Bluebird: Studio Cuts

Editors’ Notes Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe may be a tiny establishment in a strip mall, but it has a towering reputation thanks in large part to the songs shared in its writers’ rounds. The documentary Bluebird captures the thrill of being privy to songwriters’ unadorned versions of the hits they authored and their first public performances of tunes they’ve just completed. The studio recordings on this playlist prove that a well-crafted song can enjoy lasting popularity and even change the course of an artist’s career. It’s a wide-ranging collection with lots of highlights, including “The House That Built Me,” the nostalgic ballad that gave Miranda Lambert her first No. 1 and persuaded her of the abilities of Nashville songwriting pros; “My Church,” whose gospelly hook helped launch Maren Morris’ rapid rise from behind-the-scenes writer to savvy star; “Blue Ain’t Your Color,” the simmering soul-pop ballad that gave Keith Urban his three-dozenth radio smash; “A Life That’s Good,” the sentimental singer-songwriter tune performed in several scenes of the TV show Nashville and done here by the show’s young singing actors Lennon & Maisy; and the thematically appropriate “16th Avenue,” Lacy J. Dalton's early-'80s hit memorializing Music Row writers.