A few suggestions

by irishvol , Music City, USA, Monday, January 06, 2020, 09:40 (2306 days ago) @ Pat

Books - Non-Fiction

FWIW - These recommendations are non-fiction works that almost read like fiction. While I like the longer, dense non-fiction as well (e.g. Hamilton by Chernow), I have a hard time recommending those to folks.

- Hellhound on his Trail (Hampton Sides)
- Destiny of the Republic (Candace Millard)
- The Lost City of the Monkey God (Douglas Preston)
- The Devil in the White City (Erik Larson)

Music

A few of my favorites from 2019 (which seemed like a down year of music for me...). I know this wasn't exactly the directive of Pat's post - but seemed like a good place for a few suggestions.

- Sharon van Etten - Remind me Tomorrow
- Jenny Lewis - On the Line
- Lizzo - Cuz I Love You
- Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride
- The Highwomen
- Sturgill Simpson - Sound and Fury
- The Racontuers - Help Me Stranger

Looking back past 2019, after watching the Ken Burns Country Music series (which I thought was outstanding), I've gone back and revisited a good chunk of "old" country music. Hank Williams, Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe, Dolly, Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, etc. If you're interested, I think the official soundtrack to the series is a good place to start to get a taste of things - and then you can find the artists that you'd like.

I have also been looking back through Tom Petty's full catalog - beyond the singles - ever since he passed. He was really good at his craft.

Lastly, you can always count on me to recommend the old Memphis soul work. Booker T & The MGs, Sam and Dave, Al Green, and Otis Redding are all pretty accessible classics. If you want to dig a bit deeper, check out the Bar-Kays, the Mar-Keys, Rufus & Carla Thomas, William Bell, Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett and Albert King.