Seriously People, You Should Be Paying More Attention to Marty Stuart
There is a great injustice going on in country music right now, and I am mad as hell about it.
I’m not talking about the gross objectification of women in today’s country songs and the systemic exclusion of female artists from radio. I’m not talking about the continued undeserving of traditional country music through the mainstream industry or the under-appreciation of quality songwriting. Though all these issues and many more chap me like you won’t believe and have been pontificated upon at length for years, this is an issue that is way more specific.
We love to speak long and loudly about the virtues of younger, upsurging artists such as Sturgill Simpson, Chris Stapleton, Jason Isbell, Cody Jinks, Margo Price, and others, and how they’re turning the country industry upside down with their successes. Saving Country Music does this more than anybody. But what does Marty Stuart have to do to get some of the incredibly deserved attention that his new album, and frankly, his last seven or eight years of stellar output deserve?
Why is Marty Stuart’s efforts going systematically overlooked? Is it just because he’s an artist in his late 50’s, so folks think he must not have much left in the tank? Is it because everybody thinks he’s a known quantity, and is incapable of setting the creative pace in country? Whatever it is, it’s wrong-minded and a travesty, and bordering on an embarrassment at the lack of attention he is receiving by everyone involved.
Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives latest record Way Out West is nothing short of astounding in the way it re-imagines the Bakersfield Sound and the country rock insurgence of the 60’s. Now I know that’s an opinion, but if Sturgill Simpson or Jason Isbell had released this record, we’d all be falling all over ourselves right now. Granted, that’s exactly what Marty Stuart’s hardcore fans are doing at the moment, with Way Out West on the tip of their tongues for being in contention for one of the greatest albums in a good while. How is it resonating beyond Stuart’s rabid fan base though? Way Out West came in at #44 in the Billboard Country Albums charts in its debut week. Sales for this thing are deplorable. And this is in the era when independent and traditional country artists young and old are regularly weaseling their way into the Top 10, or even into #1 slot on at albums chart.
This really is a travesty. This isn’t about showing respect to a country music legend, though Stuart definitely deserves that distinction. This is about recognizing the efforts of one of the most creatively dynamic and forward-thinking country music artists of our time, right here, right now, who also happens to be a country legend, who played with Lester Flatt and Johnny Cash, is a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and is at the forefront of preserving country’s history.
I’m not asking you to support this guy out of guilt. If you’re not exposing yourself to Marty Stuart’s creative output at the moment, you’re flat missing out on some of the best musical enjoyment the greater country music realm has to offer. And I don’t care if you’re a traditional country fan, and Americana alumnus, a classic rock guy or gal, Way Out West has something for everyone. I already reviewed the damn thing and said about all I could about it. But apparently the country music public needs the hard sell. And meanwhile it’s not just the mainstream that needs to look long in the mirror and confront its ageism. So do a lot of these independent fans.
I’ll get off my high horse now, but do yourself a favor and find a copy of Way Out West or pull it up on Spotify, and find out what you’re missing. Go back and listen to some of his more recent albums like Ghost Train: The Studio ‘B’ Sessions or Tear The Woodpile Down. Then tell a friend. This is not fuddy duddy country music, this is guitar-driven, creatively-dynamic, forward-thinking country music that can bridge generational gaps and have a lasting effect on the human spirit.
Seriously folks, don’t screw this up.
Jeremy
March 22, 2017 @ 10:34 am
I have to agree. Just saw Marty, Connie, and the Fabulous Superlatives last Friday. It was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. He even had Kenny Lovelace there to do a couple of songs with the band. Marty might be the walking definition of country music right now.
Ivan Fleming
March 22, 2017 @ 8:25 pm
Marty Stuart has single-handedly kept traditional country music alive when everybody else has given to the labels trying to change it into pop music. The only thing close to Country right now is Chris Stapleton as far as a new artist period but I have to agree Marty Stuart has the longevity of more than 30 artist. His show by far is better than anything you will see in the last 10 years. people don’t realize the history this man has put into country music. There are three artists that I buy CDs today from that is George Strait Garth Brooks and Marty Stuart. People if you say you like country music prove it by listening to Marty Stuart it will only take 2 minutes or less of your time and you will be hooked the man can play any instrument he’s one of the finest guitar Pickers in Nashville the smoothest Soulful voice of country music and is the coolest cat walking on the face of the Earth period you will not find a tighter band then the superlatives! With all due respect to anybody who is on a label and think they have made it in country music, it’s just a matter of time the cookie cutters will not even be heard of. Put your money into something that lasts. Put your money in the Marty Stuart. no I’m not a paid spokesperson but I’m a real country music fan
Thank you Mr. Stuart for the best music out there.
Sincerely,
Ivan Fleming
Smyrna, Tn.
Glenn
March 26, 2018 @ 8:42 am
Why did you put Garth Brooks in the list? You like circus acts too?(swinging from a rope)
John Brazwell
March 23, 2017 @ 8:35 pm
Just saw him tonight at Southgate house in Newport my get show can’t wait to see him again
rueter
March 24, 2017 @ 1:07 am
I would agree he is the best. But unfiortunately not the most popular. DUh!!
DOesn’t work like that in any genre and necer has. get real pay attention to history.
Tom
March 22, 2017 @ 10:45 am
I think it’s because, with a 30+ year track record to go by, this is what we’ve come to expect of Marty Stuart. The younger artists are getting the attention because, unfortunately, we’ve come to not expect great things of newcomers with mainstream appeal.
Someguy
March 22, 2017 @ 10:46 am
Well i guess ill go give it a look then
Casey K.
March 22, 2017 @ 10:49 am
Best damn album out there right now hands down. Maybe one of his best albums ever. Can’t wait to see him this Saturday at the Ryman.
Honky
March 22, 2017 @ 10:51 am
“but if Sturgill Simpson or Jason Isbell had released this record, we’d all be falling all over ourselves right now.”
I wouldn’t. I’d be thinking, “Oh great, more overrated crap, by the crappy Sturgill Simpson.” And, “Why is Isbell abandoning his style?”
