10 Under the Radar Country Songs of 2022
With 2022 almost in our rearview mirror, I thought it’d be an interesting concept to look at some fantastic album cuts off of records released this past year. I’ll be honest and say that this year I haven’t explored too many new albums, but I was able to come up with a list of ten.
There are a few rules in place. Each song will have to be from a body of work (album or EP) that has been released in 2022, there aren’t to be any doubles off an album, and they all have to be non-singles and not heavily promoted through other media. For example, while “Carousel” is a fantastic song off of Miranda Lambert’s Palamino, it was the most talked about track on the album from articles and her fanbase. Songs like “The Good I’ll Do” by Zach Bryan won’t be included since it was included in an episode of Yellowstone and shot up on every streaming service. The whole idea with this list is to spotlight songs that weren’t discussed as much as others. So let’s get started.
disneyworld - Nicolle Galyon
Starting off with a song off an album I wasn’t expecting to like so much, “disneyworld” is probably my favorite song on songwriter Nicolle Galyon’s firstborn. The record in whole is a bit of a concept record, with the concept being a complete look at Galyon’s entire life. From childhood fears and insecurities to how she hopes to feel on her death bed, firstborn references being a kid, a mother, a wife, her Nashville dreams, and why she finally recorded an album after ten years in town. Her mature songwriting style is never more prevalent than on “disneyworld”. It’s a take on realism vs. fantasy and the idea that maybe the dreams we had as kids (like going to disneyworld) aren’t the dreams we should have had. She states that she wasn’t the type of girl to grow up wanting to go to Disneyworld or find herself a prince, but her dreams were more realistic and wanting to be self sufficient and find a normal guy that loves her for being her. She goes against that notion of fantasy and it’s a breath of fresh air. If you’re looking for a more grown up album of Kelsea Ballerini’s best work, you might check this one out.
Tourist - Palomino
Miranda Lambert’s Palomino record is one of my absolute favorites of the year and it’s a very laid back and less serious record than any of her previous projects. “Tourist” was one of the least talked about songs from the album, although arguably it’s the biggest base for what the record is trying to achieve as a whole. The album is about where Lambert is in her life, in a post-lockdown world filled with new adventures and traveling, where Lambert goes through that whimsical but serious feeling of being in a state of constant wanderlust. She admits that she feels like just a tourist while going through town to town, but she kind of loves that feeling of being a stranger and having new hellos and goodbyes wherever she decides to go. I also really hope if “Geraldine” isn’t the next single that this is the song Lambert and her team decide to push to radio after “Strange” in 2023.
What You Don’t Wish For - Country Stuff : The Album
I’ve never been afraid to say that Walker Hayes can be a great lyricist when he sticks to serious topics like his family, fatherhood, or his dreams and life stories. But for every good song like “Lela’s Stars” or “Craig” or “Briefcase”, there’s the trend setting, pop sounding, viral songs like “Fancy Like” that muddy anything good coming from Walker. He’s always been a trend setter and chaser since the Applebee’s song became a hit, and he actually admits it in this track. “What You Don’t Wish For” is a mostly acoustic driven track that talks about how instead of being careful of what you wish for, you should be careful what dreams or ambitions you don’t have along the way. He effectively conveys the message of “it’s better to dream big and fail than to not reach for the stars”. He even uses himself as an example, saying that he knows he’s “not the greatest singer in the world” and that “sometimes I hate how much I love this game, 'cause it just makes me make a fool out of myself” but that he’ll keep dreaming and try to move his career forward until he can’t anymore.
Poems & Closing Time - American Heartbreak
Of COURSE we had to have a song from my #1 album of 2022. I’m fully on the Zach Bryan hype train bus and I don’t think it’ll stop anytime soon. I’ve already discussed multiple songs from this record and how Bryan’s songwriting is so different, unusual, and great. Thankfully, there’s 34 songs on this record, so I had loads to pick from. “Poems & Closing Time” is a faster paced song that deals with Bryan’s anxiety, substance use, and loneliness. Bryan’s songwriting will always set him apart from the pack and this one is no different. It’s him saying that no matter what he’d sink his time into (whether that’s religion, work, etc), his addiction will always come down to poems (his songwriting) and closing time (drinking). It’s an interesting perspective as he admits, “I've been overdrinking cause I've been overthinking/cause I get so damn anxious at night/chemicals and nicotine/friends ask how you've been/you just learn to say you're alright”. It’s an honest thought that he’s not afraid to share. This track isn’t as tightly written as others, but it’s one of the more underrated songs from American Heartbreak and I feel like it needs a little more love from the Zach Bryan fanbase.
