The Best Country Albums Of All Time Ranked
Country (also called country and western) is a music genre originating in the Southern and Southwestern United States. First produced in the 1920s, country primarily focuses on working class Americans and blue-collar American life. Country music is known for its ballads and dance tunes (also known as “honky-tonk music”) with simple form, folk lyrics, and harmonies accompanied by string instruments such as electric and acoustic guitars, steel guitars (such as pedal steels and dobros), banjos, fiddles, and harmonicas. Though it is primarily rooted in various forms of American folk music, such as old-time music and Appalachian music, many other traditions, including African-American, Mexican, Irish, and Hawaiian music, have also had a formative influence on the genre. Blues modes have been used extensively throughout its recorded history. Here are all of the best Country albums of all time.
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15. Woman In Me – Shania Twain
“Shania Twain’s second studio album ‘The Woman In Me’ is one of her most phenomenal albums ever. Collaborating with her then-husband and producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange, this album showcased a reworked Twain – a sexy and sassy modern woman – singing empowerment anthems about heartbreak. The album went on to become her biggest-selling album at the time and was later on certified 12 times Platinum.”
14. Some Hearts – Carrie Underwood
“If we’re talking about successful and influential debut albums, then this is definitely high up on the list. With the undeniable impact of her singles just like “Jesus Take The Wheel” and “Before He Cheats,” the album took home an impressive list of achievements, including being the best-selling female country album from 2005 until 2007, the fastest-selling and best-selling debut country album in country music history.”
13. At Folsom Prison – Johnny Cash
“Just when people thought Cash couldn’t be any more badass, he decided to record a live album in front of 200 inmates and their guards at a notoriously rough prison in California. Even more impressive, Cash had the awareness to realize that songs like “The Wall” (an inmate tries to escape and ends up dead), “Send a Picture of Mother” (another unsuccessful jailbreak, but the dude survives), and “25 Minutes to Go” (about a man about to be hanged) wouldn’t offend the prisoners — they’d actually appreciate the gallows humor of it all.”
12. Come On Over – Shania Twain
“The 16-track album was full of crossover potential that featured hook-filled songwriting blessedly produced by rock legend Robert John “Mutt” Lange. And the result was not just a record-breaking, multi-awarded album but a blueprint that many country singers have tried to recreate even many years after. “
11. Wide Open Spaces – The Chicks
“If the (then-Dixie) Chicks 1998 hit “Wide Open Spaces” was about a young woman leaving home for the first time, then their feminist country-pop landmark Fly was what happened next. There are absolutely no skips on this record (OK, except for maybe “Ain’t No Thang But a Chicken Wang”), as the trio charge through each track fusing badass bluegrass and dazzling melodies that were way ahead of their time.”
10. No Fences – Garth Brooks
“Garth Brooks’ mega-selling second album is full of jukebox staples that blend smart, and sometimes sardonic, observations on life with country-rock brawn. The honky-tonk smash “Friends in Low Places” has remained an anthem of down-on-their-luck folks since it came out in 1990, while the string-accented love song “Two of a Kind, Workin’ on a Full House” is a heart-eyed ode to young couplehood.”
9. Chief – Eric Church
“Church transitioned into his Chief character and scored his first Number One single with this 2011 eponymous album, an all-killer/no-filler collection of country ballads, arena-rock anthems, and smokin’-and-drinkin’ songs. Radio hits “Drink in My Hand” and “Springsteen” got the lion’s share of the press and praise, but it’s deep cuts like “Hungover & Hard Up” and the shoulda-been-a-single “Over When It’s Over,” a stunner of a duet with Joanna Cotten, that made Chief such a well-rounded listening experience.”
8. The Weight Of These Wings – Miranda Lambert
“Two years after the pop-country perfection of 2014’s Platinum, Miranda Lambert was healing from the heartbreak of divorce at Eric Masse’s East Nashville studio, writing songs and drinking vodka until sunrise. The result was The Weight of These Wings, an exquisite double album in two parts: The Nerve and The Heart. Even at 24 tracks, there’s not a second of filler, from the gut-punching “Vice” to the mischievous “We Should Be Friends” and the sonic salve “Well-Rested.” It also contains one of Lambert’s all-time best in “Tin Man,” a somber ballad anchored in a potent metaphor.”