It is ashame that Marty hasn’t gotten more attention. My personal opinion is that it’s probably because he’s always seemed a bit eccentric, even when the music is good.
This latest album is the perfect example. Why couldn’t he have done a standard Bakersfield tribute like Vince Gill and Paul Frankin did? Nooo, he had to put the eccentric Marty Stuart twist on it by mixing Bakersfield with Surf-Rock and Psychedelia.
Trigger
March 22, 2017 @ 11:23 am
“Why couldn’t he have done a standard Bakersfield tribute like Vince Gill and Paul Frankin did?”
Maybe because Vince Gill and Paul Franklin already did it. I like the fact that Marty mixed it up. The music has a vitality to it that some throwback records lack. Though I understand that’s not what some traditional country fans are looking for.
shastacatfish
March 22, 2017 @ 12:22 pm
Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen did it first in ’96 when they were fresh off working together in the Desert Rose Band. Bakersfield Bound is a pretty darn good album, better than the Vince Gill effort, in my opinion. Incidentally, Hillman and Pedersen followed up their Bakersfield collaboration with an album called Way Out West, which is also pretty good.
Speaking of Chris Hillman, am I wrong to detect echoes of the album cover for Gilded Palace of Sin in the Stuart’s Way Out West Cover? It even looks like someone is wearing Hillman’s Nudie Suit (or one similar). The Burritos can certainly be heard in some of the songs…
Hillbilly Jack
March 24, 2017 @ 5:27 am
As someone that has his own band as a direct result of being inspired by the music and example set by Mr Stuart you could say I’m something of a fan of pretty much everything he does. I have to admit however that when the title track was released on YouTube (and probably elsewhere) prior to the album coming out that I was a little sceptical. It is definitely a break from the ‘norm’ in terms of traditional country music and was completely not what I was expecting, I didn’t think I liked it. BUT when you hear it in the context of the whole album it absolutely works (for me at least) 100% and reminds me in some ways of a couple of tracks on my all-time favourite album ‘The Pilgrim’, also by Marty and also criminally overlooked. I bought this new album at the C2C festival in London 2 weeks ago just after it came out and it has been playing in my car ever since. How I could ever have doubted what Marty was doing in my response to that title track I just don’t know; shame on me!
Like ‘The Pilgrim’ to get the full effect to need to hear it as an album, this is not a collection of individual tracks whose sole aim is to get played on radio and are separate entities in themselves, this is a ‘whole’ in my opinion at least. Having said that there are a couple of tracks that could work perfectly well as singles and easily top anything in the charts right now (not that I would have any idea what is in the charts right now because I don’t).
If you don’t know what Marty Stuart is all about then now’s the time to take a break from all the pop and rock nonsense that brands itself country and find out what you’ve been missing.
jtrpdx
March 22, 2017 @ 12:00 pm
You sound like one extremely picky and irritable honky, Honky. Your pure bred country tastes are so next level country, they are too country for a website like SCM. Perhaps you should start your own site?
Honky
March 22, 2017 @ 12:03 pm
I’ll like your passive-aggressively smart-a$$, but utterly true comment.
jtrpdx
March 22, 2017 @ 12:59 pm
Thank you. However, I did just realize that I made a mistake. If you think Isbell is all that….yet Sturgill and Way Out West are crap, I should have written “easy listening americana with a hint of southern rock” instead of “country” in my original comment.
Honky
March 22, 2017 @ 2:39 pm
No, your first assessment was correct. Isabel is a generational talent, and although his music isn’t my first choice for listening, I recognize what he is.
Sturgill Simpson is one of the worst voices I’ve ever heard with a record deal.
I never said way out west is bad. I just said, it’s not my thing.
Jtrpdx
March 22, 2017 @ 7:26 pm
What currently recording artists do you recommend besides Isbell, Honky?
Honky
March 23, 2017 @ 6:11 am
William Michael Morgan
Mo Pitney
Midland
jtrpdx
March 23, 2017 @ 11:14 am
Fair enough. All good vocalists, and all very similar in their style. I don’t think you will ever get that over-produced, polished-for-radio (no matter if they get much radio play or not) sound out of someone like Sturgill…..either vocally or from an album production standpoint. It simply isn’t his thing, and that isn’t his goal. Totally makes sense how you can think Sturgill is horrible if you are looking for those qualities in your country singers / recordings, and that is a perfectly fine opinion to have!
Brandon
March 22, 2017 @ 10:52 am
Way Out West is fantastic. Totally agree with you on this.
Wheeler Walker Sr.
March 22, 2017 @ 10:57 am
Goddamn. I have to admit I glossed over this release because I remember my parents having an album or box set or something titled “Marty Party Hit Pack” when I was a kid. Thinking back on that title gave me douche chills so I was going to skip Way Out West. I just gave a few songs a listen based on this article and holy shit. Spot on Trig, you da man! You have exposed me to some great stuff over the last several months.
Jeremy
March 22, 2017 @ 11:13 am
The second half of Marty’s career has had some wonderful albums. Check them out. Really though I’m a fan of most of his stuff
Wheeler Walker Sr.
March 22, 2017 @ 11:18 am
Any specific suggestions?
Trigger
March 22, 2017 @ 12:35 pm
The Pilgrim
Ghost Train: The Studio B Session
Nashville Vol. 1: Tear the Woodpile Down
His last album Saturday Night/Sunday Morning is also good, but it’s a 2-album set that probably could have been condensed into one in my opinion, but still really solid.
Zachariah Malachi
March 22, 2017 @ 12:40 pm
Marty’s music with the Superlatives is by far better than anything he put out prior.
Wheeler Walker Sr.
March 22, 2017 @ 12:58 pm
Thanks Trig. Can’t wait to listen to more great music tonight.
Jeremy
March 22, 2017 @ 1:29 pm
Thanks for jumping in there Trigger.