Plain Jane - Raised
Hailey Whitter’s Raised album is in my top 3 albums of the year, right after American Heartbreak and Palomino. The midwestern vibe and the details of small town life that she captured on this album just feels right. I always appreciate when an artist puts something out there that is pretty close to the vest and listening to this album, you can feel Whitters believing every word she sings. She sings about that Midwest life because she’s lived that midwestern life. She’s super genuine, especially on “Plain Jane”, where she states that she’s more of a “Messed Up Mary” than a “Plain Jane”. She takes risks, does things she shouldn’t do, and she’s ok with being that different girl who doesn’t care what others think of her. My favorite line is “I ain’t afraid to wear my flaws/ it’s so last year to cover them all”. Which I think is something we can all aspire to do in 2023.
Play Ball - Lindeville
If it wasn’t for Zach Bryan’s 34 song album, I would say Lindeville would be the most ambitious project of the year. The album is named after Dennis Linde, a fantastic country songwriter who was known for writing strong, character driven tracks. Ashley McBryde and her ragtag group of friends got together for a week long writing session and came out with Lindeville, where every character is different and it follows a fictional town with non-fictional small town ideals. While sometimes the record trends into the white trash, double wide trailer trope, there’s quite a few highlights, one of which being “Play Ball” featuring Brothers Osbourne. Out of all the characters on this album, Pete is my favorite. He’s the groundskeeper for the local baseball park and we hear practically his whole life story in a verse and a half. The details are specific, sometimes humorous, and can attest to the kindness and honesty that Pete shows those around him, including the narrator (who Pete mentored after his father left him and his family). TJ Osbourne’s voice is great, as per usual, and this song makes me hope for a more country focused Brothers Osbourne whenever they record their next album.
Hideaway - Songs About You
Brett Eldredge has a top 5 voice in country music and is completely at his best when he sings a song that’s sparse of instrumentation and that’s what you have with “Hideaway”. I think Eldredge took a slight step back with this year’s Songs About You album, simply because Sunday Drive had more of these type of tracks, but “Hideaway” easily feels like something that could have been on the previous record. He paints this picture so beautifully of taking this girl away from where they are and just completely starting over and having a simpler life. He ponders how much different (and potentially better) life could be if they got away from their worries and started brand new. His voice fits the warm lyrics perfectly.
Twenty So - Summertime Blues
I cheated a little bit on this one, as it was a bit hyped up when Zach Bryan released a preview weeks before the Summertimes Blues EP came out, but that hype came and went quickly as most songs from that EP have been talked about more than this one. It’s a wistful look at all the positives and negatives that come along with being a twenty-something right now. Bryan always has a knack for adding this duality to his lyrics and one of the interesting things about this song is how he refers to both the savage AND sweet times of being Twenty So. In a world of black and white, he acknowledges that not only is there both, but maybe you can’t have one without the other. The added worry of Bryan’s that he will only be “young” for so long is an interesting side that we don’t hear of too often.
Those Boots (Deddy’s Song) - Bell Bottom Country
Honestly, Lainey Wilson is not somebody that I thought I would enjoy as much as I have in country music in 2022. Maybe I’m late to the party, but I have been jamming to Bell Bottom Country a lot more than I would have thought. Maybe it’s because this album, for all it’s (mostly) good and (rarely) bads, is undeniably Lainey. It’s authentic and this one is a story ripped right out of her childhood. “Boots” songs aren’t an uncommon trope in country music (look at Eric Church’s “These Boots” or Brothers Osbourne’s “Old Man’s Boots” for good examples). This is a different perspective though as it’s the story of how as a child, Wilson would play with her dad’s boots after he took them off. The song then turns into examples of who her father is and how she connects him to those boots and hopefully one day she’ll find somebody that will fill those boots he’s been walking in, figuratively of course. It’s a really cool twist and I also enjoy Lainey calling herself out in the storytelling of it in the first verse. It’s a neat little detail.
New Place to Drink - Mr. Saturday Night
I very much enjoy some good and subtle humorous writing in country music and Jon Pardi is one of the best at it and this one is a whole lot more subtle than say… “Reverse Cowgirl” . I wasn’t as big of this record as much as his Heartache Medication project a few years back, but Pardi continues to put true, actual country music in the forefront. This album and song sound a lot like what was happening in the 90’s in country music and that’s a good thing. “New Place to Drink” is the protagonist of this song realizes and mourning that he needs to find a new place to drink because of a presumed break up with an ex. The instrumentation on this song is fantastic and the line “I don’t know what I’ll miss more/that girl or those swinging doors” makes me think of this as a very Brad Paisley-lite track.
While these songs might not be my “favorites” of 2022, like some other lists out there. I do hope that this shines a bit of a light on some tracks that you may have missed out on or didn’t give enough of a shot too this past year. As always, follow me on Twitter at @marty_kurtz and I put a Spotify playlist below for easy access to all the songs I talked about.