7. Fly – The Chicks
“If the (then-Dixie) Chicks 1998 hit “Wide Open Spaces” was about a young woman leaving home for the first time, then their feminist country-pop landmark Fly was what happened next. There are absolutely no skips on this record (OK, except for maybe “Ain’t No Thang But a Chicken Wang”), as the trio charge through each track fusing badass bluegrass and dazzling melodies that were way ahead of their time. “Cowboy Take Me Away” is still being discovered by younger bands like Boygenius, and Taylor Swift recently did her own version of “Goodbye Earl” with “No Body, No Crime.””
6. Country Evolution – Home Free
“Love the original, “California Country,” by high tenor, Austin Brown on this album. This is a fast-paced album, where every song has an amazing video counterpart, and, “Elvira” is a standout, featuring the Oak Ridge Boys. You can’t beat that! Home Free actually infuses that song with their acappella goodness and the original artists are right there singing along with them in the video, having a good ole boy good time! I love it! Then there’s the tale of the two fiddlers, Charlie Daniels and Taylor Davis, one singing and both lending their fiddling skills to the acappella Home Free Guys in “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” Amazing! You have to hear it to believe it! So good! This is a great album, but honestly, they haven’t put out a bad album yet, so you will be amazed and entertained by their varied skills.”
5. Dreaming My Dreams – Waylon Jennings
“Lord, it’s the same old tune, fiddle and guitar/Where do we take it from here?” sings Jennings on an album that magnificently answered that question. The sessions dragged out over six months and were sometimes volatile, with a very-high Jennings storming out one day, midsong, after a clash with producer and songwriter Cowboy Jack Clement (that’s why “Waymore’s Blues” fades out fast). As Jennings later wrote, “It was a party. You hadda be there.” But what emerged was an album that captured Jennings’ voice at its most affecting, with supple and sturdy songs that tweaked his macho image (“Waymore’s Blues”) and revealed a reflective side of the man (“Dreaming My Dreams with You”), but made it clear he was still a rascal (“The Door Is Always Open”).”
4. Taylor Swift – Taylor Swift
“Though Taylor Swift is no longer considered by many as a country musician, her influence in the genre is undeniable. At a young age, Taylor Swift released her debut studio album Taylor Swift which topped the US Billboard Top Country charts for 24 weeks. Aside from that, it was also the longest-charting album on the Billboard 200 of the 2000s. And if that was not impressive enough, the album was also seven times certified Platinum making Swift the first solo female country artist to write and co-write every song on a platinum debut album.”
3. Coat Of Many Colors’ – Dolly Parton
“When Dolly Parton recorded Coat of Many Colors in 1971, she was already beginning to break away from frequent singing partner and variety-show boss Porter Wagoner. The brilliant album is the sound of Parton taking agency over her own story — one shaped by Appalachian poverty, a connection to nature, and unfailing familial love.”
2. Fearless – Taylor Swift
“Still in her teens, Taylor Swift was a brand-new Nashville star when she made her second album. But she was already thinking big. Fearless is a wide-ranging, world-conquering country classic from a pop visionary. Fearless won the Grammy for Album of the Year, spawning hits like “White Horse,” “Love Story,” and “You Belong With Me.” But the one that grows the most over the years is “Fifteen,” with Swift speaking directly to her fellow teenage girls about real life. Fearless (Taylor’s Version) is even better, featuring her tougher adult voice and the excellent Maren Morris duet “You All Over Me.””
1. Timeless – Home Free
“Home Free -Timeless is their very best album to date. I love all their original songs and all the covers they do. I have never heard any group that has such flawless harmony. They are pitch perfect as they sing and it is very clear as a group, their individual personalities blend perfectly. Home Free puts so much passion and emotion into each song. The group as they are now, are together as they should be. They are the most talented, awesome incredible singers in the universe.”
