There’s been a recent resurgence of old Country Western melodies as of late in Indie Rock bands. It’s hard to tell why this is happening– perhaps it’s a desire for something innately human in the early age of Artificial Intelligence, or a reaction to the COVID pandemic that led us to put a greater importance on melancholic storytelling– but with that backdrop I took some time to explore the roots of Western music over the past few weeks, starting that journey with Gunfighter Ballads & Trail Songs. It’s an album whose historical importance is undisputed as it’s inclusion in the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress will attest to. The album is best known for two impeccable singles “Big Iron” and “El Paso”, iconic cuts which defined the Western genre, but don’t sleep on the rest of the album. Marty Robbins’ crystal clean vocal performance is the perfect guide on a trip to the southern border where heartbreak and hard times are as commonplace as the harshness of the unforgiving sun. If you close your eyes in the middle of “El Paso” you can see the tumbleweeds rolling by.
Standout Songs: “Big Iron”, “El Paso”, “They’re Hanging Me Tonight”, “The Master’s Call”
