' Tonight," (which may raise a few eyebrows among fans of Roy Brown and Wynonie Harris). It's worth noting that Castellana, who went by the name "Doc" at least as far back as the 1950s, was said to be associated with the local mafia; he previously owned a bar called the Red Mill, which was managed by a guy named Jimmy Bruno, who was brought up in front of the Senate hearings investigating the Trafficante family... So, there's that. At any rate, regardless of who backed it, the Imperial Ballroom was a real, viable country music venue throughout the late 'Sixties and early 'Seventies, drawing top Nashville talent as well as hosting locals such as Bill Floyd, Linda McFaye and Buck Starr. By 1974, there had been some kind of change in ownership, with the venue being listed in Billboard as "Tammy's Imperial Ballroom." According to show notices int eh Tampa Times, McFaye seems to have been involved with the Imperial circa 1967-68, which jives with the stuff she was covering on this album. She also recorded at least one single years later, in 1977, including a song called "Was Our Love A Game" that was published under her real name, Linda F. Gatto.

The McGillicuddy Sisters "Hillbilly Hi-Jinx" (Lucky Ron Records, 2006)
Scrappy, old-school hillbilly music of the late-1940s variety, hearkening back to the glory days of folks like Webb Pierce, Kenny Roberts and -- more than anything else, the great Rose Maddox. The gals in this band (and not all the "sisters" are gals) clearly have a major Rose Maddox fixation, which is understandable since Maddox was one of the greatest hillbilly stars of the 20th Century, as well as one of the strongest female voices in country music history... Now, I gotta say upfront that this clattersome Ottawa-based ensemble are hardly top-flight talent, but they certainly have good taste in country music and their hearts are in the right place... If you like listening to way-off-the-radar recordings by bands with a super-indie, jes-plain-folks orientation, this might be a disc you'd like to check out. (For more information, check out the band's website at www.mcgillicuddysisters.com )

Patsy McGlamry-Dean "Heartaches" (McGlamry-Dean Records, 2005)

Patsy McGlamry-Dean "Patsy's Country Collection" (McGlamry-Dean Records, 2007)

Annie McGowan - see Rattlesnake Annie

Ellen McIlwaine - see artist discography

Beth McKee "I'm That Way" (Solo2 Records, 2009)

Beth McKee "Next To Nowhere" (Swampgirl Records, 2011)
(Produced by Mark Mason & Tony Battalgia)
Excellent! Exactly the sort of beautifully eclectic blues-Americana blend you'd expect from modern-day New Orleans... Singer-pianist Beth McKee hints at a rich variety of inspirations, with wisps of Bonnie Raitt, Tracy Nelson, Lou Ann Barton, Doug Sahm and Delbert McClinton, a loose, funky, sweetly soulful mix on an album packed with strong original material. If you're looking for the young blood that's reinvigorating American roots music, check out this album: this gal's the real deal!

Maria McKee - see artist discography

Barbara McKenzie & Wendell McKenzie "Meet Barbara And Wendell" (Cascade Records, 1968--?) (LP)
(Produced by Don Sneed, Sr.)
The McKenzies were a married couple who also performed in a group called The Husbands & Wives, along with Gene and Pam Brown. The liner notes tell us that when they made this album they were holding down a gig at a place called Lee & Andy's Frontier Bar in Ketchikan, Alaska, though they seem to have been from somewhere in the Pacific Northwest; this album came out on the Sneed Family's label, which was based in Spokane, Washington. The material is mostly of fairly mainstream 1960s provenance, hits like "The Bottle Let Me Down," "Break My Mind," "Gentle On My Mind" and "Paper Mansions." Though most of their material was contemporary to 1967, they also covered Leapy Lee's "Little Arrows" and Tammy Wynette's "D-I-V-O-R-C-E," which were hits in '68. Unfortunately, there's no information on the musicians who backed them here, though it seems likely that a Sneed or two were involved. A single of "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" was broken off of this album, but released under Mrs. McKenzie's name.

Madison McKenzie "A Part Of Me" (MadiMMusic, 2013)
(Produced by Bob Bullock)
It was inevitable that an artist as singular and as successful as Taylor Swift would breed a few imitators, and newcomer Madison McKenzie, a sweet-voiced gal from Illinois, is surely one of the top contenders in this new wave of country confessionalists. Like Swift, she pens songs that sound like a young girl's diary entries, full of half-spoken lyrics and ramblings about love, infatuation and mild recriminations, a distillation of teenage solipsism, buoyed by insistent pop-country arrangements. She also has a nice, naifish voice, the picture of plain-spoken sincerity and youthful self-assurance, sounding like Swift did on her first album, though perhaps with more of a conventional verse-chorus-verse feel. She's paired up with veteran producer Bob Bullock, an industry pro who's worked with stars such as Reba McEntire and Shania Twain, who provides McKenzie with a slick modern Nashville sound, not terribly original, but it fits in nicely with the times. I'm not sure if there's room in the charts for two Taylors, but this gal has a good voice and may find success as she finds her own individual voice. Still, if you're into the style, this could be worth checking out.

Sharon McKnight "Another Side Of Sharon McKnight" (Legend Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by John Kniest & Sharon McKnight)
At the time this album was made, singer Sharon McKnight was a star on the San Francisco cabaret scene, but years away from her Broadway breakthrough... Still, she was far enough into her career to make fun of herself by "going country," or as she put it, getting back to her roots ("Modesto, not brunette") and dip into a bit of twang. The songs include "Put A Nickel In The Jukebox And Bring Back Patti Page," "Tapedeck In His Tractor" (written by Ronee Blakely) "Stand By Your Man" and, interestingly enough, Mickey Gilley's "Don't The Girls All Get Prettier At Closing Time." The band includes Bay Area roots music stalwart Don McClellan on steel guitar.

