Every week, the Wide Open Country team rounds up our favorite newly released country, folk, bluegrass and Americana songs. Here are six songs we currently have on repeat.
"Once in a Blue Moon," Triston Marez & Jenna Paulette
Rising country artists Triston Marez and Jenna Paulette teamed up to release "Once in a Blue Moon" and their voices mesh together effortlessly in this fun duet. Written by Trea Landon, Faren Rachels and Nate Kenyon, the lyrics follow two lovers who are pining for each other, giving Paulette and Marez the chance to let their vocal skills shine. Its release couldn't have come at a better time as the weather warms up; this new song definitely deserves a spot on your summer playlist.
"Triston sent me this song and the first time I listened to it was a 'hell yes' for me" Paulette told Cowgirl Magazine. "I love that the tempo and energy fits both of our styles so well."
"When I first heard 'Once in a Blue Moon' I knew I needed to cut it," says Marez. "I had met Jenna a couple months prior and just knew she was the perfect fit for this song. She absolutely killed it! Can't wait for folks to hear it."
— Courtney Fox
"Friend," Angie K
From her new EP Sun Up to Sundown, Angie K's song "Friend" is just a ton of honky tonk fun. Angie K first endeared herself to country fans when she appeared on Team Blake on The Voice season 10. Since moving to Nashville she's been making a name for herself since releasing her first single "Real Talk."
The lyrics of "Friend," written by Ben Burgess, Craig Wiseman and Mark Holman are catchy and easy to sing along to. One of my favorite lines is part of the chorus —
Homi?, wingman, kemosabe, drinking buddy or compadre
What?ver you call me, I'll be your friend
— Courtney Fox
"Feel Like Going Home," Miko Marks & the Resurrectors
Miko Marks, a member of CMT's Next Women of Country Class of 2022, sings about a return to her self on the triumphant, bluesy southern rock tune "Feel Like Going Home."
"Years that I have wasted/ They feel just like a dream," Marks sings. "Good things I have tasted/ They're never what they seem/ Now the time is coming/ To reap what I have sown/ Lord I feel, I feel like going home."
"Feel Like Going Home" follows Marks' 2021 album Our Country and her EP Race Records.
— Bobbie Jean Sawyer
"Dreamin's Free," Caitlyn Smith
Caitlyn Smith co-wrote "Dreamin's Free," an acoustic guitar-driven stunner from upcoming album High (out April 8), with two of the best in the business: Shane McAnally and Lori McKenna.
"I spent a good portion of last year searching high and low through my memories and dreams," Smith shared in a press release. "I did what any songwriter would do: I turned off all the outside voices and started turning what I found into something that I want to sing. This song was born from that place. As an artist, dreaming fuels my life - the risks I choose to take and the art that I create and share with the world."
Though its chorus references hard times ("Ain't got a lot of honey, but we sure got bees/ Up to our knees in the weeds and the trouble, 'cause money don't grow on trees"), the song captures the joy of sharing lofty goals with a special someone.
— Bobby Moore
"Broke Again," Joshua Hedley
Joshua Hedley pokes fun at that recurring feeling that you're not cut out for a typical 9-to-5 or service industry job — especially if you're counting your pennies again by Monday — with "Broke Again" and its green screen music video.
It previews Neon Blue (New West Records), an April 22 release that pays homage to the '90s country sounds of Joe Diffie, Mark Chesnutt and others.
The forthcoming album marks a sonic departure from Hedley's 2018 celebration of '50s and '60s country ballads, Mr. Jukebox.
"I made Mr. Jukebox for myself," Hedley told No Depression. "This time I said, let me make a record that I think people will enjoy. After the last couple of years we've had, let me make a fun, party record for people to blast on their boats this summer. There are no string sections on this record. They're what I call country bangers."
— Bobby Moore
"Don't It Sound Alright," Adam Doleac
Adam Doleac's "Don't It Sound Alright," written by Doleac, Chris La Corte and Josh Jenkins, reflects on life and slowing things down to enjoy life one step at a time.
"Take me down where the boat meets the water / Where the sun sinks down on a line and a bobber / Sitting in a truck bed, sipping red wine," Doleac sings. "Don't it sound, don't it sound alright / Take me out where the phones ain't working."
"'Don't It Sound Alright' is a big warm musical hug from me," Doleac stated. "It puts my soul at ease, and I hope it does the same for you. Over the past couple years, I've learned a lot about what really matters. This is song is about getting back to that. Don't that sound alright?"
The country singer is set to hit the road with Jessie James Decker for her The Woman I've Become Tour ,which is set to kick off on April 14.
—Silke Jasso
READ MORE: Rooted in Country: Caitlyn Smith on Alison Krauss' 'When You Say Nothing At All'
