Folk Alley Favorites: (More) Best Songs of 2024
Discovering the best music of the year is always a treat, and while many of our top songs are already featured in our Best Albums of 2024 list, there are plenty more incredible tracks to spotlight.
Here, we share 20 additional Folk Alley favorites—our picks for (more) Best Songs of 2024. These standout tracks include singles and songs from albums that just missed the cut for our Best Albums list. Explore these must-hear songs, presented in alphabetical order by title, and enjoy even more amazing music from this year.
To listen to a 6+ hour playlist of all our Folk Alley favorites of 2024, check out our Fresh Cuts channel, available here on the website, our mobile app, or by saying, “Alexa, ask Folk Alley to play Folk Alley Fresh Cuts.”
1.Barnstar! – “Anybody Got a Light” from Furious Kindness
I was really struck by how much I liked this song. It’s energetic and exciting and the instrumental playing is just top-notch. – Elena See
2. Hurray for the Riff Raff – “Buffalo” from The Past Is Still Alive
“This feels like a song of hope, perseverance, and resilience—an anthem for pushing through life’s challenges and finding strength in the struggle. – Linda Fahey
3. Maya de Vitry – “Compass” from The Only Moment
Maya is the best songwriter of her generation. – Cindy Howes
4. Jacob Jolliff – “Copper Beeches” from Instrumentals, Vol 2: Mandolin Mysteries
Jacob Jolliff is not only an insanely talented mandolin player, he writes some of the most daring and challenging pieces of roots music. Every time I listen, I hear something new. – Brad Kolodner
5. Willi Carlisle – “Critterland” from Critterland
One of the most thoughtful and poetic songwriters in roots music today, Willi Carlisle’s song “Critterland” is jubilant, funny and deep. – Brad Kolodner
6. Joy Oladokun – “I’d Miss the Birds” from Observations from a Crowded Room
I relate to the mixed feelings of needing/wanting to make changes even when you can find good reasons to stay put. – Linda Fahey
7. Nina de Vitry – “If We Didn’t Have the Night” [single]
A gentle barn-burner from the promising youngest de Vitry, who’s spent lots of 2024 touring with Noah Kahan. – Cindy Howes
8. Willie Nelson – “Last Leaf on the Tree” from Last Leaf on the Tree
A Tom Waits cover. Absolutely heartbreaking and beautiful. – Matt Reilly
9. Sierra Hull – “Mad World” [single]
This is a great cover of a great song. It feels appropriate to listen to this right now. – Elena See
10. Ruth Moody – “North Calling” from Wanderer
The melancholic idea of being called somewhere, being drawn toward a place or a person is hard for me to resist. The north is calling me, too. – Elena See
11. The Secret Sisters – “Paperweight” from Mind, Man, Medicine
Sibling harmonies soar as the Secret Sisters provide us with one of the catchiest songs of 2024. – Brad Kolodner
12. New Dangerfield – “Put No Walls Around Your Garden” [single]
Kaia Kater’s thoughtful songwriting is front and center on this single from one of the most groovy bands in old time stringband music today. – Brad Kolodner
13. Rachel Sumner – “Radium Girls (Curie Eleison)” from Heartless Things
Sumner has made the scariest song I’ve ever heard and the scariest part is that it’s all true. – Cindy Howes
14. Willie Watson – “Real Love” from Willie Watson
Willie Watson has a voice for the ages and, now, a song that anyone who is or has been (or wants to be) madly in love can relate to. – Brad Kolodner
15. Béla Fleck – “Rhapsody In Blue(s)” from Rhapsody In Blue
Béla Fleck’s banjo virtuosity shines brightly once again—this time with a brilliant twist on Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”! – Linda Fahey
16. Cedric Burnside – “Shake Em On Down” from Hill Country Love
I really like his vibe and the sound on this bluesy shaker. – Elena See
17. MJ Lenderman – “She’s Leaving You” from Manning Fireworks
This becomes more of an earworm the more you listen to it and becomes unshakeable. – Matt Reilly
18. Lonesome Ace Stringband – “Stage Fright” [single]
I loved this when we got to share it earlier in 2024 and I still love it now. It’s a spare take on a folk rock classic. – Elena See
19. Jeffrey Foucault – “The Universal Fire” from The Universal Fire
JF sings about loss in the form of a giant fire that destroyed priceless master recordings of American musical masters and it is devastating. – Cindy Howes
20. Sarah Jarosz – “When the Lights Go Out” from Polaroid Lovers
This song is hot as hell. – Cindy Howes
