Music aficionados sometimes debate whether a band is rock, country, blues, or whatnot. To say the lines between genres were blurred a long time ago would be something of an understatement. Truckers typically need to be more practical about playlists than music critics. These are Country-influenced bands that fly under the radar worth considering as trucker log hours-of-service miles.
1: Turnpike Troubadours
You gotta respect musicians who remain true to their roots. The Turnpike Troubadours don’t pretend to be from some big city. They proudly list their origin as Broken Bow, Oklahoma, and give their hometown a shout-out in “Good Lord Lorrie,” a satire about a fella who outkicks his coverage by winning the love of a dark-haired beauty from Southwest Arkansas. The song is on their 2012 album, Goodbye Normal Street, featuring popular break-up songs such as “Wrecked,” and “Gin, Smoke, and Lies.” But OTR truckers may enjoy the upbeat work-song “Long Hot Summer Day” from the 2010 release Diamonds & Gasoline. The D&G title track, “1968,” and “Every Girl,” also bring a lot to the table.
2: Goodnight, Texas
People tend to see Goodnight, Texas as a folk-rock or Americana band, and it’s hard to disagree with those monikers. The members reportedly took the band’s name because the town of Goodnight, in Texas, was the center point of where Avi Vinocur and Patrick Dyer Wolf are from — opposites side of the country, essentially. The band’s claim to fame comes from its edgy “The Railroad,” which opens Episode 1 of the Netflix series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness. It makes you want to ride the rails, and truckers may dig it.
3: Jamey Johnson
Johnson shouldn’t qualify as a guy flying under the radar with a slew of music awards and Grammy nominations to his credit. But fans haven’t enjoyed any high-profile recording in about a decade, and those hit songs get rare spins on the radio. If you’re a newly-minted CDL professional, you might be too young to recall “Give It Away,” which won Song of the Year or Grammy-nominated “In Color” in 2007. Johnson has a real knack for mournful nostalgia worth a spot in any playlist.
4: Whiskey Myers
Perhaps one of the most underrated Country-rock outfits on the American music landscape, this homegrown Palestine, Texas, group keeps their lyrics firmly planted in Lone Star soil. Ranging from melancholy narratives about a life lost through drug addiction in “Broken Window Serenade” and a nod to a fallen soldier in “Bury My Bones,” Whiskey Myers maintains their identity through moving storytelling such as “Ballad of a Southern Man.” Their albums have steadily gained attention, climbing from anonymity in 2008’s Road of Life to Firewater reaching 26 on the Country Music Charts. The self-titled 2019 release hit number 1 on Country and Indie music lists while climbing into number 2 on U.S. Rock lists. The now-hit song “Stone” was featured on the Yellowstone series. Truckers may also enjoy the harmonies of “Nobody Knows Her Name.”
Sources: turnpiketroubadours.com, hiwearegoodnighttexashowareyou.com, jameyjohnson.com, whiskeymyers.com
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