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Top 10 Obscure Female Country Albums
My parent's South Jersey basement in 1976, my Dad's love of music, and watching a very bouncy Dolly Parton on that old RCA turn-dial television sparked my interest in all things twang. My vinyl collection has since grown to more than 1,200 albums. These are my top 10 female country singers of note.
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1. Dolly Parton All I Can Do (RCA, 1976) and New Harvest - First Gathering (RCA, 1977)
Dolly Parton's an icon now, but both of these albums characterize her earliest, most authentic work. In 1976, Parton had already won many Country Music Awards for duets with Porter Wagoner. (She won "Female Vocalist of the Year" in 1975). Both of these albums were recorded before her mega-crossover hit "Here You Come Again" (1977) and her role as Doralee in 9 to 5 (1980). All I Can Do, the final album produced with Porter Wagoner, reveals a pre-Hollywood Dolly. And New Harvest - First Gathering, although it did not sell well, is the first album Parton produced on her own.
Notable tracks: All I Can Do: Dolly's precise Appalachian timbre brings jaunty commentary on falling in love with "All I Can Do" and "The Fire that Keeps You Warm." All tracks were written by Dolly, except a heart-wrenching cover of Emmy Lou Harris' "Boulder to Birmingham" and an uplifting take on Merle Haggard's "Life's Like Poetry." On New Harvest - First Gathering "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" is an anthem about her newly found artistic freedom, as "Holdin' On to You" and "Getting in My Way" speak to the challenges of moving onto a new chapter in life.
2. Sammi Smith Help Me Make it Through the Night (Mega Records, 1971)
As Kris Kristofferson's muse and Waylon Jennings' band mate, Oklahoma-born Sammi Smith paved the way for the outlaw era of female country singers by topping the charts with the title track. Smith's covers of "But You Know I Love You" and "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down" are delivered with her characteristically smoky, on-the-road-again perfection.
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3. Bobbie Gentry The Delta Sweetie (Capitol, 1968)
Following up her debut album Ode to Billy Joe, raven-haired Bobbie Gentry penned most of the songs on Sweetie to reflect her Chickasaw County, MS roots, including "Okolona River Bottom Band" and "Reunion." Listeners get a great taste of Gentry's gravel and grit pipes on "Morning Glory." In the 70's, Gentry had success doing duets with Glen Campbell and went on to write and produce most of her recordings, most notably "Fancy," about a self-affirming prostitute (the song was later covered by Reba McEntire in '91).
4. Melba Montgomery The Mood I'm In (United Artists Records, 1967)
Montgomery penned many of her own songs on this album, most notably the western swing song "Big, Big Heartache." Montgomery, nicknamed the "female George Jones," was also a successful, though lesser-known duet partner of the famous crooner.
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5. Billie Jo Spears Mr. Walker, It's All Over (Capitol, 1969)
Billie Jo Spears had a top-10 country hit with this title track describing a Manhattan secretary who is weary of pawing office and city life and decides to return to her hometown. The pioneering working girl's country song could very well be added to the soundtrack of TV's Mad Men as the secretary pool's anthem.
6. Diana Trask Diana's Country (Dot Records, 1971)
In the early ‘60's, Australian country music singer Diana Trask was already a pioneer in Nashville, blazing the trail almost a decade prior to megastars Olivia Newton-John and Helen Reddy. On Diana's Country, Trask co-authored "Hope I Don't Feel Dirty in the Morning" and "Let's Keep Her Free (America)." Her most notable song, however, features a Bobbie Gentry-like growl on "Mama Said, Yeah."
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7. Charly McClain Encore (Epic, 1981)
This little-known album features Charly McClain's number-one country hit "Who's Cheatin' Who?" which says, "Makes you wonder who's doing right, by someone tonight, and who's car is parked next door." She had the looks (and lyrics) of an early Shania Twain and the timbre of Allison Krauss mixed with Reba McEntire.
8. Rose Maddox Reckless Love and Bold Adventure (Takoma Records, 1977)
In 1936, Rose Maddox ("Queen of the Honky Tonk") began touring with The Maddox Brothers at age 11, singing on the radio and on the country music circuit. On Reckless, Alabama-born Maddox belts out her namesake tune, "Heart of a Country Song (Rose's Song)," and provides a honky-tonk rendition of Dolly Parton's "Tennessee Mountain Home."
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9. The Carter Family The Best of The Carter Family (Columbia)
This quintessential family of country music has spawned countless country anthems that have since been covered by more contemporary musicians. This album, however, features Mother Maybelle Carter and her daughters Helen, June and Anita at their best. June's "Ring of Fire," Helen's "Poor Old Heartsick Me," and Johnny Cash's "Big River" makes this a collector's must-have.
10. Aunt Molly Jackson Library of Congress Recordings (Rounder Records, 1971)
Allan Lomax's collection of Aunt Molly Jackson's Kentucky coal miner protest and union songs were recorded a capella in 1935 and 1939. A politically active figure, Jackson set the tradition of storytelling that has long characterized 20th century country music (and influenced most of the other albums on this list).
Listening to Bobby Gentry's "Ode to Billie Joe" as a kid is a memory I always enjoy revisiting. Great story-telling songs here.
Lovely list! Thanks for the info. So cute how most first names end with vowel-awww.
Wow - what a great lineup and who doesn't LOVE Charly McClain? Kudos!
A very good list for sure, although I miss Merry Christmas from Harmony Ranch on that list. I have a good collection of christmas country albums. Hope you will enjoy it as much as I do
Great list, but why stop with ten? List as many as you can and then make your top ten list from that group. I think you would get a much better response from the viewers. If you want suggestions of who to include, just ask. I'm sure you will get many. Eldon
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