Shannon McNally "Small Town Talk: The Songs Of Bobby Charles" (Sacred Sumac Records, 2013)
(Produced by Shannon McNally & Mac Rebennack)
A funky, soulful tribute to Louisiana pop legend Bobby Charles, who penned classics of the early rock'n'roll era such as "See You Later, Alligator" and "Walking To New Orleans," and went on to mine the depths of various styles of roots music. Ms. McNally skips past the rock-oldies hits and taps deep into the Bobby Charles songbook, drawing particularly on his laid-back self-titled 1972 masterpiece. She has a strong patron with the album's co-producer, New Orleans luminary Mac (Dr. John) Rebennack, who was one of Charles' contemporaries and frequent collaborator. The Dr. John touch immediately roots this album in the world of New Orleans funk and soul, and McNally's raw, bluesy vocal style, reminiscent of young Bonnie Raitt, makes for an interesting counterpoint. Charles, who passed away in 2010, was also paid tribute on Beth McKee's I'm That Way, which covers more of the rock stuff, and makes a nice compliment to this album.

Alecia McRight "For Love's Sake" (2001)
(Produced by Carl Jackson)
The solo debut (released under her married name) of bluegrass powerhouse Alecia Nugent; the songs on this album were re-released on her Rounder Records debut, Alecia Nugent. Great stuff!!

Donna Meade "Donna Meade" (DMJ Records, 1982-?) (LP)
(Produced by Sid Hudson & Ronny Light)
An early indie outing from a Top Country also-ran... Probably best known as the last wife of country star Jimmy Dean, singer Donna Meade was born in Chase City, Virginia and worked for several years as a nightclub singer in Richmond before hitting Nashville in 1981. She got a gig headlining at Buddy Killen's club, the Bullpen Lounge, and in 1988 cut a major label album with Killen as producer. Way before that happened, though, she recorded this session, which seems to have been a songwriter's demo including several songs by Lee Greenwood and an early version of K. T. Oslin's "Round The Clock Lovin'," which was a successful single for Gail Davies around the same era. The backing band was a professional Music City crew that included Greg Galbraith, Jerry Kroon and Buddy Spicher, anchored by producer Sid Hudson on lead guitar. I'd have to do a little poking around, but I think Meade also worked as a studio backup singer, possibly alongside the Arlene and Bobby Harden, who appear on this album as well. Although she eventually cracked into Nashville society, Meade definitely paid her dues and worked off-the-radar for about a decade before the Mercury album came out, and even then it was only a modest success. She landed a spot on TNN's Nashville Now show, then Meade and Jimmy Dean met around 1990, married in '91 and stayed together until his death in 2010. (Note: Prague Frank speculates that this session was recorded in 1981, though it may actually have been a little later, since Davies also demo-ed "Round The Clock Lovin'," but not until '82.)

Donna Meade "Love's Last Stand" (Mercury Records, 1988)
(Produced by Buddy Killen)

Linda Meadors "Thou Shalt Be His Witness" (Jewel Records, 1972-?) (LP)
Truly twangy country gospel by a gal from Louisville, Kentucky. Although these songs are mostly gospel standards -- "He Touched Me," "How Great Thou Art," "Where No One Stands Alone" -- Ms. Meadows endows them with real rural grit, sounding kinda like the young Wanda Jackson, with a modest piano-and-pedal steel backing that sets this disc apart from countless blandly arranged southern gospel records. Meadors had an interesting path in her show business career. She was a self-taught pianist who started performing publicly at a very young age. In her teens she started hanging around the Lincoln Jamboree, a regional "opry"-style venue in nearby Hodgenville, KY, and was offered a slot playing piano in the house band. Not long after that she was booked for an appearance on the nationally televised Stoneman Family TV show, and in 1969 she met Jerry Lee Lewis, who helped get her signed to Mercury Records. That major label fling didn't really go anywhere -- two singles came out and several other tracks stayed in the can. After flirting with secular fame, Ms. Meadows turned towards gospel, as heard on this fine album. Although she didn't like being labeled a "blind singer," Meadows graduated from the Kentucky School For The Blind, and read braille; a braille letter that she received from Helen Keller in 1958 is part of the Helen Keller archives. There were, surprisingly, several women named Linda Meadors, living in several different states, so I haven't been able nail down the other details of her biography: it seems mostly likely she was the same Linda Meadors who lived in Bowling Green, in which case she passed away in April, 2020.

Meat Purveyors "Sweet In The Pants" (Bloodshot Records, 1997)
Of all the would-be indiebillies who professed to take the punk rock DIY ethos into the alt-country realm, these scraggly Austinites are some of the best to deliver on the premise... The music is far from technically perfect, the sound mix is iffy at best, but there's plenty of pizzazz in the performances, and a nice song selection, with the band clearly opting to play music they like, rather than stuff they think sounds funny, or stereotypically "hick." This isn't the kind of album I would put on just to listen to at home, but I certainly appreciate it as a document of a lively, engaging, energetic band. Good stuff.

Meat Purveyors "More Songs About Buildings And Cows" (Bloodshot Records, 1999)
A nice set of scrappy acoustic urban indiebilly, with fast-paced, 'grassish breakdowns and, um, somewhat unconventional vocals. (Oh, alright -- she really can't sing that well... There, I've said it!! Are you happy now??) All in all, it's very coffeehouse-ish and open mic night-y, but in a very good, down-to-earth DIY way -- sort of like Freakwater, but with less of a "difficult listening" edge. Nice mix of original material and well chosen cover tunes... This is perhaps their strongest album... Definitely worth checking out.

