One might say that two genres that couldn’t be more different from each other are country and grunge. But in the 90s, when country and grunge were enjoying their own respective golden eras, mashups weren’t entirely nonexistent. Let’s look at just a few rare 90s country and grunge crossover songs that are actually pretty darn good.
“Chickamauga” by Uncle Tupelo from ‘Anodyne’ (1993)
When I first came up with the idea for this list, the first song I thought of was “Chickamauga” by Uncle Tupelo from the 1993 album Anodyne. This is really a solid example of what alternative country sounded like at its best in the 90s. The fuzz on those guitars really lends the song a grunge-leaning flair, but the whole of the song has a folky, very country sound. And that guitar solo? It manages to bridge the gap between grunge and country beautifully. They just don’t make country rock songs quite like this anymore.
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“Drown” by Son Volt from ‘Trace’ (1995)
Speaking of Uncle Tupelo, Jay Farrar formed Son Volt shortly after the breakup of the former band. This song from Son Volt’s debut album is alt-country at its heaviest and most droning. The band’s sound was incredibly unique but still managed to have a touch of Neil Young energy to it. It definitely leans more toward rock than country, but both elements are there, all with the distorted weight that made grunge as popular as it was in the 90s.
“Box Full Of Letters” by Wilco from ‘A.M.’ (1995)
This list is pretty Uncle Tupelo-heavy, but no one was doing alternative country with a grunge flair quite like the members of that very band. Wilco was formed by the remaining members of Uncle Tupelo after Jay Farrar dipped out to create Son Volt. This offshoot really is an incredible band, one that came to define much of 90s alt-country beautifully. I went with the country-grunge song “Box Full Of Letters” for this list, as it just sounds like the 90s with plenty of (albeit upbeat) grunge and country elements to balance it out. It’s a very guitar-rock song with plenty of pedal steel, one that still doesn’t get old after all these years.
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