Jan Smith: "29 Dances"

Central Virginia’s Jan Smith pens emotional songs of southern landscape and local folks, beautifully set behind rolling bluegrass and vintage country through a voice that reminds of Gillian Welch and Natalie Merchant. With the ageless conviction of "29 Dances" Smith convinces it’s all there for her to become a mainstay of the genre, especially as her tunes mold so well with some of Nashville’s best like Randy Kohrs and Byron House, who polish this one in all the right places. Key tracks: “Woman Your Guitar,” “Gorham Mountain,” and “Rum in My Morning Coffee.”