Country’s (first) golden era found the genre, first and foremost, a singles format. Albums that represented fully cohesive, purposeful artistic statements were the exception, rather than the norm they would become in later eras. So we begin our retrospective of country’s greatest debut albums with a collection that combines the best of both the 1960s and 1970s.
What’s notable here is that these debuts weren’t all commercial successes: Some are records that built a reputation over the long arc of the genre’s history, and some were immediate critics’ favorites. And many of the genre’s titans did not necessarily make the most significant of first impressions: The likes of Merle Haggard, Connie Smith, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and George Jones would record more essential albums later in their storied careers.
A few groundrules: When considering debut albums, we did not count self-released or regionally distributed records as “official” parts of an artist’s catalogue. Neither did we include solo debuts from artists who’d already established a reputation (ergo, Linda Ronstadt’s Silk Purse isn’t here), nor did we count debuts from “supergroup” type acts (No Pistol Annies when we get to this century).
Onward!
The Greatest Debut Albums in Country Music: 1960s & 1970s
Country Charley Pride
Charley Pride
Sep. 1966
Charley Pride influenced so many of his peers and musical descendants that it’s hard to imagine what it was like to hear him for the first time. His race has understandably been at the forefront when discussing his impact, but a listen to Country Charley Pride is a reminder that he was able to have that impact by raising the bar right out of the gate. This is a polished, professional record that can compete with the pop, rock, and R&B records of its day. – KJC
Ode to Billie Joe
Bobbie Gentry
Aug. 1967
As with her overall legacy, Gentry’s debut album deserves to be recognized for far more than just its legendary title track. The way this record pulls in signifiers from a range of genres while still remaining grounded in folk and country structures makes it sound ahead of its time even today, and it announced Gentry as a gifted storyteller and vocal stylist. What we know as “Americana” today truly began here with Gentry. – JK
Hello, I’m Dolly
Dolly Parton
Sep. 1967
Her soaring melodrama, cornbread humor, and heartstring tugging are all on full display on Hello, I’m Dolly. It’s almost frightening how fully developed her songwriting talent is, as she was just 21 when this was recorded and released. The best songwriting catalog in the history of popular music begins here. – KJC
Color Me Country
Linda Martell
Aug. 1970
The uptick of interest in Martell that followed COWBOY CARTER is a net positive, of course, but it also draws attention to the fact that her music was strong enough that she should never have been relegated to a footnote or a “who was the first…” trivia answer in the first place. Color Me Country introduced Martell as a vocalist of exceptional technical skill and a presence on record that matched any of her era’s iconic leading ladies. – JK
John Prine
Oct. 1971
A mailman who’d cut his scene on the Chicago folk scene, Prine was noticed and reviewed favorably by none other than Roger Ebert. That got the attention of no less than Kris Kristofferson, who then asked Prine to open for him, which led to his first record deal. His debut is an all-timer, including songs that would rightly take their place as standards (“Angel from Montgomery,” “Illegal Smile”) and songs that highlighted his razor-sharp wit. – JK
Pieces of the Sky
Emmylou Harris
Feb. 1975
She ultimately became the genre’s keeper of the flame. On Pieces of the Sky, she began that journey more as a curator, a restless soul on the fringes of the genre with an unquenchable thirst for discovery. How many pop fans were lured in by her haunting tribute to Gram Parsons and her ethereal Beatles cover and discovered Dolly Parton, the Louvin Brothers, and Rodney Crowell through this record? She’d hone the formula over time, but it would never again be as revelatory. – KJC
Out of Hand
Gary Stewart
May 1975
A honky tonk masterpiece. It seems like this era’s best debut albums either establish visionary songwriters or distinctive vocal stylists. Stewart wrote some of his songs, but it was his merciless twang that put him on the map, finding a midpoint between Jones’ Texas drawl and Owens’ West Coast equivalent. – KJC
Ain’t Living Long Like This
Rodney Crowell
Aug. 1977
A commercial failure at the time– it failed to make the albums chart at all, and the singles all missed the top 40– Crowell’s debut nonetheless got the attention of critics and his peers. The original tracks he composed have been covered by countless other legends, and it’s his ribald take on “Elvira” that caught the Oaks’ ear. – JK
Rose Colored Glasses
John Conlee
Oct. 1978
John Conlee wouldn’t write most of his hits after Rose Colored Glasses, yet he still can be considered one of the genre’s better singer-songwriters simply on the strength of two devastating ballads that helped launch his career: the gloriously self-delusional “Rose Colored Glasses” and the gut-wrenching marital separation saga, “Backside of Thirty.” The former became his signature hit, and the latter joined “Lady Lay Down” as his first two number one singles. – KJC
Honorable Mentions:
Guy Clark, Old #1
Wanda Jackson (1958)
Jerry Reed, The Unbelievable Guitar & Voice of Jerry Reed
Connie Smith
James Talley, Got No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got a Lot of Love
The Greatest Debut Albums in Country Music
Introduction
Part One: 1960s & 1970s
Part Two: 1980s
Part Three: 1990s
Part Four: 21st Century
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