POLL of Many Colors - ILM Artists Poll #117 - Women of Country Music

That aside, her "The Midnight Oil" is one of my singles of the high Billy Sherrill/Columbia era. xp to me

*favorite singles

From that same Sherrill/Columbia axis, I'd also add Tanya Tucker's "Delta Dawn" and "What's Your Mama's Name" to things people should be voting for. Child prodigies don't come more prodigious.

Over the years, Wilma Burgess has become known as "the lesbian Patsy Cline," which is all well and good. It was one of the worst kept secrets in the late 1960s. But it's a brief career I find thoroughly fascinating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILack5otVfQ

FYI, I’m not adding tracks to the playlist unless they’re clearly marked as a choice for Tracks — e.g. the Wilma Burgess track posted seems to be in support of Wilma as an Artist

If I miss anything, please let me know either in the thread or through ilxmail and I’ll add it. I’ll probably be able to update the list once or MAYBE twice a day.

First time voting in one of these: Do we get some kind of confirmation email after we've submitted, or can we go back and look at our ballot?

xp that's ok, the Wilma Burgess tracks on Spotify are shitty re-recordings. Nothing of her originals exists there.

Kitty Wells forever

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKleTa94dC8

also Mother Maybelle & Sara Carter mean a lot to me, not sure what to pick but Wildwood Flower from the 1928 Carter Family is deeply unfuckwithable

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyw6G7TPLYo

Ola Belle Reed better get some...

If y'all want "trad" country, Lee Ann Womack's last four albums will satisfy the itch.

This will be a fun poll.

I will vote for Freakwater - Springtime as one of my album selections.

This track, Louisville Lip, about Mohammed Ali, will give a good taste of their sound

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UHt4U949YE

Yes, Freakwater!
I'm gonna incl. a couple of duet sets on Albums:
Emmylou's voice lifts Grievous Angel from what could have been GP's first-rate solo alb to his and her masterpiece.
Mary McCaslin is the seasoned shotcaller (Parsons figure, in that respect) on The Bramble and The Rose, her collaboration with relative studio noob Jim Ringer, who knows to trust her like Parsons did Harris, and vice-versa.
(I'm only listing one album per artist, but Way Out West is a good place to start with McCaslin's solo joints [she only did this one duo, far as I know].)

Otm re Grievous Angel

Speaking of werewolves of, I was somehow thinking there's a Zevon on The Bramble and The Rose, but no---could've been; she was always known for somehow folding songs from all over into her unassuming country folk 'n' westernverse---"You Keep Me Hanging On," "My World Is Empty Without You, Babe," "Pinball Wizard"---here they go bopping along in "Geronimo's Cadillac," hand-in-hand through "Copperfields," riding up through the night on "Strawberry Roan," to "O Death, ", o shit, the first time I ever heard it, on the resissue out several years before O Brother Where Art Though?.
And yeah she leads the way, seems like, vi though since the song selection is even better than usual overall, maybe he helped.

McCaslin's "Way Out West" is a stone cold classic.
I personally think GP is the better of the Parsons solo records, but I'm not going to argue about it.

For me, the original Carter Family are one of the greatest bands of all time. Maybelle, Sara, and AP. I collect their 78s; I have about 50 of them but they issued well over 100. Mostly for Victor (including Bluebird & Montgomery Ward) but also Conqueror, Okeh, Decca and various dime-store labels.
"Single Girl, Married Girl"
"I Ain't Going To Work Tomorrow"
"Black Jack David"
"The Storms Upon The Ocean"
"On The Rock Where Moses Stood"
"No Depression In Heaven"
"50 Miles of Elbow Room"
"When The Worlds On Fire"
"Wildwood Flower"
"Jealous Hearted Me"
"I'm Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes"
"Cannonball Blues" (w/ a rare AP vocal)

But I will leave you with this one, underrated IMO, from 1932. this is one of those songs that is restorative to me when I am feeling down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzvAfrgxsUg

patty loveless is a personal favorite

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dROYMpoXls

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fXV5hMhQ20

a very nice song, also recorded by Nanci Griffith on Other Voices, Other Rooms

Oh man, I love that Kate Wolf song. My wife and aunt actually sang it together at our wedding reception.