Brett
March 22, 2017 @ 2:51 pm
Absoutely yes to all of this! Ive thought about this very same topic for a while now. So glad youve brought it to the forefront of everyones attention. Marty is busting his hump to keep the traditions he loves alive and well. I respect the heck out of him and the Superalatives. Way Out West is phenomenal from start to finish and all these selections are essential.
Jack Williams
March 22, 2017 @ 1:18 pm
Soul’s Chapel, too.
Leaf
March 22, 2017 @ 7:00 pm
Badlands is pretty amazing as well.
Bernd Wolf
March 22, 2017 @ 11:13 am
It’s the best damn album out there, by far! And why not “a regular Bakersfield tribute like Vince Gill…”? Why? This is NEW music (ok, two out of fifteeen are not new)!!! That’s why!
RON DIAS
March 22, 2017 @ 11:13 am
I have it I think its great
albert
March 22, 2017 @ 11:14 am
Damn …..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVMdwpcl3m4
Trigger
March 22, 2017 @ 12:37 pm
If you can’t get into a song like “Country Boy Rock and Roll,” then you’re not a fan of music.
scott
March 23, 2017 @ 5:44 am
Wow, that’s no shit. Thanks, albert, for the link. Damn, indeed!
Jed
March 24, 2017 @ 9:48 am
Bingo, just listen to Marty and Cousin Kenny tearing it up on that song. Tres cool.
Dutchy
March 22, 2017 @ 11:19 am
Quote by Honky: “Why couldn’t he have done a standard Bakersfield tribute like Vince Gill and Paul Frankin did? Nooo, he had to put the eccentric Marty Stuart twist on it by mixing Bakersfield with Surf-Rock and Psychedelia.”
And that is why I love Marty’s music for so many years, because his records aren’t just standard, they are way above ‘standard’. Now, a standard tribute album would have been boring. I love that twist as you call it, that makes him what he is: unique. But that’s my humble opinion of course.
Honky
March 22, 2017 @ 2:37 pm
Then you should definitely buy this album. I won’t be, however.
Clifford
March 22, 2017 @ 11:21 am
Amen. Marty does more for real country music than ANY artist out there. He has young talent on his show (Sturgill, Hank 3, etc.). He puts out great music. He collects country memorabilia that he plans to put into a museum. He helps get real country artists in the opry. He’s the man.
Jack
March 22, 2017 @ 11:26 am
As a 20 year old student from the UK, I didn’t have very high expectations of Marty Stuart when he was announced as part of the line-up for the Country to Country Festival this year. Although I have great respect for him as a person, I feared he’d be similar to the negatively received Dwight Yoakam from last year’s festival. You can imagine my surprise when Marty and his band proved to be one of the best acts of the whole festival. He captivated the audience from the very first song (something that surprised me due to the downright embarrassing reaction Reba received the previous night) and his set turned out to be the best live experience I’ve ever had. He is criminally ignored and underrated by both artists, fans and industry professionals so I urge everyone to buy his albums/see him in concert at every opportunity. You will not be disappointed!
therhodeo
March 22, 2017 @ 1:25 pm
Who the hell receives Yoakam negatively?
Kevin Smith
March 22, 2017 @ 1:53 pm
What is wrong with those Brits? Negative reaction to Dwight? Huh?????He is also like Marty, one of the very best alive in terms of songwriting, keeping the Bakersfield sound alive for future generations, and he’s a fine showman as well. Wake up UK. Time to discover real country music.
Biscuit
March 22, 2017 @ 4:03 pm
Just saw Dwight live in concert last week and it was an incredible show. He was like a trad country Ramones playing live…1,2,3,4 great song, 1,2,3,4, another great song, one after the other non stop for close to two hours, bam, bam, bam. He played lots of great covers too. I feel the same about Dwight as I do Marty, who’s new album I love (his work with the Superlatives has been..superlative). It is hard to say why their newer albums don’t sell quite as much when they are atill doing excellent studio and road work. Dwight and Marty are giants among men, two masters walking the earth who are the epitome of true country music. These guys are the true bridge between the Waylon/Cash/Hag/Owens/Jones era and the Sturgill/Isbell etc generation.
Marty had a great interview with Rolling Stone’s David Fricke on Outlaw Country on Sirius XM. He confirmed there is a lot of Byrds influence on rhe record and he admitted a deep admiration for Roger McGuinn.
Jack
March 23, 2017 @ 3:13 am
I can’t speak for the rest of the audience but it was more of a sound issue for me rather than anything else. Not sure if it was Dwight or the O2 speakers but he sounded as though he was mumbling for the majority of the set, making him quite hard to understand. Also, he didn’t interact with the audience at all other than a quick “thank you” at the end which I think was another reason he wasn’t received as well as he perhaps should have been.
Hillbilly Jack
March 24, 2017 @ 5:41 am
Hey, I’m another Jack from the UK and have seen Dwight Yoakam 3 times I think and he has been fantastic every time. I didn’t see him at the O2 however as there was nobody else on the festival that I was interested in seeing so can’t speak for that occasion. I only went this year for Marty.
CountryKnight
March 22, 2017 @ 11:29 am
Is it available at Wal-Mart?
I have already “Spotified” the heck out of it. But I will gladly purchase it. Wal-Mart is the most convenient for me.
Chris
March 22, 2017 @ 11:43 am
Marty Stuart is 100% top notch. Best band on planet earth. He is worthy of these awesome musicians that perform with him. I been following him since I heard “Arlene”. All his shows are never a dull moment & never the same. Never ever ceases to amaze me & Way Out West he out does himself again!
Corncaster
March 22, 2017 @ 11:50 am
This record has been overlooked and undervalued because Marty is over 50 and has too much respect for country music and the traditions it embodies.
In today’s world, tradition is too slow. It requires too much attention, even sacrifice. The music industry chases novelties, quickie sells, and youth. Marty represents age, wisdom, and taking it slow. The industry is desperate to sell itself, and therefore desperate to present everything in frank (i.e. mere) terms as sexual. Marty sings like Marty Robbins about desert landscapes, the isolation of sin and guilt, raven-haired beauties and illusions, and circling vultures. He also sings about visions and the dignity of spiritual ancestors. In all of it, he values instrumental skill, not taking a technological short-cut.
