Hayes Carll

Hayes Carll is a Texas singer-songwriter who emerged from the Houston folk and country scene in the early 2000s. His debut Flowers & Liquor (2002) established the template: sharp, story-driven songs with sardonic wit and a weathered baritone that sounds like he's lived every word. He's often grouped with the Texas Americana lineage of Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark, but Carll's got a funnier edge—his songs find the absurdity in heartbreak.

His breakthrough came with Trouble in Mind (2008), which won the Americana Music Association's Album of the Year. "She Left Me for Jesus" earned a Grammy nomination after Leftover Salmon covered it. Lee Ann Womack took his song "Chances Are" to country radio. He's released six studio albums through 2024, including What It Is (2019) and You Get It All (2021), the latter written with his wife, singer-songwriter Allison Moorer.

Carll's live show is loose and talky, heavy on between-song stories that are half stand-up comedy. If you like your country music smart, a little ragged, and full of characters making bad decisions they'll joke about later, he's one of the best working today.