10 Best Country, Americana Songs of the Week: Kacey Musgraves, Greensky Bluegrass

A new song from Greensky Bluegrass, the title track of Kacey Musgraves’ CMA award-winning Golden Hour and a dancehall-ready entry from Mike and the Moonpies make up the songs you must hear this week.

Greensky Bluegrass, “All for Money”
The title track from Greensky Bluegrass’ upcoming seventh album, All for Money, kicks up some string-band dust for two spirited minutes, then dissolves into woozy, wobbly psychedelia. Co-produced by Jack White’s longtime bassist, this is the sound of a band firmly embracing its own weirdness.

Mike and the Moonpies, “Can’t Run Out on Me”
Longtime kings of the Texas dancehall circuit, Mike and the Moonpies go to the movies with “Can’t Run Out on Me,” a shuffling song written for — and inspired by — the indie film Texas Cotton. Released today, the movie’s soundtrack features an ensemble cast of Americana acts, including Charley Crockett and Colter Wall.

Mercury Rev (Featuring Margo Price), “Sermon”
Two years ago, Margo Price channeled the lush string arrangements of Bobbie Gentry’s “Ode to Billie Joe” on her own small-town chronicle “Hands of Time.” Here, she joins Mercury Rev as they cover Gentry’s “Sermon,” delivering the gospel track with a sinner’s swagger and a believer’s holy-rolling fury.

Micah Woods, “Chasing Boy”
“Oh, I’m done chasing boys who don’t want me,” Micah Woods promises, making an early New Years resolution to prioritize his own self-worth. In the background, a pedal steel guitar sweeps its way through an otherwise Eighties-pop-influenced arrangement. Culture clash never sounded so empowering.

Emma White, “Ten Year Town”
“Pay your dues, wait your turn, no guarantees is all I’ve learned,” Emma White sings, rattling off a list of hard lessons gleaned from her time spent in Nashville. Performed live in the city’s own Listening Room Cafe, this acoustic ballad hits home, pulling at the heartstrings of anyone who’s moved to middle Tennessee with songs in their head and stars in their eyes.

Erin Costelo, “All in Your Head”
Inspired by a creepy, alien-like green light that hovered outside of Costelo’s window one evening, “All in Your Head” rolls cinematic blasts of brass and a killer, keyboard-propelled groove into a funk-soul freakout.

Wild Rivers, “I Won’t Be Back”
A folk-pop kiss-off to a no-good lover, “I Won’t Be Back” builds its way toward a climactic, celebratory chorus, sounding like the soundtrack for a party thrown in honor of the band’s reclaimed single status.

Trapper Schoepp, “On Wisconsin”
Like Old Crow Medicine Show’s immortal “Wagon Wheel,” this folksong builds upon a set of lyrics written decades ago by Bob Dylan. Trapper Schoepp adds a waltzing tempo and a winsome, nostalgic melody to the mix, resulting in an official collaboration with Dylan himself. Produced by Wilco’s Pat Sansone, “On, Wisconsin” rounds out Schoepp’s Primetime Illusion, which arrives next January.

Kacey Musgraves, “Golden Hour”
The title track of 2018’s CMA Album of the Year is as serenely cinematic as its name suggests. “I know, I know everything’s gonna be alright,” Musgraves sings to her husband, Ruston Kelly, while major-7 chords, gauzy keyboards and pools of reverb mimic the haze of twilight.

Hayes Carll, “None’Ya”
Hayes Carl is back after a two-year break, singing the praises of his eccentric fiancée — fellow songwriter Allison Moorer — with “None’Ya.” Come for Hayes’ half-slurred, half-swung delivery; stay for the part where he roasts Moorer for painting their front porch turquoise.