4 Records to Own If You Love Hozier Vinyl

When he burst onto the scene in 2014 with his self-titled Hozier record, we immediately loved the thick vocals and soul-infused songwriting of Andrew Hozier-Byrne. Drawing from his own Irish folk heritage and a love for blues and soul artists, Hozier delivered a record we’ve been spinning regularly ever since.

It’s not often that a record with so much lyrical and musical depth breaks through to mainstream success like this one, and we’re glad it did. If you love your Hozier vinyl like we do, we’ve got four records to grow your collection in a good direction.

Shakey Graves – Can’t Wake Up

Alejandro Rose-Garcia aka Shakey Graves has evolved his folky sound through several albums and EPs over the last decade. We were fans of his early work on Roll the Bones and loved how he expanded from a one-man-band setup to the fuller feel you hear on his excellent Can’t Wake Up.

Graves, like Hozier, uses folk and blues songs as vehicles to question the Big Things like human identity, religious dogma, and finding lasting meaning. His raspy voice rides over inventive production throughout this record, drawing us in on standout tracks like “Mansion Doors” and “Climb on the Cross”. If you like strong voices and cleverly crafted songs, Can’t Wake Up is a must-hear record.

Get Your Own Can’t Wake Up vinyl at Magnolia Record Store

Cedric Burnside – I Be Trying

Hearing a Cedric Burnside record is like stepping back in time to a front porch in the Mississippi Delta. After growing up in Memphis, TN, and Holly Springs, MS, he comes by it honestly. As one of the freshest voices in blues of the last 20 years, Burnside makes no bones or apologies about his work on I Be Trying, his 10th album in just 15 years.

Not only is Burnside a skilled bluesman, he’s an excellent songwriter and phenomenal vocalist. I Be Trying is packed to the gills with rowdy delta riffs and killer songs, opening with barn-burner desperate prayer “Step In” and closing it out with hopeful “Love You Forever."

Get Your Own I Be Trying vinyl at Magnolia Record Store

David Ramirez – Magnolia Record Club Presents David Ramirez.

David Ramirez has one of the smoothest voices in modern folk, full stop. He’s been doing it the old-fashioned way for over 10 years, and we are pleased to offer some of his earliest and best work with the Magnolia Record Club Presents David Ramirez vinyl.

Magnolia Record Club Presents brings his first two EP’s together, and adds in a few rarities for fun. Ramirez’s craft seemed already fully formed, blowing us away with classics like “Strange Town” and “The Bad Days”. If you didn’t know David Ramirez yet, now you do and you’re welcome.

Get Your Own Magnolia Record Club Presents David Ramirez vinyl at Magnolia Record Store

Mavis Staples – One For The Lonely

After the smash success of “Take Me To Church”, Hozier doubled down on a duet with the great Mavis Staples. “Nina Cried Power” celebrates soul singers who used their voice to fight for justice, like Nina Simone, Curtis Mayfield, and Mavis herself.

Staples released One For The Lonely over 50 years ago, and these songs will never lose their strength. This is a true classic relationship record, with Staples’ vulnerability on full display. Standout track “You’re the Fool” dresses a lover down for thinking everybody’s a fool for them, one of soul’s smoothest scoldings! She ends the record out with “Don’t Change Me Now”, one of our all-time favorite closers, telling a lover they must let her keep her own mind if they want to keep her.

We love Hozier for the songs and the substance, and for his insistence on celebrating the artists that influence him.  Stay tuned for more Hozier vinyl on the Magnolia Store!