Eagles - see artist discography

Steve Earle - see artist discography

Mundo Earwood "Mundo Earwood" (Excelsior, 1981) (LP)
The lone LP from Mundo Earwood, a Texas-based singer who barely managed to crack the Top 20 in the late 1970s, but bounced around from label to label with only middling success before this disc -- which was pretty much his swan song -- came out.

Sheena Easton "Singles Collection" (Capitol, 1993)
I am forced here to mention Scotland's Sheena Easton because her duet with Kenny Rogers, "We've Got Tonight" -- one of the most horrible songs ever recorded -- went to #1 on the Country charts in 1983. Other than that one aural abomination, this highlands lassie ain't much of a country phenomenon.

Clint Eastwood "Rawhide's Clint Eastwood Sings Cowboy Favorites" (Cameo/Collector's Choice, 1963/2010)
Are yuh feeling lucky, punk? Well... are ya? If so, you might take a gamble on this novelty reissue of a full-length album (plus bonus tracks) that young Clint Eastwood recorded in 1963, when he was cast as cowpoke Rowdy Yates, on the TV show Rawhide. The repertoire is mainly old cowboy ballads, though the music is orchestrated pop, in keeping with the times. I wouldn't say Eastwood was the most arresting singer, and the arrangements are pretty placid, but you can hear his personality come out a little bit here and there... A cute old curio.

Connie Eaton "I've Got A Life To Live" (Chart, 1969)

Connie Eaton & Dave Peel "Hit The Road Jack" (Chart, 1970)
(Produced by Cliff Williamson)
Some duets from Nashville second-stringers Connie Eaton and Dave Peel, recording for the independent Chart label. This album yielded two modest hits, both of them R&B cover tunes: Marvin Gaye's "It Takes Two" and the Ray Charles classic, "Hit The Road Jack," which went to #44 on the charts. Pretty obscure stuff, but a nice chance to hear one of the lesser known female country singers of the countrypolitan era. Also, a couple of the non-single album cuts are interesting, particularly the novelty number, "Our Divorce Was A Failure."

Connie Eaton "Something Special" (Chart, 1971) (LP)

Connie Eaton "Connie Eaton" (ABC, 1975) (LP)

John Eddie "Who The Hell Is John Eddie?" (Lost Highway, 2003)
Although some of his roots-rockin' tunes are a little too slick and (would-be) commercial for me, this still-under-the radar John Haitt-like songwriter has some good tunes, stuff that'll draw you in, no matter how indier-than-thou you are. Some of these songs (including some of the fun ones) are clearly alt-y bait, like "Sh*thole Bar" and "F**king Forty," and while they're fun the first time around, they outstay their welcome on repeat listens. Other songs, like "Lowlife" and "Play Some Skynyrd" are pretty durable. It's not all novelty material, either: there are some serious songs on here as well, though they tend to be really downcast and a little overproduced. Worth checking out, though!

Meredith Edwards "Reach" (Mercury Nashville, 2001)
(Produced by Richard Marx, Robin Wiley & Keith Stegall)
Bland, generic, Britney Spears-ish pop half-heartedly masquerading as Nashville 'mersh... The teenaged Edwards was apparently a protege of Lance Bass, of the pop band 'NSync, and this record shows how the apple doesn't fall far from the tree... Other than a little bit of tacked-on pedal steel, there isn't much that's "country" about this album... Nor is there much that's interesting. Edwards is a pretty weak singer -- she could do alright on one of those TV talent shows, but her clunky phrasing sinks her every time. Apparently the Nashville establishment agreed: despite the studio work of producers Keith Stegall, et al, this disc went nowhere on the charts. Good thing, too.

Stoney Edwards - see artist discography

Katrina Elam "Katrina Elam" (Universal South, 2004)
(Produced by Tony Brown & Jimmie Lee Sloas)
At the tender age of sixteen, Oklahoman Katrina Elam got her entry into Nashville as a published songwriter, and here on her full-length debut, the 22-year old wrote or co-wrote all but two of the songs; pretty impressive for a newcomer. I can't say I care much for her vocals -- too much soul-ish swooping and sexy cooing -- but she sure does have the current Nashville rock-pop formula down pat, complete with the bombastic, swelling orchestrations and wave after wave of electric guitars... I'm not into it, but it has the feel of something over-the-top enough that it might just go over really, really big. I'm sure Elam will go places, soon enough. (Postscript: I wrote that review when Elam was new on the scene... Turns out Music City politics mucked up her career as a performer... She's been very successful as a songwriter, but a second album, Turn It Up was shelved by her label, and she was dropped a couple of years later. Geez. Harsh.)

Alecia Elliott "I'm Diggin' It" (MCA, 2000)
An inoffensive, but insubstantial mix of modern teen-pop and glossy contemporary country. Elliott doesn't have a great voice, and her penchant for untwangy, mid-tempo power ballads only serves to underline her shortcomings. The songs mostly seem like wordy, B-list material, with a few exceptions, such as Matraca Berg's "Some People Fall, Some People Fly," which has a strong thematic hook, and the bluesy title track, which allows Elliott to explore her superficial similarities to the young Tanya Tucker. Her mild snarl is undercut, though, by her nice-girl image, particularly on abstinence anthems such as her self-penned "You Wanna What?," which has the album's most vigorous guitar work, but is lyrically a little over-obvious and speaks to a limited audience. Overall, she strikes me as an artist who has potential, but still is pretty callow and too young to really bring much emotional resonance to her songs. Similarly, her phrasing needs time to grow, she seems pretty limited, and in particular she seems unable to transcend the confines of the stock country-pop arrangements that surround her. Here on her debut, Elliott doesn't even qualify as a second-stringer, but I'd still be interested to hear what she does a few years down the line...

Darryl & Don Ellis "No Sir" (Epic, 1992)
These brothers seem to have been pushed mainly as pretty boys -- jutting jaws, long, curly hair, dewy eyes, etc. -- tailormade for CMT videos, I'm sure. Unfortunately, they couldn't sing very well, and the arrangements behind them seem pretty flaccid and lax. It's not hard to understand why: if I were one of the studio players booked for these sessions, I wouldn't knock myself out, either. Why bother? (I mean, not to sound too harsh, or anything, but these guys were definitely no Everly Brothers... )

Darryl & Don Ellis "Day In The Sun" (Epic, 1993)

Elmo & Patsy "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" (Epic, 1989)
Okay, so they didn't actually have huge success on the Country charts, but who of us who were alive in the 'Eighties hasn't heard "Grandma Got Run Over" a time or two before? Apparently, the 1983 single was a different version than the one on this album... This is one weird Christmas record; Jack Morgan and Misty Morgan would be proud. (For more country Christmas music, check out my Hillbilly Holiday section.)

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Hick Music Index

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