Cary Hudson’s latest record is a little mellower than his Blue Mountain recordings (if you want to hear a wild tale, check out their “Midnight in Mississippi” cut) but the stories and easy vocals still remain.Town and Country is roots music at its best.

Hudson’s trio (augmented by fiddle on three tracks) keeps it tight and simple. There is some folk, some country, acoustic guitar, harmonica, and whistling—basically the music of his home state of Mississippi. It’s roadhouse music that veers from the opening waltz of “Fiddler’s Green” to the Junco Partner-esque “August Afternoon” to the blues stomp of “Local Honey.”

Hudson’s writing encompasses easy vignettes and fun characters whether they are the “Mississippi Country Girl” that he gets along with “like Johnny and June” or the romantic evening he has with a woman dancing to “Beast of Burden.” It’s details like this that give his songs an authenticity.

His songs find truth in the small things, and that’s the mark of a great songwriter. There is no artifice to his playing and writing. The music is up-front yet not shallow—just because it’s not hard to understand what is going on in the songs doesn’t mean they don’t have meaning and depth.

Even the ominous song “The Storm Is Coming” works on a deeper-surface level. In that way, Town and Country shows off Hudson’s musical and lyrical strengths with fine songs and fine playing.