Marty and his music are profoundly counter-cultural. That’s why the circus passes him by. No worries to those of us who love him.
I do wish some of the songs on Way Out West were longer.
Parth
March 22, 2017 @ 12:01 pm
Ill give it a spin! Thanks as always. Missed the earlier review.
Toby in AK
March 22, 2017 @ 12:13 pm
I liked the album, interesting concept but like a lot of concepts it wasn’t something I could imagine listening to on a regular basis. Not a critique, just an observation.
Craig
March 22, 2017 @ 12:17 pm
Way out West is a great record. For the reasons you’ve already stated. But I’m a guy who sat in a cold rain for three hours the last time that Marty came to town. I’d buy the record regardless. The fact is that Marty just isn’t accessible in a way that Sturgill or Isbell is. I don’t agree that if they had made this record that everyone would be falling over themselves to talk about it. Sturgill is good. Isbell is good. But they play music that feels hip and modern, even when it’s throwing back. Marty plays music that is electrifying to people who, to quote Miranda, like ‘old shit’. For those people, this record will spin for a long, long time. But hipsters don’t have the patience for history that doesn’t, in some way, have a reference to them.
Corncaster
March 22, 2017 @ 5:32 pm
“hipsters don’t have the patience for history that doesn’t, in some way, have a reference to them”
some people might say, “that is precisely what’s wrong with them”
Mike W.
March 22, 2017 @ 5:41 pm
To be fair, isn’t that every generation regarding music?
I mean, I bet a lot of the younger people listening to Waylon, Willie, etc. way back when saw guys like Tubb and Porter as “their parent’s artists”. Hell, I bet a lot of the “Class of 89” artist fans thought Merle, Cash, etc. were “their parent’s artists”. I think plenty of Sturgill and Isbell fans appreciate what Marty is doing, but I can’t blame them for wanting to take “ownership” of Sturgill and Isbell. It’s pretty much what every generation of music fan has done before them.
Craig
March 23, 2017 @ 5:56 am
There are no ‘younger’ people listening to Sturgill and Isbell. The hipster comment was made in reference to this fact and the related fact that the recent expansion of their respective fanbases is not generation ‘now’ but rather the hipster half of generations Y and X + that were already listening to them. That guy or gal who was listening to Isbell with the Truckers probably does appreciate Marty. But the new,’of the moment’ fan, he doesn’t. And he and fans like him are who is putting Sturgill and Isbell over the top now.
I know people around here hold out great hope for the rise of Isbell/Sturgill, as does Sturgill himself, but I’m not seeing either of them go any higher than ‘respected adult artist’. Springsteen would never have become SPRINGSTEEN without Born in the USA and the teeny boppers and imo Sturgill and Isbell are way beyond the possibility of a Born in the USA teenybopper moment. Can’t really see a twelve year old girl in a Sturgill T shit.
scott
March 23, 2017 @ 6:29 am
Bruce was Bruce waaaaay before Born in the USA. But, I get what you’re saying, and agree.
Jack Williams
March 23, 2017 @ 9:23 am
Before BITUSA, Bruce was a big mainstream artist in a mainstream genre (rock). He was simultaneously on the covers of Time an Newsweek in 1975. He had a #5 pop hit with Hungry Heart in 1980. It’s just that the success of BITUSA put him up there with Michael Jackson and Prince in the pop culture.
Craig
March 23, 2017 @ 9:32 am
Yall are missing my point. Before BITUSA Bruce fans were like Isbell and Sturgill fans. Isbell is in all the high priced culture magazines now and in Urban Outfitters stores. Not Time and Newsweek true but the kids didn’t read Time and Newsweek in 75, the adults did, just like the kids don’t shop at UO now. BITUSA brought the kids to Bruce. I remember listening to it and loving it and thinking SHIT now EVERYONE is going to be a Bruce fan. I wasn’t special anymore. That’s what I’m saying about Isbell. He’s not going to have that moment. Isbell fans will always be a clique, even if it’s a large clique.
Jack Williams
March 23, 2017 @ 1:50 pm
OK, Craig. Fair enough. I think he is bringing in some more casual music fans, but nowhere near “that moment.” (e.g., he’s a pretty big deal in the DC area and my sister-in-law has never heard of him. She’s heard of Stapleton) As for BITUSA, I knew that it was his most successful album, but I probably didn’t appreciate just how big it was, as I was in the NYC metro area where he had already been the biggest thing around for several years.
Stork
March 24, 2017 @ 9:07 am
Okay im not trying to sound smug or act like I have some sort of superior musical intellect compared to my peers, because in fact I have a hard time finding people my own age to see shows with. I’m seeing marty open for Steve Miller band tonight at the ryman with my 55 year old father in law, and I’m 22.
However, I was raised around so much traditional country music that I was practically tangled in a spiderweb of it, there’s no way I wasn’t going to get bitten. My father was literally a member of the class of 89, that’s when he graduated high school, but he was a generation behind and so he raised me on waylon/owens/jones/hag and the rest of that lot, but he still turned me onto Dwight, marty, Steve earle, etc…
I preface with that to give you my generational perspective. I’m and musical anomalie and and ways have been. I don’t run with the urban outfitters crowd so I haven’t run into these “isbell/sturgill” hipster kids other than hearing about them online. I can say this though, some people my age do recognize good music. When Stapleton broke through, everyone I know bought that record, but it was also very approachable and had mass appeal. Sturgill, isbell, or even brent Cobb, cody jinks, luke bell, any of the guys that have a lot of traction in our community here will never have that level of success with the 18-25 demographic unless they make an album like traveller, and I just don’t see it happening because that’s not who they are are artists. I think Eric church is another good example. I think we can all agree that he makes decent records that are more country than most anything else on the radio, regardless of his whole schtick which he’s laid off of lately, but people I know love him. And I’ve showed them sturgill and the like and they dig that too. Not trust fund Belmont kids, high school diploma holding tradesmen that work their asses off every day to make ends meet. Most of them think they like Florida Georgia line because they don’t see any alternative. Until they find out they have just that.
