Wrecking Ball

Sound DNA

• Country
• Americana & Roots

• dreamy
• bittersweet
• poetic

About

On 1995’s <i>Wrecking Ball</i>, Emmylou Harris officially shifted from country music elder statesman—respected, but perhaps not fully given her due—to being a genre-agnostic, widely acclaimed innovator. If not a full-on departure from her previous work, the album did mark an important shift in Harris’ creative process: <i>Wrecking Ball</i> was produced by Daniel Lanois, best known at that point for his work with U2 and Bob Dylan. Together, Harris and Lanois worked to find a sound that incorporated 20th century elements like synths and reverb, and that would feature considerably heavier percussion (provided by U2 drummer Larry Mullen, Jr.). And they did so without losing Harris’ folksy, country core. What connects <i>Wrecking Ball</i> with Harris’ previous albums, though, is its collaborative spirit. Steve Earle, Neil Young, and Lucinda Williams all appear alongside Harris as she performs songs they wrote, to lovely effect. Young’s contribution is the effective title track, one that lets Harris and Young cut through layers of gentle echoes with characteristically strong harmonies. Other songs come from an equally impressive selection of Harris’ peers, including those both well-known, like Dylan and Jimi Hendrix, as well as cult favorites like David Olney, the McGarrigle sisters, and Julie Miller. And her longtime collaborator Rodney Crowell shows up on the loosely twangy “Waltz Across Texas Tonight,” which he co-wrote. The success of <i>Wrecking Ball</i>—a massive critical hit, and a modest commercial one—helped land Harris her seventh Grammy. It also expanded listeners’ perception of the singer-songwriter, perhaps unfairly: After all, Harris had been blending contemporary sounds and songs with classic ones for her entire career. But the added inflection of a new generation of rock helped a wider swath of people respect her vast career—especially those who might have been thrown off by its overarching twang—and broadened the scope of her own creative output in ensuing years. As an argument for Harris’ perpetual relevance and musical dexterity, <i>Wrecking Ball</i> is nearly impossible to knock down.

via Apple Music

Tracklist

Credits