Kristina Murray at Exit/In for AmericanaFest, 9/10/2025
In writing about Nashville country singer Kristina Murray’s third LP Little Blue in May, the Scene’s Jacqueline Zeisloft noted the clear influence of Emmylou Harris, Jerry Jeff Walker, Harlan Howard and Dean Dillon. The DNA of those legends is indeed present in Little Blue, along with that of Bonnie Raitt, Tony Joe White and Dwight Yoakam. But Murray shows that she’s so much more than the sum of her influences with songs like “Watchin’ the World Pass Me By” and the album’s titular closing track. With a big voice and a knack for evoking raw emotion — be it wistfulness, regret or desire — Murray makes her presence known with Little Blue’s nine songs and 35 minutes. It’s a beautiful, powerful record, and one that handily earns the mantle of the year’s Best Country Album.