The Meat Purveyors "All Relationships Are Doomed To Fail" (Bloodshot Records, 2002)
Hmmm, I dunno... I mean, yeah, with concerted effort I can tell that these folks have some good songwriting chops... a little too WTS-y for me, but often some clever turns of phrase. Yet the music is so clattersome and hurried, and their vocals so raggedy and uneven, that my predominant experience as a listener is one of irritation. As I've said elsewhere, the "I'm not singing in tune on purpose, because I'm so punk!" ethos doesn't translate well between the worlds of electric rock and acoustic country. I guess the raspy charm of their earlier albums didn't hold up for me through oh, so many albums.

The Meat Purveyors "Pain By Numbers" (Bloodshot Records, 2004)
These scrappy Austin alties are back, with another loose, lively and comparatively clunky set of original tunes and well-chosen covers. You really have to be on this band's wavelength to get into their albums; folks who want country musicians who "sound right" (ie. in tune and able to keep the beat) are probably better off avoiding this disc, while fans who like bands who are all plucky and punky and DIY and all that jazz will be heartened to hear that the Purvs have not "sold out" or anything... They're still as clattersome and shrill and full of piss'n'vinegar as ever, and they still sound like a slightly kinder, gentler Freakwater. They cover Fleetwood Mac and Johnny Paycheck with equal aplomb, and bend country conventions to their own devices; their winsome cover of the old Ronnie Milsap hit, "Daydreams About Night Things," is an album highlight. Personally, I can't imagine myself listening to this album more than once, although there are several songs on here that have involving, interesting lyrics. It's just the musical end of things that leave me a little underwhelmed; I like records that are pleasant to listen to, and pure 'tude doesn't do as much for me as it used to.

The Meat Purveyors "Someday Soon Things Will Be Much Worse!" (Bloodshot Records, 2006)

Penny Menze "Planes, Trains, Trucks...Lovin' & Leavin'" (Self-released, 2010)

Marty Merchant & Country Joe Navarro "Heart Beat Country #3" (Fresville Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Marty Merchant)
A nice, earnest set of country covers from Fresno, California... According to the liner notes, these two were not normally a duo -- Joe Navarro asked Ms. Merchant to contribute a song to a movie he was making, and they later decided to record an album together. That song, "Ballad Of Joaquin Murietta," kicks the record off, and then they coast into a series of song swaps, each taking lead vocals on alternating tracks. Merchant had kind of an underlying pop-vocals style, with hints of Doris Day and Patsy Cline in her phrasing and tone, while Navarro was an unabashed fan of Freddy Fender's chicano country style. Neither one was going to take Nashville by storm, but they do okay and the backing musicians -- sadly uncredited -- were pretty good, particularly the pedal steel player. The Fresville label was owned by Marty Merchant -- she released at least two other albums under that name, and lived in Fresno for many years after, before retiring to North Carolina. Joe Navarro, who had been in Fresno's late-1960s, latino garage-rock band called The Misfits, also released a couple of country singles under his own name, on the Fresno-based California Artists Corporation. He died pretty young, though, in 1988, while still in his forties.

Marty Merchant "#10 N Country" (Fresville Records, 1980) (LP)

Marty Merchant "Christmas Country Style" (Fresville Records, 1982-?) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Ruff & Randy Nicklaus)
Ho-ho-ho! I'm not exactly sure when this one came out, but since it includes the novelty number, "ET's Helping Santa," I'd say it was sometime after the summer of 1982... Ms. Merchant seems to have gone to LA to record this one, working at the Oak Records studio of producer Ray Ruff. The studio band included Al Bruno on guitar, Jerry Cole playing bass, Brad Felton playing pedal steel, John Mauceri on drums, and perhaps most intriguing, vocals by top forty back-bencher (and Ray Ruff's wife) Stephanie Winslow, whose own career was peaking at the time. Apparently this album also came with a bonus 7" single -- and, yeah, she recycled the same cover photo from her previous LP. Why not?

Tift Merritt "Bramble Rose" (Lost Highway Records, 2002)
(See also: Two Dollar Pistols)

Tift Merritt "Tambourine" (Lost Highway Records, 2004)
Following the lead of Whiskeytown's Caitlin Cary, Tift Merritt, the twangy, steel-tipped shell casing fired out of the Two Dollar Pistols, has set her country roots aside and gone for a new soul diva sound. She's much better off sticking to the hillbilly stuff. Really, you gotta have great vocal chops to really sing R&B, and while her voice works okay in an alt-country context, it was slightly torturous here. Bigwig producer dude George Drakoulias (known for his work with the Jayhawks and Black Crowes) builds a sound that's simply too big for Merritt's voice, and the gap is too painfully apparent. But, judging from what I've read elsewhere, mine may be the minority opinion, so take what I say with a grain of salt. Still... I dunno...

Tift Merritt "Home Is Loud" (RCAM, 2005)

Tift Merritt "Live From Austin, TX" (DVD) (New West Records, 2007)

Tift Merritt "Another Country" (Fantasy Records, 2008)

Tift Merritt "Buckingham Solo" (Fantasy Records, 2009)
A stripped-down live set recorded in Buckingham, England, back in November, 2008...

Tift Merritt "See You On The Moon" (Concord/Fantasy Records, 2010)
(Produced by Tucker Martine)
Nice stuff. Yes, there is some twang in there, but on pop-soul songs like the album's opener, "Mixtape," it's pretty clear that Ms. Merritt has come a long way since her early days in the twangcore scene. Here we have a denser, arguably richer artistry, more of a confessional/impressionistic pop-folk vibe in line with the "adult alternative" brand, a record which should appeal to fans of Cowboy Junkies and other rock-Americana crossovers. Along for the ride are guest musicians including Bill Frisell's frequent collaborator Eyvind Kang, pedal steel player Greg Leisz and Yim Yanes, of the band My Morning Jacket, who sings harmony on the haunting "Feel Of The World." All in all, a rich, mature work that many will find compelling.