Which is why we’re all here
Tom
March 22, 2017 @ 12:19 pm
Spot. On.
T
Zachariah Malachi
March 22, 2017 @ 12:38 pm
Marty is overlooked just as Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Connie Smith and even as Merle Haggard was prior his death. It isn’t that he isn’t respected, it’s that he has surpassed the level of Sturgill, Isbell and Stapleton. Marty Stuart is known as a great now and is the unofficial living forefather of country music, now.
At least that’s how I see it. Sturgill, Isbell and Stapleton impress me as young and current artists but Marty Stuart is the old(er), reliable and wine that tastes better after each new album.
Orgirl1
March 22, 2017 @ 12:44 pm
I will give it a listen. Am a huge fan of Marty’s “Black eyed Susie”. Hey. Ho. Hey.
jessie with the long hair
March 22, 2017 @ 1:20 pm
In some ways, I think Marty is overrated. I’ve always liked his spirit more than his actual music. His musicianship and live shows is where he shines. Singing and songwriting not quite on the same level. I really, really like Marty Stuart and I love him for being a “keeper of the flame” but I’m not sure there’s anything very original about the songs I’ve heard from this album or others. He’s cool but I’m not sure I’m drinking the kool-aide like many here seem to be…and that’s okay.
Jtrpdx
March 22, 2017 @ 7:38 pm
I can see where you are coming from. I like the album for its overall feel and front to back listening experience. It is a very enjoyable album…..but it isn’t a knock you socks off, “Jesus Christ how did he write that many unbelievable songs” type proposition. Having said that, I do think it is worthy of Trigg writing a handful of articles about it and turning more and more people on to it.
Ryan
March 22, 2017 @ 1:36 pm
Look at the immense talent in the fabulous superlatives alone. grade a musicians all around. not to mention how well Marty knows his way around a guitar. Ghost Train is one of my favorite albums. This latest release is definitely unique as well yet always remaining true to himself while changing styles. Stylistic shifts can ruin a band for me if they lose the quality that brought me in to begin with, but he seems to retain his identity through all these decades.
Kevin Smith
March 22, 2017 @ 1:44 pm
I’m in the choir on this so to speak. Marty is a treasure! Saw him last summer…mesmerizing moments of brilliance sprinkled with exhilaration and feeling you were glad to be alive. He is the definition of country music. That said …a lot of the folks there were there to hear Hillbilly Rock, Whiskey Ain’t Workin etc. They remembered youthful cool Marty of the 80s. All I can say is they got schooled big time.Marty is very relavant today in my world anyway.He is doing so much to keep great music alive.
Paul Selby
March 22, 2017 @ 2:06 pm
Thank you. Been singing this song for years. This is the best band in country music, bar none, and I will go out of my way to see them anytime they are in my area. I do notice this release getting a LITTLE traction in non-traditional areas – they’ve been talking him up on the SIRIUSXM Volume channel, for one thing. Should be serious Hall of Fame talks going on for Marty, too.
A.B.
March 22, 2017 @ 4:28 pm
This year’s Hall of Fame class is being announced April 5th with Vince Gill hosting. Marty doesn’t have a show that day. Fingers crossed!
Dogit
March 22, 2017 @ 3:14 pm
The album is excellent and the best I have bought this year. Creative, country, and cool. I love Marty’s voice and his style. His last 5 albums have been very good. I am glad I bought Way out West. I listen to it while I cut grass and it feels like I’m watching a movie…. that’s how albums used to be.. no throw away cuts. All quality!
Stork
March 22, 2017 @ 3:34 pm
I’m about three songs in and I’m getting trippy Marty Robbins vibes
Biscuit
March 22, 2017 @ 4:08 pm
Marty said he was named after Marty Robbins andone of his favorite records is Big Iron. “Old Mexico” is done in homage to Robbins.
Mike W.
March 22, 2017 @ 4:16 pm
The thing that I appreciate most about Marty and his band is how they aren’t afraid to take some chances. Sure, it is still “traditional” Country music, but it still feels fresh most of the time coming from Stuart. I think we can all think of some artists from the same era of Marty (in terms of mainstream popularity) that simply are incapable of releasing anything interesting anymore. See: Ronnie Dunn, Clint Black, etc.
Marty and Mark Chestnut deserve credit for continuing to release excellent music that still feels fresh, rather than “diet” versions of their old stuff.
scott
March 23, 2017 @ 5:53 am
Ronnie Dunn, with the right song, is still the real deal. That voice…
Mike W.
March 23, 2017 @ 6:45 am
Oh I agree, if he wanted to, Ronnie could still be amazing. Unfortunately, he seems more than content to try and revive his Country Radio career with crap songs.
Corncaster
March 22, 2017 @ 5:37 pm
look, Marty isn’t *just* the Olde Guard
this record takes western country rock psychedelia much further outside of town than, say, anything Sturgill has yet done
Marty is out in front
Jtrpdx
March 22, 2017 @ 7:50 pm
True on the psychadelia front, but I don’t think Sturgill ever intended to inject nearly as much psychedelia / surf / whatever you want to call it into Metamodern or elsewhere like Marty did on way out west. Also, to compare someone who is about 5 years into their solo career with someone who has had decades to put out a comparable album, is a bit unfair.
Andrew
March 22, 2017 @ 5:42 pm
Marty was just on Chris Shiflett’s podcast and it’s well worth a listen. Including the two of them doing a great rendition of “Waymore’s Blues”.
Frank the Tank
March 23, 2017 @ 7:57 pm
Thanks! I check out the walkingthefloor website every week or so, but there’s been nothing new for months. Now if I go to podbay.fm I see that there’s 20 new episodes since I last listened. I have some catching up to do!
Mike
March 22, 2017 @ 5:43 pm
Thanks for the tip – listening now.
