2023 was chock-full of excellent country music! We narrowed things down to our 15 favorite songs released this year (in no particular order) and what we loved about each!
Out of Sight- Emily Ann Roberts
We legitimately had a hard time picking just one song from Roberts’ Can’t Hide Country. When in doubt, we always resort to sad songs, and Roberts delivered a top-tier effort layered in steel guitar, fiddle and masterful harmonies.
No More Blue Moons in Kentucky- Caroline Owens (featuring Darin and Brooke Aldridge)
Caroline Owens was one of our favorite new discoveries in 2023. She has a voice that resonates beyond her years, and “No More Blue Moons in Kentucky” feels like it can become a bluegrass staple for years to come.
High Way- Addison Johnson (featuring Alex Williams)
Country. Damn. Music. Before three seconds elapse in this duet, you know you’re in for a country-as-hell ride, which is validated with Johnson’s vivid scenesetting in the first verse. Mix in Alex Williams’ deep, steady vocal and you’ve got one of the best duets of the year.
She’s Superman- Taylor Austin Dye
Taylor Austin Dye is largely known for her badass, country-rocking tunes that helped her go viral several times over in 2023. But it’s the closing track on her album Out of These Hills that offers a sentimental, sonic changeup that may just evoke a tear or two.
Telluride- Jade Eagleson
If there’s one thing we love more than a sad country song, it’s a sad country song with expertly-crafted wordplay. Jade Eagleson delivered both in spades here, and when mixed with steel guitar and a driving backbeat, you’ve got a recipe for success in our book.
In Walked You- William Michael Morgan
We heard William Michael Morgan perform this song live in May of 2022 and knew it was a hit. The Keith Stegall-produced tune serves as a welcome return for the baritone-voiced, Mississippi native, and has us chomping at the bit for the rest of his EP.
What Would Lynchburg Do- David Adam Byrnes
This song is so damn fun. There will certainly be plenty of boots that scoot to this fiddle-driven tune. The album is called Country Gonna Be Alright, and with songs like this, Byrnes is more than doing his part.
Fly on the Wall- Lauren Watkins (featuring Jake Worthington)
This song will knock you right out of you let it. It’s stone cold country as hell, and Watkins and Worthington make excellent duet partners. We had an audible reaction to the key change before the final chorus. Tear-in-your-beer country at its absolute finest.
Is It Cold in Oklahoma- Hayden Baker
Speaking of tear-in-your-beer tunes, from the first lyrics of this one from Hayden Baker, you know you’re in for a great one. Add in some extended fiddle and steel solos to turn the sadness up a few more notches and you’ve got a song we can’t stop coming back to.
Town Left Me- Mae Estes
Mae Estes caught the ears of very important people in Nashville last year, signing a major label deal with Big Machine Records. This rock-solid vocal track perfectly captures the emotions of a hometown not being as familiar as it once was. Estes told us that the song still makes her emotional, and we can certainly feel that.
Weddings, Funerals & Empty Hotel Bars- Erin Enderlin
If this isn’t one of the best song titles in recent memory, we don’t know what is. Luckily, Erin Enderlin backs up that strong title with one of her expertly-crafted sad tunes that we’ve come to know and love her for.
Single at the Same Time- Jake Worthington
Before even one second passes in this song, we’re hit with Worthington’s strong country vocal and a steel guitar lick that hooked us from the get-go. It sounds like a classic Mark Chesnutt tune, and the fiddle and steel solos are among some of the best we heard this year.
God and the Ground She Walked On- Craig Campbell
This song is so special. First, the title is instantly captivating, beaten only by the incredible lyric and vocal performance by Campbell. It’s the kind of song that defines a career and legitimately felt like a religious experience when we listened for the first time, and it still does.
What a Fool- Amanda Fields
If first impressions are everything, Amanda Fields wasted no time making sure hers was memorable with the first track on her debut album, What, When and Without. Her voice is haunting, the production is delightfully spacious and atmospheric, and the steel solo literally made us wide-eyed the first time we heard it.
Cab in a Solo- Scotty McCreery
“Cab in a Solo” is everything we love about a Scotty McCreery song: a well-written, mega-country tune delivered in McCreery’s trademarked baritone voice. If it is any hint as to what is coming from his next project, we’ll be not-so-patiently waiting for our next taste.
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