Jo Dee Messina - see artist discography

Liz Meyer "Once A Day" (Adelphi Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Liz Meyer & Obie O'Brien)
This one's a find! Liz Meyer was part of the same Washington, DC folk/roots/country scene as Emmylou Harris and Bill & Taffy Danoff, and this album, which gathers recordings she made between 1975-77, is a testament to the vitality of that scene. It's also a pretty gritty, downright cool hard-country album, with a nice mix of covers and originals. She sings two Buck Owens songs, one by Hank Junior, and an earthy, rough-hewn rendition of Bill Anderson's "Once A Day." The most striking thing about Meyer is her tough, robust sound, both her affinity for true twang and her husky, throaty vocals, a tough-sounding voice that reminds me quite a bit of honkytonk heroine Melba Montgomery. More than half of the songs on here are Meyer's originals, including heartsong gems such as "I Don't Know How To Say Goodbye" and "Someone You Can't Love," which is perhaps the album highlight. Obviously it took Meyer a long time to get this record out, and she must have sat on these tapes for a while before assembling them into an album. The production is a little rough and so are some of the performances, but they are an excellent snapshot of the scene she was in, and among the guest musicians are Emmylou Harris herself singing backup on four of the songs, and superpicker Mike Auldridge playing dobro on two tracks, and Buddy Carlton on pedal steel. Meyer moved to Europe in the 1980s and went on to record several albums, many with a bluegrass bent, and had several of her songs recorded by artists such as Laurie Lewis, Del McCoury, and the great Emmylou herself. Meyer passed away in 2011, after a long struggle with bone cancer, but she certainly left a great musical legacy behind, starting with this album of excellent early work.

Audrey Auld Mezera "Texas" (Restless Records, 2005)

Audrey Auld Mezera & Nina Gerber "In The House: Live In '05" (Restless Records, 2006)

Audrey Auld Mezera "Lost Men And Angry Girls" (Restless Records, 2006)
Top-flight contemporary folk from this Australian-born singer-songwriter. Mezera, who's settled in Northern California, is a protege of guitarist Nina Gerber, although this diverse album finds her pleasantly free of the coffeehouse limitations of the earnest-folkie/open mic night crowd. She dips into topically oriented material (the antiwar "We Cry"), but she isn't bound to it, and wends her way through smoky blues (on Bonnie Parker's "Morphine"), soft-shuffle honkytonk country and even a nod towards the Irish pubs. Mezera's humorous side gives us two standout tracks, the alt-country homage, "Looking For Luckenbach" -- which name-drops Jerry Jeff and his outlaw compatriots -- and "Self-Help Helped Me," an affectionate, insider-ish skewering of the self-help/New Age scene with lyrics worth of Todd Snider of John Prine. The labor songs about coal miners ring a little less true, but throughout the album, Mezera's fluid, girlish voice is consistently compelling, and the musical backing is a delight. Fans of Be Good Tanyas, Jolie Holland or early Dar Williams will probably really dig this, too. Recommended!

The Middle Of It All "Working Day Woman" (19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Soren Bredsdorff)
A quintessential custom-pressing lounge band album, featuring the trio of Jimmy Owens (guitar), drummer Dennis Roe and bassist Donna Roe, with backing by a small studio crew that included piano, guitar and horns. It was the presence of trombones, trumpet and flugelhorn that made me fearful, but they are buried pretty far back in the mix, and to the extent they factor in at all, it's in service of the group trying to tap into an eclectic late-'Sixties Dusty Springfield/Bobbie Gentry vibe on the tracks where Ms. Roe sings lead. It's mostly if not all cover songs, stuff like "Ode To Billy Joe," Chokin' Kind," "Country Boy" and a particularly sluggish rendition of "You Gave Me A Mountain." None of the performances really snap or sparkle, but they all have an authentic, still-an-amateur-band feel. Not sure where these folks were from (or how they picked their goofy band name) but the sessions were recorded in Denver, Colorado for Fred Arthur Productions, a firm best known for its work writing and production radio jingles and TV ads for local and national markets.

Georgia Middleman "Endless Possibilities" (Giant Records, 2001)
Kinda pop/confessional; more Tori Amos than Kitty Wells...?

Georgia Middleman "Unchanged" (Self-Released, 2004)

Georgia Middleman "Things I Didn't Know I Knew" (Middle Sister Records, 2008)

Midnite Special & Joanie Lynn "Let's Have A Party" (Cookhouse/Midnight Special Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Dik Hedlund & Midnight Special)
Although a couple of years or more may separate these two albums, I'm pretty sure this was the same band, recording at the Minneapolis indie studio, Cookhouse. Midnite Special was a rural Minnesota band made up of Tom Ginkel (steel guitar), Joanie Lynn (guitar and vocals), Gary Mons (banjo), John Mons (bass), and Randy Moffat on drums. Much of the focus seems to have been on vocalist Joanie Lynn, with a repertoire heavy on gal-oriented country covers (including "Coal Miner's Daughter," "Jackson," "Wanda Jackson's "Let's Have A Party," and "Walking After Midnight") as well as some pop and rock ("As Tears Go By," "Surfin' Bird"). These guys were a real-deal, hard-working regional band... On the back cover they thank dozens of bars, ballrooms and lounges they played at, mostly in small towns in the southern end of the state radiating around Minneapolis, Minnesota hamlets such as Austin, Glencoe, New Ulm and Sunburg. The Mons brothers were from Hutchinson, MN, a tiny place just west of Minnetonka and they played in a series of bands, both before and after this one. Tom Ginkel also moved through a series of bands, notably the early 'Seventies rock group Clover, a regional powerhouse in the early 'Seventies, and gradually moved into country music; he was connected with John Volinkaty, a local songwriter who scored a huge country hit with the song "Satin Sheets," and played on Volinkaty's 1976 solo album. Tom Ginkel and John Mons also formed a country-rock band called Prairie Rose and were still working together in the 2010s in a group called Old Gold; John Mons and Joanie Lynn also recorded at lest one single together, as a duo -- other than that, not much info about her.

