New reissue of Exile on Main Street

To points about alt/country influence, here is a bit on Gram Parsons's presence at Nellcote in '71.

http://theselvedgeyard.wordpress.com/2009/08/13/keith-richards-gram-parsons-1971-summer-in-exile-villa-nellcote/

The Brit invasion bands were of course magpies of American music forms.

I think some may be confusing Country with Alternative Country here.

While Exile certainly has more blues influence than Uncle Tupelo's 90's stuff, there is still some of that rock band paying country swag. We could probably come up with a bunch of artists/records that have that Americana feel from way before 1990...partly because we are probably old!

genre lines are always blurry, but loving cup, sweet virginia and torn and frayed are as country as it gets. gram parsons was hanging around the studio during the recording (and reportedly 86ed for misconduct), and his influence was obvious

Despite being made by a bunch of Englishmen, “Exile” is one of the best slices of Americana ever put down on wax, IMO. It was truly a masterpiece and—despite the group’s best efforts—an impossible act to follow.

As has been stated in this thread, one shouldn't minimize Gram Parsons' influence. It's in every grrove of the record.

I guess I always thought of alt.country as basement guitars plugged into white boy roots music. Plus something a little harder to peg, about rest stops, interstates, and "three hour away" towns.

I don't think the Stones really tapped into this; touring America as rock stars ain't Americana. That the Stones themselves recognized this is evident in their characteristically shrewd parody/self-parody in "Far Away Eyes." (I'm willing to count the lovely "Moonlight Mile" as alt.country, though.)

I'd have thought Neil Young (Canadians do Americana!) was a more important influence than Parsons (and the Stones) on alt.country bands like Uncle Tupelo; in addition to the sonic affinities, Neil is constantly covered by bands in the tradition, such as one of the most inspiring direct heirs to UT, Two Cow Garage.

An underappreciated album that I'd peg as "early" alt.country is Lucinda's "Happy Woman Blues," even though it doesn't fit my own "definition."

Arguments about musical styles are likely to be as inconclusive as arguments about cables, of course.

John