Brian
March 22, 2017 @ 6:38 pm
I think one thing that has hurt Marty some is the fact that he embodies Nashville, at least all of the good things Nashville should be. I think a lot of these independent artists and such that get so much traction is because they catch that movement that is perceived as against the establishment and real country music. Marty doesn’t get that, because he is considered more of an insider that an outsider by a lot of people I think, even though he has done more for real country music that almost all of those that so many people consider outlaw and against the establishment artists. I remember seeing him at Americana Jam and there were a handful of people I knew that were huge fans of the Texas/Independent scene and have actually done a number of things very positive for the scene. When Marty came on they kind of made there way to the back. I asked them while they were passing where they were going and their response was, “he is good ,but he is a mainstream/Nashville guy”. It was funny, because all of the artists so much of us respect in the scene were all making their way inside getting a good spot to see Marty. I remember Tina Wilkins telling me that her and Walt were taking turns watching there son and she told Walt that she would watch the son whenever he wanted, as long as she got to go in when Marty was on stage. The man is as good an artist as we have today, but I just think a lot of independent fans get hung up on weird things some times and that hurts Marty from getting that huge following that some independent artists are able to get.
Big Cat
March 22, 2017 @ 6:38 pm
Love the concept sandwich. The release of ‘Wish You Were Here’ in 75 changed my musical life (in my humble opinion the best PF album).
Way Out West is real shit.
hoptowntiger94
March 22, 2017 @ 7:27 pm
He plays terrible venues (when he tours) catered to old people. I average 10-12 concerts a year. In 2007, I went to 52 concerts (I worked in the business). I have never seen Marty Stuart in concert because he plays county Fairs, Arts Festivals, stuffy theaters and casinos. Places were you’d take your bingo cards. Hip, trendy music listeners aren’t going to those places. So, he misses out making that connection with the younger listers and getting current media exposure.
This tour I see he finally booked a good venue – Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland (what I consider the best music venue in the Rust Belt). If I wasn’t traveling to Knoxville, TN to see the Turnpike Troubadours that weekend, I’d be in Cleveland, Ohio.
Trigger
March 22, 2017 @ 8:16 pm
Yoakam plays a lot of casinos and county fairs too. The reason is these guys can still demand a handsome guarantee that most clubs or small theaters can’t pay, but they’re still too small to jump to arenas or amphitheaters. It’s that whole tiered thing that also ensures every single Sturgill Simpson show will be a sellout.
hoptowntiger94
March 24, 2017 @ 8:16 pm
I wouldn’t go see Dwight Yoakam in those kind of venues either. The difference between Stuart and Yoakam is the latter’s catalog and fan base is deeper. Stuart has a chance to hit the reset button, write another chapter, but he’s not doing it touring in Casinos and Country fairs – there’s a stigma.
Millenials/hipsters would eat him up – the look, guitar playing, the stories – if given the chance. He needs to book a 28-32 club tour.
Trigger
March 24, 2017 @ 10:14 pm
That was a key to Johnny Cash’s reset during his American Recordings era. He played smaller venues for less money, but got in front of younger audiences and relaunched his legacy.
Michael Reddy
March 28, 2017 @ 7:04 am
It also helped that The Man In Black’s American Recordings up to the post death cash grab album where some of the finest Americana recordings of all time and some of his best work. I love how Rubin and Cash stripped everything away and had Cash’s voice and the songs to be the major draw. The Hymns album he included on the Unearthed box set was played alongside Alan Jackson’s Precious Memories at my Mom’s funeral. She loved those albums.
Biscuit
March 24, 2017 @ 7:34 pm
I agree with the comment that whoever is booking him needs to get him in more favorable venues.
As much as I enjoyed the content of Marty’s past show on RFD-TV, that network looked a cheap Wayne’s World cable access channel and in turn with playing fairs, made it look like his career was closer to the end than at a new zenith.. I don’t think that helped his image much with a younger age demographic.
Also, he doesn’t use social media. Someone posts promo stuff for him but he doesn’t use it in the same way other artists do where they seem more personable and talking to fans.He won’t respond to a Facebook post or tweet much.
To your question Trig, I think these contribute to limiting growing his fanbase beyond his current fans.
Marky Mark
March 22, 2017 @ 7:27 pm
It was on my list. Sorry for the delay Trigger, but I have been busy. That said, you have made a good point, quality needs to be supported, I’ll by it right after I post this!
Doug
March 22, 2017 @ 8:18 pm
Last MS album I bought was The Pilgrim, which is great but, yea, that was a long time ago. Will listen to this one tomorrow. I agree that “old reliables” like Marty don’t get the attention they deserve. Thanks for ringing the bell.
Wesley
March 22, 2017 @ 8:48 pm
his new “Way Out West” album has been rocking me and my wife’s socks off over the last week. Infact, it rocked her panties off when we woke up this morning. thanks Marty!! haha but it really is a great album and more people need to hear it. reminds me of late 60’s Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and The Dead’s (only really good studio work) from their albums “Workingman’s Dead” and “American Beauty”. Though Stuart’s new record is even more psychedelic than that. sometimes i eat fungus…and this album will be on that playlist next time i do. EVERYONE on SCM needs to cop this album. it’s a feel good, sometimes haunting, and groundbrraking record. New sounds in country! can’t get enough! In a review of my own, Way Out West would get an 8/10 easily. maybe even more. Love everything this site does for our beloved music. ?
Wheeler Walker Sr.
March 22, 2017 @ 9:17 pm
This album is great. It’s like a custom written country soundtrack to a yet to be released Quentin Tarantino film! What a gem.
Teresa Hockensmith
March 23, 2017 @ 2:01 am
T Ftom Ky
I have heard Marty’s new songs and love them. I try and see him when he is close enough Ron Ky. The younger artist could learn a lot from Marty Stewart and his group. I wish Marty would come back to Frankfort Ky at the Grand or even the Convention Venter because it would be a sale out like the last time..