Jody Miller - see artist discography

Julie Miller - see artist discography

Mary K. Miller "Mary K. Miller" (Inergi Records, 197--?) (LP)
(Produced by Vincent D. Kickerillo, Don Costa, Ron Reynolds & Joe Robb)

Mary K. Miller "Handcuffed To A Heartache" (Inergi Records, 1978) (LP)
(Produced by Vincent D. Kickerillo, Jerry Barnes & Charlie Tallent)
Independent country music from Texas, from a gal who had recorded in the early 'Seventies as Mary Miller, and who released a long string of singles on the Houston-based Inergi label. Inergi Records was a side project of her husband, Vincent D. Kickerillo, a prosperous real estate developer and banker who bought over twenty thousand lots and built nearly as many houses over the course of several decades. Most of the Inergi releases were by Mary K. Miller with a couple of singles by other local singers, as well as a highly sought-after "solo" album by the TCB Band -- James Burton, Emory Gordy (bass and guitar), Glen D. Hardin (piano), Jerry Scheff (bass) and Ronnie Tutt on drums -- who had been Elvis Presley's backing group and later formed the core of Emmylou Harris' Hot Band. This disc seems to have been recorded in separate sessions in Nashville and Hollywood, with Tallent and Barnes as the respective engineers, and features a lot of original songs, presumably provided by aspiring Houston locals. Mrs. Kickerillo also recorded under her married name, including a 1986 pop album that featured three duets with Paul Anka. The TCB Band also cut a full album for the Inergi label, presumably at the same time as this one, though apparently it was never officially released and became a sort of collector-nerd holy grail for Elvis fans.

Pamela Miller "Throw A Little Love My Way" (Tower Records, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by Eddie Miller)
The debut album by the daughter of hillbilly star Eddie Miller, who produced this album... The liner notes say she was thirteen years old when this came out, although some tracks were recycled from earlier sessions, including "Arms Full Of Me," which came out as a single in 1965. About half the songs were written by Mr. Miller with additional tunes from Terry Fell, Glen Garrison, Billy Smith and Cindy Walker. No info, alas, on who was backing her, though it's probably a safe bet one of the musicians was her dad. Most of the tracks were also released as singles, but nothing seems to have gained much traction.

Pam Miller "My Mama's Songs" (Skylite Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Eddie Miller)
After her big debut on Tower Records, Pamela Miller kicked around Nashville for several years, releasing a handful of singles on various labels, though again, with not much action on the charts. Finally, in 1976, she shifted gears and started recording gospel music, releasing several albums over the course of the next decade or so... This was her first album for the Skylite label, again produced by her dad, though this time repertoire was all songs that were composed by her mother, Barbara Miller.

Tracy Miller "...And Those Rodeo Cowboys" (Country Showcase America, 1972-?) (LP)
(Produced by Frank Gosman & Ricci Moreno)
A youthful singer from Petersburg, Virginia, Tracy Miller was the main recording artist on producer Frank Gosman's label, Country Showcase America, cutting a string of singles that brought her to the attention of producer/arranger Ricci Mareno, who picked up her contract and assembled this album from her CSA singles and new tracks spotlighting new material he had published or co-written. Ms. Miller also landed a spot on WWVA's "Country USA Jamboree" revue, the early '70s echo of the fabled Wheeling Jamboree.

Bunnie Mills "Only A Woman" (Sagittar Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Paul Kettar)

Bunnie Mills "...Sings Country From The Heart" (Bunjak Records, 1987) (LP)
Occasionally I come across some weird background stories with the indie artists in these old albums, and I have to wrestle with whether a drug conviction or whatever really has that much to do with the artist or, more importantly, with their art. In the case of singer-songwriter Lillian ''Bunnie'' Mills, the weird story is so overpowering, I have to say, yeah, this is a big part of her life story. Apparently Ms. Mills was a relatively well-known country singer from Bossier City, Louisiana (near Shreveport) and at some point in her 50s she met a man twenty years younger than herself who she started going out with. Tragically, this guy turned out to be a particularly sadistic serial killer, nicknamed "the Gainsville Ripper," who brutally murdered at least seven people in Louisiana and Florida before being caught. Following his arrest in 1991, Mills was called upon to testify at his trial... She had nothing to do with the crimes, but had tried, along with the man's mother, to persuade him to seek help for mental health issues that became apparent in the late '80s. So, did this gruesome case have anything to do with Bunnie Mills' music? No, not really, but it is remarkable that even after her involvement in such a horrible and highly public crime, Mills was able to pick herself up and keep going with her music career. In addition to recording three albums, she also started her own label(s) -- Pot 'O' Gold and Greenback Records -- and worked as a producer of several aspiring young country singers. Still... yeesh. How creepy!

Bunnie Mills "A Simple Country Girl" (Bunjak Records, 1999)

Bunnie Mills "Foggy River" (Greenback Records, 2000)
Unfortunately this this disc doesn't include her political single, "Who Is Our President?" which was written after the 2000 elections...

Mirinda "Mirinda" (National Foundation Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Johnny Dollar, Jack Logan & Bill Vorndick)
Ten-year old Mirinda (no last name given; kind of a Cher/Prince thing, I guess...) was from upstate New York, and she must have had some fierce stage parents behind her, because prior to recording this album she had already won an award at the Colorado Country Music Convention, and earlier on had auditioned and was a finalist for a role in the Broadway production of "Annie." Her folks also took her down to Nashville, where she recorded this set with a studio crew that included A-list musicians such as Mark Casstevens, Tony Migliore and Weldon Myrick. It looks like this was some kind of song poem/demo album, with a bunch of material from mostly-unknown composers -- there's one song called "Hank The Opry Mouse" which was written by '60s singer Hugh X. Lewis, but other than that, this is strictly obscurosville.

