$10 Cowboy

Charley Crockett is a rare talent. His voice is one of country music’s finest, a rich baritone with a natural ache and emotion-wringing agility. That he pairs such a voice with an equally powerful flair for storytelling lands him among the ranks of the genre’s new saviours, like Tyler Childers or Sturgill Simpson, but with a style and sound all his own. That sound owes a lot to Crockett’s home state of Texas, which often serves as a character in his narrative-driven songs. On <i>$10 Cowboy</i>, Crockett found inspiration on the road, writing much of the album while touring in support of its predecessor, 2022’s concept record <i>The Man From Waco</i>. That journeyman’s perspective brings us stories of hitting rock bottom (“Gettin’ Tired Again”), chasing Lady Luck (“Ain’t Done Losing Yet”) and hanging on to love while “empire…rule[s] the world” (“Diamond in the Rough”). A can’t-miss tune on the record is “America”, a plain-spoken, heart-wrenching lament of a fearsome, unforgiving country. Crockett cut <i>$10 Cowboy</i> live to tape at Austin’s Arlyn Studios with his long-time band and a string of ringers, with Billy Horton co-producing.