I could lobby for a bunch of Tanya Tucker tracks, but this has to be the gothiest country #1 ever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFLdZ2JQ-bE

xpost - i'm a big fan of Nanci's version of "Dallas" by the Flatlanders.

also i love and adore kate wolf. writer of one of the saddest songs of all time - "you're not standing like you used to."

And she sings a remarkable version of this Paul Siebel song -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUF-ZIR7i9A

A couple of early '60s classics here: Skeeter Davis, "The End of the World," and Patsy Cline, "She's Got You."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHa6a3FtPJg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owNATIdymvs

Shoutout to another couple of pioneers - Eva Davis & Samantha Bumgarner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMiF8QfmZqo

and this one... goodness me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzZIXHRNVKs

In case nobody has mentioned it... Harper Valley PTA.

Hell yeah. Have you listened to the Cocaine & Rhinestones episode about that?

Spreadsheet has been updated with what was mentioned today. Let me know if I've missed anything.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wZG8IgHCDheS-83yJpnIQC0pu-cdciuZ9suKwPs0Q4E/edit#gid=0

When we submit the first page, with ilxor name etc, do we then get the ballot pages? All I'm seeing is the first page, not having hit Submit yet (please don't tell me it's because I'm stuck with Windows 7!)

― dow, Sunday, February 26, 2023 1:35 PM (six hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

Hm, it should show one large form with 8 questions, not just the 1st username Q. Can someone else verify that the other questions are showing up?

First time voting in one of these: Do we get some kind of confirmation email after we've submitted, or can we go back and look at our ballot?

― jon_oh, Sunday, February 26, 2023 4:23 PM (four hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

I don't believe you get a confirmation email but I'm happy to verify that I've received and/or share your ballots with you. I got your ballot and can email it to your email address if you like.

Also want to give shoutouts and seconds to the folks who mentioned Hem, Kathleen Edwards, and Lee Ann Womack today. I'd recommend Rabbit Songs, Asking for Flowers, and The Way I'm Livin' from each. I voted for the latter in the 2010's decade poll.

I think this is one of the most powerful country songs of the last decade:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jo6jTj1GEGI

re: the Linda Ronstandt discussion upthread, Trio will absolutely be on my ballot, and I may find room for her take on "Willin"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzI6jDqi7OY

Since Alison Krauss hasn't been mentioned, I'll throw out New Favorite (album) and her work on Oh Brother Where Art Thou as must-hears, too.

I went on a tear a few years seeing how many Dottie West albums I could find (there are approximately 873 of them), but this standout from the latter end of her career is fully a JAM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1IDSHa0UUo

Dottie West - A Lesson In Leavin'

There are a probably a handful of others I'll throw into consideration, but I'll need to revisit them to figure out which ones

xpost

Ronstadt's "Willin'" is definitive to me, it's the one I grew up on.

And definitely second Krauss, though for me the Now That I've Found You compilation is hard to beat. I think it stands as an independent album because some of it was unreleased and a bunch of songs were from scattered projects not widely available. And it includes this song, which I will probably vote for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SCOimBo5tg

(speaking of definitive covers)

Some greats:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxN2oEo1_7I

Pam Tillis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miIqI9Gql9M

Roseanne Cash

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ElCpHuiWkA

Kathy Mattea

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPG1n1B0Ydw

Jennifer Nettles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV956MtRFpM

Lee Ann Womack’s been mentioned but this song is a fucking killer

Yeah Krauss rescued bluegrass for me. I am decently steeped in the music (I live in Virginia and play the mandolin, after all) but I have never had any affection for the "high lonesome" male vocal sound.

To this day, pretty much the only bluegrass-esque voice I want to hear is hers. I mean

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcRZ_J_VgNc

Don't believe anyone has mentioned Lone Justice. This Tom Petty penned track was my introduction to the band and remains my favorite. Will consider it for my tracks list:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atyxS9ty8NA

Tipsy I am no longer able to embrace "I Hope You Dance," or "Seven Year Ache" (both songs got overexposed for me) but Martina McBride's "Independence Day" gets me still.