Miss Leslie "Honky Tonk Happy Hour: Live At The Continental Club" (Zero Label, 2006)

Miss Leslie "Between The Whiskey And The Wine" (Zero Label, 2008)
(Produced by Ricky Davis & Tommy Detamore)
God bless Texas. On her third album, Miss Leslie cranks up the volume and belts out some great hardcore boozin' tunes, the kind of stuff that would make George Jones and Johnny Paycheck proud. One hard-drinkin' honkytonk tune after another comes barreling out, with Miss Leslie's throaty vocals buoyed by a robust, rootsy country backing that includes Dave Biller on guitar and Ricky Davis playing some mighty sweet pedal steel. Leslie's husky vocal style might sound odd to some listeners, although fans of Melba Montgomery and Connie Smith may recognize a kindred spirit here. (She also claims allegiance to Merle Haggard's old pal, Leona Williams, but since I'm not that familiar with her work, I can't really make the comparison myself...) Anyway, if you like independent, old-school country -- and sassy, stompy songs about booze-soaked, tear-stained sad stories -- then this is a disc well worth checking out.

Miss Leslie "Wrong Is What I Do Best" (Zero Label, 2010)

Miss Shirley "A Kitty Wells Songbook" (Arc Records, 1967-?) (LP)
Born in Matepedia, Quebec, "Miss" Shirley Timmins moved to Toronto in the late 1950s and sang in local nighclubs and bars, as well as some radio and tv gigs. This was, I think, her first album, though there's no indication of when it was made, or who the musicians were backing her.

Mr. And Mrs. Garvey "Mr. And Mrs. Garvey" (Epic Records, 1968) (LP)
(Produced by Bob Johnston)
Really more of a psychedelic/orchestral pop-folk, 'Sixties kinda thing, but worth inclusion here because of the wealth of Nashville talent backing them up... Pat and Victoria Garvey were a folkie duo who had been playing together for several years before they got their big break and signed to Epic Records in 1968. Traveling from their home base in Aspen, Colorado clear out to Nashville, they got the full treatment, booking studio time with youth-oriented producer Bob Johnston, who helmed a session with all of the a-list "cats" such as Kenny Buttrey, Charlie Daniels, Wayne Moss, Charlie McCoy, with a slew of woodwind and horn players thrown in for good measure. The harpischord figures rather prominently on this album, if that helps you triangulate. There is some overt twang, though: fabled fiddler Tommy Jackson gets some nice licks in on "Fifi O'Toole," a song later covered by the Irish Rovers. Some of their other songs caught outside attention as well: John Denver recorded "Fugacity," and "The Loving Of The Game" was covered by folkie Steve Goodman, Judy Collins and many others. The Garveys were living in Colorado at the time of this recording, though they also worked for several years in Seattle and in upstate New York. The couple broke up in the early 'Seventies, and Victoria Garvey later married another musician, Don Armstrong, recording several albums with him and moving to Tucson, where she passed away in 2014. Pat Garvey later suffered a stroke and died in 2017. (Thanks to mudcat.org for an extensive thread about the Garveys' career which included a lengthy post by Mrs. Garvey in which she outlined their career and the circumstances of this album's creation.)

Priscilla Mitchell & Roy Drusky "Love's Eternal Triangle" (Mercury Records, 1965) (LP)

Priscilla Mitchell & Roy Drusky "We Belong Together" (Mercury Records, 1965) (LP)

Priscilla Mitchell & Roy Drusky "Together Again" (Mercury Records, 1966) (LP)

Sylvia Mobley "My Needs Are You" (Belle Meade Records, 19--?) (LP)
(Produced by Scotty Moore & Al Gore)
Way back in the early 1960s, Southern singer Sylvia Mobley (1941-2017) recorded several catchy, charmingly primitive latter-day rockabilly/country-twang singles, including one that was cut for Starday, and another for bandleader Gene Williams, down in her native state of Arkansas. She worked with Williams and other hard-country bandleaders such as Jimmy Haggett, and released a handful of 45s before cutting this LP sometime in the late '70s, an album that seems to be put together from a couple of sessions around 1975. Amid covers of oldies by Buck Owens ("Under Your Spell Again") and Slim Willet ("Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes") are a half-dozen originals credited to Ms. Mobley -- a nice legacy for this little-known country gal! In the mid-1960s, Mobley was apparently a cast member of the Cotton Town Jubilee, a revue which was led by Gene Williams, and later worked as a tour bus operator for Gray Line Tours.

Sylvia Mobley "Songs For Mama" (Ray's Of Gold, 1984) (LP)
(Produced by Scotty Moore)
A nostalgic gospel set, with backing from some solid, A-list studio musicians, including D. J. Fontana on drums, Hoot Hester (fiddle), Willie Rainsford (piano), Larry Sasser (dobro) and Pete Wade on guitar. Along with a bunch of gospel standards ("Will The Circle Be Unbroken," "Life's Railway To Heaven," "If I Could Hear Mother Pray") are newer tunes and Mobley originals such as "Mama" and "Can't You Remember."

Katy Moffatt - see artist discography

Mojave Green "Our First (Cheap) Album" (Rhyolite Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Howard Dolan & Jerry McCord)

Molly & The Heymakers "Molly & The Heymakers" (Reprise Records, 1992)

Molly & The Heymakers "B-Sides From The Milkhouse" (Muskie Queen, 1993)

Molly & The Heymakers "Big Things" (Muskie Queen Records, 1995)

Molly & The Makers "Lucky Flame" (Media Records, 1998)

Ashley Monroe "Like A Rose" (Warner Nashville, 2013)
(Produced by Vince Gill)
This album's a neotrad dream: great stuff. Ms. Monroe is the most Dolly-licious gal to make it in the Nashville mainstream since Elizabeth Cook a few years back. This set is resolutely Parton-esque, and every bit as rich and rewarding as you'd hope it would be. There are plenty of twangy ballads, as well as a few novelty songs with surprising bite, such as "Weed Instead Of Roses" -- another gem is the Blake Shelton duet, "You Ain't Dolly (And You Ain't Porter)," which harkens back to the glory days when Porter and Dolly recorded one great record after another. Monroe comes from the alt-y side of the street, having collaborated with songsmith Guy Clark and was a member of the rollicking Pistol Annies trio. I sure hope her solo debut does well, because country radio sure needs a shot of real country soul, and this gal's got it. Fans of (old) Dolly Parton or (new) Joey + Rory will definitely want to check this out!

