New Country and Americana Albums for May 31, 2024: New Music from Willie Nelson, Richard Thompson, and More

We’ve come to the end of the last workweek of May. As usual, our reward is a stack of new country and Americana albums. With summer, the halfway point of the year, and festival season right around the corner, it’s time to start making those road trip playlists. No matter what vibe you’re looking for, the list of new releases below will have what you’re looking for.

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This week’s list features new albums from country and folk rock legends, up-and-comers, and just about everything in between. After a short list of new releases last week, we’re looking at a stack that contains new music from Willie Nelson, Swamp Dogg, Richard Thompson, and many more.

Standout Albums

The one issue with this week’s list of new country and Americana albums is that it’s made up of killer albums. As a result, picking standouts was harder than other weeks. Luckily, Willie Nelson and Swamp Dogg released new albums today, making things a little easier.

Swamp Dogg (born Jerry Williams Jr.) is an artist who can seemingly record in any style and make a great record. His discography includes albums that fall under the banners of country, soul, R&B, and more. Today, he released a smoking-hot bluegrass album.

A stellar songwriter with several classics under his belt, Swamp Dogg wrote or co-wrote several of the songs on this album. He also chose some top-tier features including Vernon Reid, Margo Price, and Sierra Hull. Overall Blackgrass is a stellar bluegrass record that includes the trademark humor and rock-solid songwriting fans of Swamp Dogg have come to expect over the years. This one’s just a little faster.

Standout Tracks: “Mess Under That Dress” “Ugly Man’s Wife” “Murder Ballad”

Willie Nelson has never released a bad album and The Border is no exception. Leaning into the sounds of his native Texas, Nelson has put together a stellar collection of songs. At 91 years old, Nelson proves that he still has plenty left in the tank. His age shows in his voice. However, it only serves to add more character to his singing.

There’s not much else to say here, it’s a new album from a country legend. Songwriting credits on the album include Nelson, Buddy Cannon, Rodney Crowell, Shawn Camp, Mike Reid, and several others.

Standout Tracks: “The Border” “Hank’s Guitar” “Made in Texas”