Nancy
March 23, 2017 @ 5:54 am
And…besides his great talent, he lends his name and time to many organizations!
Jake Pitts
March 23, 2017 @ 6:52 am
Way Out West had a major influence in the way I listen to music. And this article highlights a big problem that I think happens with the way we listen to music: we want it to already meet our expectations. Here’s my story about how Way Out West influenced the way I listen to music:
https://medium.com/black-dog/way-out-west-marty-stuart-his-fabulous-superlatives-a-sincere-album-review-7941e647d43?source=linkShare-a011dea52a88-1490276984
D. Wayne
March 23, 2017 @ 7:32 am
I purchased the CD through Marty’s website{t-shirt too} I like Marty quite a bit but have come to his part a little late. Like Rodney Crowell I think guys his age were overshadowed by the “greats” {Cash,Hags,Jones etc} and now people can appreciate them but the industry looks at them as past prime. I am going to see Marty at the Birchmere in DC. Should be fun.
SenorBB
March 23, 2017 @ 7:46 am
I couldn’t agree more! This guy has become a major musical force and inspiration to me as a musician. Live, they’re a fantastic clinic on how it’s truly done. What I appreciate most about this band is that they’re a very rocking version of country with the classic guitar tones and energy. This is not cry on the bar music only. So great to hear them tackle some of the surf and psychedelic sounds on this album too, in addition to what they already excel at. In my top 3 for 2017 so far.
Kenny Bohling
March 23, 2017 @ 8:14 am
DARN RIGHT!!!! Marty is almost single handedly responsible for me forming my company Lakota Leathers because of his album “Badlands” .. Badlands is now out of print!!.. HOW THE HECK CAN THE GREAST ALBUM OF ALL TIME BE OUT OF PRINT!!!??? Not only is Marty the best country music star alive, he’s also a friend and one of the best men I’ve had the honor of knowing! Rock on Marty!!!!
Corncaster
March 23, 2017 @ 8:24 am
I want to push more on this idea that Way Out West is too short. I’ve listened to it about a half-dozen times and think, in the end, that it’s a series of beautifully inspired, exquisitely-rendered sketches. And that makes me think maybe Marty is laboring under the idea that an album is still an “album.” It’s not. The opportunity now exists to leave the LP mentality behind. He could’ve embraced a much larger canvas. Stretch out. Give us the whole existentialada. He and the boys are musically capable of this, and Marty himself could pull together the verbal part pretty well. He’s a thoughtful guy. What we have in this record is a series of short stories; he could’ve given us a three-part novel. Don’t know how much Campbell was charging him (a big question), but this record leaves me wanting to cheer Marty on toward something much bigger. He’s at the height of his powers. Go for it.
Andrew
March 23, 2017 @ 8:56 am
His last release was a double album, so I don’t know how much I buy that.
Corncaster
March 23, 2017 @ 1:12 pm
just talking about this one. I’d like to tell Marty, man, keep on stretching out. Especially when you’re dealing with entire regions and ways of life. At this stage in his life, he’s nearly got the musical equivalent of the Great American Novel inside him and his band. A couple more participants, and there’s your Cosmic American Music right there, right here, right now.
Steve
March 23, 2017 @ 1:00 pm
I had never heard of Marty Stuart until I saw “Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives” perform at the C2C festival in London. Absolutely blown away by them. All four great musicians, great songs and Marty Stuart holds the audience in his hands, amusing anecdotes, clearly all 4 of them totally at ease with each other, Awesome set and one of the highlights of 3 days of country music in London. I’d love to see them again when I am more familiar with their catalogue. Five Stars
BruisedOrange
March 23, 2017 @ 3:20 pm
amen. love this album. no idea why fans of the younger acts you mentioned aren’t buying it up like crazy.
Gary Templeton
March 23, 2017 @ 3:44 pm
I’m on a plane out west as I write this. I’ve listened to this album for the past three hours on a loop, front to back, no skipping. Round and around and around. 😉
I feel like I’m lost in a scene somewhere between pulp fiction and an sopranos episode. It is a master work. Just gorgeous. I’m 1/2 way waiting for Junior Brown to show up on one of these tracks.
Wesley
March 23, 2017 @ 7:44 pm
i first discovered Stuart from his collab with Travis Tritt on “The Whiskey Ain’t Workin”. been a fan ever since. Tritt is another dude that just doesn’t give a f*#%, and he makes this very clear. “Way Out West” is rapidly becoming my favorite record released this year so far.
Michael P
March 23, 2017 @ 7:52 pm
It’s a FABULOUS record, Trig, and it deserve all the publicity it can get. I get why mainstream radio, etc., doesn’t like it, but every single person I’ve recommended it to has bought a copy.
Also (not the first time I’ve said this): your website is a great source of news, music, etc., but it’s also murder on my bank account (I’m not complaining – I’m grateful!).
Dave
March 23, 2017 @ 8:37 pm
I have listened to this album several times though and I love it. I saw Marty and the Fabulous Superlatives live back in January so I got to hear some of the songs off the album. Marty and the boys are just amazing! I really enjoyed the show!
Chris O.
March 24, 2017 @ 8:50 am
A thousand ‘Amens.’ I would add Dwight Yoakam to this. One could do a separate post about him saying similar things. We need to appreciate these guys while they’re still here.
Jim
March 24, 2017 @ 1:43 pm
Marty Stuart…Best hair in Country music…one of the best guitarists and vocalists, for sure!
Kudos to his dedication to Country!
Dave D
March 24, 2017 @ 7:44 pm
At this point Marty and his band have become a national treasure. Where are you gonna hear this great collection of American music performed at this level? I also saw his show cover all the bases last night at the Southgate House. Where are you going to hear El Paso nailed as good or better as the original? If you ask me Marty and the band have risen to the top of the genre with no competition.. They kick A$$and take names night after night. Go see em’ if you love the twang like me.
kapam
March 26, 2017 @ 5:56 pm
This is what I love about SCM. I went away and hunted down a few videos of Marty Stuart and I was blown away! So authentic and so entertaining, but light years away from what seems to be the chart-topping “popular” country of today. Ghost Train! Wow! It came up on Youtube from a Letterman Show performance. I’ll be trying to hunt down more of Marty’s music from here on in.
kapam
March 26, 2017 @ 6:14 pm
My apologies. The song was not “Ghost Train”. Rather, it was “Country Boy Rock & Roll”. Sorry!