I'll definitely vote for Lone Justice - their best stuff was probably the live and demo recordings they made BEFORE their first album.

re: k.d. lang, my favorite's always been this one - will probably vote for the album too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaxV7o__ewA

I always loved this song from their debut:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mn7bLEigTEw

I feel like some Mekons songs qualify here, but not all

crtl-f Patsy Cline Crazy not found, we can all agree on that yeah?

and check out this amazing compilation tracklist, I could basically vote for these plus Linda Ronstadt

https://www.discogs.com/release/12393307-Various-A-Womans-Side-Of-Love-Vol-1-

damn, this thread's made it through almost an entire day without a mention of ashley monroe. this can not be allowed, ilm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyFD-YevcEM

I feel like some Mekons songs qualify here, but not all

Sally Timms' solo albums do, of course.

Also Carla Bozulich/Geraldine Fibbers, even though I haven't heard much of her solo stuff beyond her cover of the Red Headed Stranger album.

Going to kill me to narrow things down and pick one track or album from the legends:

Loretta Lynn - "Fist City," "You Ain't Woman Enough" or "Coal Miner's Daughter"?
Patsy Cline - "Walkin After Midnight," "Crazy," or my personal favorite, her cover of "Lovesick Blues"
Emmylou Harris - I am partial to Roses in the Snow and Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town, but there are at least three others worth consideration
Dolly Parton - "Jolene," "Coat of Many Colors," "9 to 5," or maybe even "Muleskinner Blues"

Will probably end up voting for a couple of Miranda Lambert albums and Hell on Heels, too. Am still partial to Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Platinum, though I know a lot of the board's gotten behind The Weight of These Wings.

Spreadsheet updated with a whole bunch of names I pulled from some of the links shared in this thread. Hopefully this is helpful as a pseudo Nominations list, but please keep the recommendations coming, and I will try to update accordingly.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wZG8IgHCDheS-83yJpnIQC0pu-cdciuZ9suKwPs0Q4E/edit?usp=sharing

Don't think Rose Maddox has been mentioned yet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zu7a3VKQeY

It was technically a bigger pop hit (#1) than country hit (#17), but I still think "Ode to Billie Joe" belongs in the mix.

Bit of a country dilletante, but adore this. Hopefully the brief snatch of George Jones doesn’t rule it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?HLdzZ7ovC8A

Hopefully this works.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLdzZ7ovC8A

Thanks for voting, Frank!

I am done with the Artists tabulation but won't get to Tracks and Albums until tomorrow, so if anyone wants to submit a late ballot for either/both of those, go for it.

And I got your 30th track, Alfred.

Two questions for those who voted:
1. Any preference on order of the roll out? I was thinking Albums / Tracks / Artists.
2. Should I start a new thread, as I believe is custom, for results, or do we want to keep everything in here? Nice to have one thread to come back to in the future, but there's also a ton of youtubes in here that I know are making it awfully slow on my end.

I am somehow unaware of the passage of time, and so did not get round to submitting a ballot, and so of course my opinion counts for nuffin, but I’d be inclined toward Artists/Albums/tracks, as the granularity increases that way & so more surprises/suspense to the end.

1. No preference.
2. No preference. Whatever makes the most sense to you. My CPU is 11 years old so loading can be a problem with all the YT embeds, but they don't embed when I'm logged out so I stay logged out when I read; only log in to post.

Proofreading my text: "want an Avril Lavigne or an Amy Lee to drive it threw the wall" - Avril and Amy must be really strong to throw an entire wall. Anyway, "through."

Whoops, I ran out of time and wasn't able to vote on this, but I'll watch the results with great interest (the results will undoubtedly be better without my ballot anyways, which would have been no more than 1/4 or 1/8-assed instead of the half-assed ballot I promised above)

Anyone who wants to submit an Albums or Tracks ballot before noon CST today (~4 hours), even partial and/or unweighted, is welcome to do so.