Patsy Montana - see artist discography

Melba Montgomery - see artist discography

Allison Moorer - see artist discography

Donna Morey & Ron Miller "I Got You, You Got Me" (Charter Records, 197--?) (LP)
Sadly, this '70s vanity album doesn't include any background info about either Donna Morey or Ron Miller, nor about their backup band or when and where these sessions took place. It's possible that Ms. Morey was the same Donna Morey who owned a country bar in Seattle called the Buckaroo, but I couldn't find any info to confirm this. Anyway, it's a nice record, with Miller & Morey one of the many early 'Seventies duos who dreamt of being the next Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn. Miller's a competent, efficiently masculine singer, but the more emotive Morey is the one in the spotlight. Sometimes she's a dead ringer for Lynn Anderson, sometimes she sounds a little more like Loretta or like Donna Fargo -- overall, her performances feel a bit too controlled, self-conscious perhaps, but she was pretty solid, although when she and Miller harmonized she would shift into a lower register and while they sound good, there's not as much differentiation between their voices as you might be used to in country duets. I liked this record, though: it's not earthshaking, but it's earnest and authentic. It just is what it is. Most of the songs are covers, but the title track, "I Got You, You Got Me," may have been original to this record. The song is credited to composer-producer Ricci Moreno and I suspect that he may have actually been the producer for this album, though again there are no liner notes to verify this...

Jan Morgan "That's Why I Smile" (Gateway Records, 1975) (LP)
A "solo" set by the wife of lounge singer Al Morgan, with him contributing piano and vocals on several songs...

Lorrie Morgan - see artist discography

Misty Morgan & Jack Blanchard "Life and Death (And Almost Everything Else)" (Omni Records, 2006) (CD)

The Morgans "Middle Of The Road" (Morgan Records, 1980-?) (LP)
(Produced by Dick Morgan & Mo Whittenmore)
A mystery disc from Indianapolis, Indiana. The Morgans are parenthetically identified as Dick and Betty Morgan, although the other musicians are presumably family members as well, with Dave Morgan on drums and Phil Morgan playing bass. They sing a lot of medleys of classic country and pop material, including a string of Neil Diamond hits, and a Hank Williams tribute. There are also a couple of originals, Dick Morgan's "Hey Mister Guitar Man" and "Precious Fool," which was co-written with Phil Morgan. I couldn't find a release date for this one, though it has to be some time after 1980, since they also cover Eddie Rabbitt's "Drivin' My Life Away." Other than that, your guess is as good as mine!

Lynn Morris -- see artist discography

Kathy Morrison & Bill Wilbourn "Lovers" (United Artists, 19--?) (LP)

Ann J. Morton "My Friends Call Me Annie" (Prairie Dust Records, 1976) (LP)

Ann J. Morton "My Friends Call Me Annie" (Prairie Dust Records, 1976) (LP)
Although she didn't make much headway as a chart artist, Ann J. Morton had some success as a songwriter, placing a few tunes with '70s stars, folks like Johnny Duncan, Crystal Gayle, Charly Pride and Gene Watson, as well as writing several popular hymns and an advertising jingle or two. She was married to guitarist Larry Morton, who played in Danny Davis's band, Nashville Brass, and is also the sister of singer Jim Mundy, who was also a songwriter and jingle writer. Morton also recorded this fine, commercially-leaning album using an all-star, usual-suspects Nashville studio crew -- Johnny Gimble, Dave Kirby, Weldon Myrick, Hargus Robbins, Chip Young, etc. -- with the Cates Sisters providing some fine harmony vocals, and an up-and-coming Janie Fricke singing backup... It's good stuff, if you like uptempo, mid-'70s country pop. She came within shouting distance of the Top 40, but it wasn't quite in the cards for her, I guess. At any rate, this album, and a few stray singles make a nice recorded legacy. Recommended!

Jonie Mosby - see artist discography

Joanna Mosca "Joanna Mosca" (Dolce Diva Records, 2009)

Joanna Mosca "Keep On Going" (Dolce Diva Records, 2010)

Joanna Mosca "Let It All Begin" (EP) (Dolce Diva Records, 2012)

Christina (Moseley) "What The World Needs Now Is Love" (Moseley Records, 197-?) (LP)
(Produced by Mark Moseley & Semie Moseley)
A country(politan) gospel album with nods towards contemporary hits, including covers of Burt Bacharach's "What The World Needs Now Is Love" and the Carpenters' "Top Of The World." The backing band includes Southern California session guitarist Dennis Payne, as well as Paul Dobbs on steel and Jelly Saunders playing fiddle. Christina was married to Semie Moseley, one of the album's producers and co-owner of the Moseley Studios in Bakersfield.

Ed & Doris Mucklow "Country Dreamers" (Crystal Clear Sound, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Ed Mucklow)
Independent country stuff, with most of the songs written by Doris Mucklow... This album includes pedal steel by Maurice Anderson, with Dallas, Texas indie stalwart Marc Jaco on bass...

