Top 10 Alt-country bands

Hiss Golden Messenger

Phosphorescent

marty, i agree with you about bill lloyd (feeding the elephant is a power pop classic). also agree with ogsarg about wilco--there ain't much country left in 'em. the story i read is that after wilco put out its good-but-conventional countryish debut, tweedy was so blown away by son volt's far greater debut that he was inspired to go in the progressively more idiosyncratic-pop direction of his best work.

loomis,

IMHO, Foster and Lloyd is one of the quirkier bands to come down the road in many moons. Radney Foster is the country part and Bill Lloyd the Alt (pop) part. In the end, I think I prefer Bill Lloyd straight up, but I agree that they did some very integrating stuff together

marty

I agree good list though I would personally have the Old97's higher and Wilco lower. For an awesome newcomer to the genre check out J Roddy Wallston and the Business out of Baltimore. The debut album from a few years ago is off the charts good.

good list. in addition to the others listed above, i'd add lucinda, richard buckner (my fave), blue mountain, driveby truckers, richmond fontaine and handsome family. also jason and the scorchers and foster & lloyd, whose "faster & louder" might be the best record in the whole canon.

Monsters of Folk perhaps. Not sure I consider Wilco Alt-Country.

Crooked Still.

Backsliders and V-roys.

IMHO. that's a very good list. Id say that the Biggest misses are Escovedo, The Delevantes, and The Reivers.

Son Volt! Jay is currently the best alt-country Singer/Songwriter we have.

Jeffrey Foucault and Cold Satellite are a must ....Stripping Cane and Ghost Repeater would be the two places to begin...

shelby lynne and allison moorer

how could i forget chris knight and reckless kelly?

Son Volt (?)

lucinda williams
jamey johnson
cross country ragweed [now broken up sadly]
hacienda brothers [now less 1 member]
dave alvin
calexico
band of heathens
shooter jennings
maybe not exactly alt country but great groups from the edge of the genre