D. Wayne
March 26, 2017 @ 6:06 pm
I just got done listening to Marty’s new CD. I listened to the whole CD like I used to do with albums. I loved it. It is one of the best CD’s Ive heard in years. Amazing.
Euan
March 28, 2017 @ 4:57 am
He stole the show at C2C in Glasgow and I bought his CD straight after it at the merch stall (as recommended by Trigger as a way to give max money to the artist!). The album’s superb. Let’s hope it’s a slow burner and sales pick up. He deserves it.
liza
March 28, 2017 @ 12:36 pm
He stole the show at the Ryman Saturday night. Effortlessly.
JP
March 28, 2017 @ 1:59 pm
Way Out West is the best album I’ve heard since Jinks’ I’m Not The Devil. I’d put it right up there with that, Southeastern, Metamodern, Traveller, & Turnpike’s eponymous as some of the best music from the past few years.
Kristin
March 30, 2017 @ 3:07 am
Truck stop honeys and log book money is the only life I know….. <3 it!
Wryterman
March 31, 2017 @ 1:59 pm
A Master who’s played it all, sang it all, lived it all, with them all. Walking Ph.D. of the musical roots of America expressed through the mind, heart, voice, & soul of an artist who walks the hardscrabble fields & plains of all time beyond time, bringing us glad tidings of life transcending the heartbreak of a world driven mad by guilt and fear.
Doug
April 13, 2017 @ 11:43 am
Thanks for encouraging a listen. For guitar fans especially, this is a great album.
Evelyn Compton
May 1, 2017 @ 3:20 pm
He is one of the greatest songwriters there is !!! I’ve known Marty and his Family for over 25+ plus yrs , he has written many songs and simply gave them away, can tell stories and entertain you like not to many of these new comers, or anyone can !!! Yes, it is a shame that he doesn’t get more recognition, he does on the grand ole OPRY, and I believe to him it means the most~ if you have a chance go see him, his concerts are worth every penny, you will never regret you went take it from me seen very many each one is different !!! Now if you don’t like it call Travis Tritt and he’ll sent your money back, !!!
Weezy
May 12, 2017 @ 8:24 pm
Saw these guys in Orlando last week and life hasn’t been the same since… one of the most incredible live performances I’ve ever seen… Marty and the band at the top of their game on every song… uplifting experience and totally the most genuine country music experience I’ve had since seeing Merle open for Dylan here many years ago… like others have written here, I too haven’t taken Way Out West out of my CD player since the show… it has literally been decades ago in my life when I was so mesmerized by an album in every way I could not stop listening to it over and over… Mike Campbell the producer of Way Out West did a fantastic job on this… a masterpiece…
R
February 21, 2018 @ 12:35 pm
Saw them Feb 17th 2018 in Houston. Damn near knocked the walls down on this 1k seat theater. The Superlatives are an incredible band……..Marty was awesome………..best show I’ve seen 8n 20 yrs
B
February 21, 2018 @ 12:56 pm
Just by chance – late last summer 2017 – I “rediscovered” Marty by watching reruns of his show on RFDtv and I was hooked. I was lucky enough to catch the band at Pilgrimage festival last year (almost missed it!). I can’t say enough about Marty and Kenny and the boys. Great show – great vocals – great picking. GREAT!
George Z
March 24, 2018 @ 10:34 am
The key here is what Marty Stuart represents. And what he is keeping alive. It’s not about how “good” of a songwriter he is. I’ve seen some mention of Waylon on here. Sorry but Waylon didn’t write most of the great songs he sang. People don’t really look at that stuff so they assume he wrote a lot. But what made Waylon who he was, was how he delivered the songs and what he represented in his time. George Jones only sang other peoples songs. So I’m not sure why being a good songwriter makes you “country” in this case? That’s why Jason Isbell really shouldn’t be in this conversation, cause he barely qualifies as a country artist.(and thats being generous) A great songwriter? Sure. But in the case of preserving Country Music or “Keeping Country music alive” Marty is the most important name here. Isbell serves little towards that cause. Especially when you look at Marty’s track record. But most importantly when you listen to Marty & The Superlatives at a live show, and then compare that to Isbell live. They’re both good shows. But one is live country music and the other..??
Brenty
March 26, 2018 @ 6:45 pm
Kinda sounds like some yuppie-fied roots rock music. Not country. Blake Shelton, Florida Georgia Line, and Luke Bryan are not really my cup of tea, but they sound more like country than this Marty Stuart album.
Jake
March 27, 2018 @ 12:40 pm
Learn what significance Bakersfield, the Mojave, and the Western US hold in country music and try this comment again please. You’ll find yourself understanding this record alot more.
Brenty
March 28, 2018 @ 1:47 pm
Yes, I know what country music is. And from what I’ve heard from this album so far, it don’t sound like country music. I don’t mean that it’s a bad album or anything, just sounds kinda like some sort of Americana or roots rock. But even back in Marty Stuart’s popular days he often veered more towards rock n roll.
Jake
March 27, 2018 @ 12:38 pm
Marty Stuart and the FS are the best act out there right now. I’m not speaking in hyperbole. They’re the best. These guys leave seasoned pros jaw-dropped.
But that’s to be expected when a band that good has Mike Campbell (you know…from a little band called Tom Petty and the MF Heartbreakers?!) produce their latest.
For real though folks…..pay attention here.
Daniel Smith
August 12, 2021 @ 4:09 pm
Love this post,I hate this so called today’s Country Music it’s terrible, keep it up and love the Indian Ballads and Spiritual.,songs YOU. are an inspiration.Thank You Marcie Smith