Maria Muldaur - see artist discography

June Murphy "Proud To Be A Mother" (Jay Bee Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Harold Luick & Jim Phinney)
Picking up where Tammy Wynette left off, Milan, Missouri native June Murphy opens this album with the stridently anti-feminist title track, "Proud To Be A Mother," which cautions her fellow fillies that if they insist on being a man's equal, they're going to wind up unmarried, miserable and unfulfilled on every level imaginable. Despite the militant stay-at-home ethic expressed in that sizzler, not all the songs are so pointedly political, although she sure did have an affinity for novelty numbers. A farmer's wife and June-of-all-trades who had a pretty interesting work life, Ms. Murphy started singing professionally in 1970, beginning with a gig at the local Skyway Supper Club in Milan, and steadily expanded her regional touring to include shows in states as far afield as Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Colorado and Nebraska. She cut a few singles along the way, including the barbecue-friendly "Money Making Beefalo" and "G-Rated School Bus," which reflected her own work as a rancher and former school bus driver. At first blush, this seems like one of those almost-but-not-quite albums: the band kicks in with a slick but twangy, professional sound, while her vocals sound a little... derivative? But the album picks up steam and by the end, you may be won over. The novelty songs are decent fun, but she's particularly good on the ballads, notably on a version of Royce Clark's "I'll Take What's Left Of You" and Don King's "Unspoken Memory," along with a couple of others penned by Little Joe Terry. This album has overlapping sets of musicians and may have been made is several different sessions; I think a few of the tracks first came out as singles, which could explain some of it. The players seem to have been locals, possibly including some folks associated with the Lee Mace Ozark Opry, which helped make and market this album... Particularly notable are bass player/guitarist Jim Phinney and banjo player Bart Goldman, who also backed bluegrass-folkie Bob Everhart on an album of his made around the same time; Goldman was also co-composer of "G-Rated School Bus" and "Money Making Beefalo."

Anne Murray "Now And Forever" (Capitol Records, 1991)

Anne Murray "The Best... So Far" (Capitol Records, 1994)
This single-disc retrospective is a good alternative... In fact, probably much better for the average listener. Most of her big hit and such... But, dude, if you were actually there during the 'Seventies, this collection would send chills down your spine. It's like nails on a chalkboard for oh, so many of us. This was, literally, the reason that punk rock was created.

Diana Murrell "Diana Murrell" (Blue Hare Records)
Murrell originally recorded under her first name, "Diana," and had a handful of modest hits in the back rungs of the Top Forty, circa 1979-81... I'm not sure if any of that material ever made it onto CD (or even LP...) but like many a Nashviller before her, she recorded some stuff for an indie label later on... Not sure if she has other albums than this one...

Joyce Murry & Bud Murry "You're My Woman, I'm Your Man" (Candy Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Bud Murry)
Well, yeah, okay... This is one of those obscurodelic custom-pressing albums that is tailormade for those ever-witty, super-sarcastic internetters who enjoy mocking how people looked in the past... (Though, to be fair... man, look at that hair!!) The Murrys were a husband-wife duo from Memphis, Tennessee who appear to have written most of their own material and plugged away during the countrypolitan era, even though their sound was a little more rugged and old-fashioned compared to what folks were laying down in Nashville. In all honesty, this isn't the best country music you'll ever hear, although I did find myself charmed by this album, eventually. Mrs. Murry has a rough, sometimes problematic voice, though she's passable in a Melba Montgomery-ish kind of way and she sings lead for most of this album... Bud Murry was a flat-out bad singer, although she coaxes a few semi-okay performances out of him when they get into their duo groove. Overall, I admire their tenacity and sincerity, as well as how raw and old-school their music sounded. No info on who the backing musicians were, and though the album also doesn't include a release date, the laudatory liner notes by WMQM deejay Les Acree, mention Joyce Murry's 1968 single, "Stuck In Jackson," as having come out four years earlier. They released at least one other single under Joyce Murry's name ("If You Can't Stand The Heat"/"Only The Name Is Changed," neither of which are included on this album...) and possibly others that I haven't tracked down yet.

Kacey Musgraves "Same Trailer, Different Park" (In The Black Records, 2013)
(Produced by Kacey Musgraves, Luke Laine & Shane McAnally)
This winsome, brash Texas lassie has gotten a lot of attention for being a new Top Country bad-girl, ruffling the sensibilities of many mainstream country fans, particularly with her Top Ten single, "Merry Go Round," which is an acerbic jab at small-town life... Usually, modern-day Nashville offers a rose-colored, super-mythologized version of small-town America, where guys spend their teen years driving around the backroads in their pickups, hanging out with their buds and wooing their high-school sweethearts, but Musgraves takes a more critical, real-world approach, talking about people with sad marriages and broken dreams. It's not quite the standard formula, and some folks saw it as a direct attack on the Nashville establishment. I'm not sure I'd go that far -- maybe people are taking this stuff too seriously -- but I think it's interesting that Musgraves is being considered so mainstream and so "country" to begin with... She sounds more like a contemporary folkie to me, a topical and contemplative lyricist, roughly in the Carrie Rodriguez or Todd Snider mode, although with bigger, more ornate production. While she does turn some nice lyrical phrases, there's a precocious, high-schoolish/collegiate cleverness to her work and I have to confess that while I find the Nashville-manufactured small-town myth to be noxious, I also find her satirization of Middle America to be a little too obvious, the sort of stuff that forlorn teenagers waiting to move out of their parents' houses scribble away in notebooks or post online... I mean, Malvina Reynolds already skewered the 'burbs fifty years ago and though I still enjoy "Little Boxes" as a protest song, now that I'm all grown up I can see that the critique has its limitations; I guess I just don't like looking down on average people just for being average, especially seeing as how I am one myself. Still, Musgraves has a delightfully fresh presence, at least in the context of modern Nashville country: Music City needs some new blood and some fresh ideas, and this gal seems well poised to provide a little bit of both. Definitely worth checking out -- I'm curious to see where she goes from here.

Heather Myles - see artist discography

---

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

---