Shopping List: The New and the Notable
Shooter Jennings, "The Wolf" (Universal Records South)
He may be the son of Waylon, but there's not a lot of outlaw to be heard on Shooter Jennings's third album. Which isn't to say it disappoints. Shooter's 357s band is a hard-rocking vehicle for rollicking road songs ("Higher"), cosmic country balladry ("Tangled Up in Roses," "Blood From a Stone"), and celebrations of Shooter's pedigree.
Robert Plant/Alison Krauss, "Raising Sand" (Rounder)
Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant and bluegrass-pop star Alison Krauss, along with producer T-Bone Burnett, have together fashioned a fairly brilliant blend of country, blues, gospel, and vintage rock that at its best could almost be an unheard American genre unto itself. Their music is dark, dusty, and full of grief, yet glorious all the same.
Taraf de Haidouks, "Maskarada" (Crammed)
Romania's most sophisticated Gypsy ensemble reclaims East-European folk melodies borrowed by classical composers on this clever carnival of an album. Since Taraf's members don't read music, they had to learn such works as Bela Bartok's "Romanian Folk Dances" and Albert Keitelby's "In a Persian Market" by ear, making them sound as fresh as the group's zesty originals.
Dwight Yoakam, "Dwight Sings Buck" (New West)
Having drawn idol Buck Owens out of retirement for "The Streets of Bakersfield" in 1988, Dwight Yoakam eases the pain of the California country star's 2006 passing on "Dwight Sings Buck." "Cryin' Time" and "Close Up the Honky Tonks" are among the highlights of one of the classier single-artist tributes in years.