The Pilgrim

So-called concept albums are few and far between in country music-and there's a good reason for that-but Marty Stuart has connected with "The Pilgrim," the most artistically cohesive and rewarding such work since Willie Nelson's 1975 opus "Red Headed Stranger." Stuart's concept is not as lofty as Nelson's but is similar: It's the tale of small-town love gone wrong and the tragedy and revenge it engenders. Along the way, Stuart drapes the narrative on a sturdy framework of evocative songs. He's also managed the tight-wire feat of turning some of them into country radio-friendly songs, such as the current release "Red, Red Wine And Cheatin' Songs." There's also stellar help from such talents as George Jones, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Ralph Stanley, Josh Graves, Pam Tillis, and Earl Scruggs. Jones and Harris' masterful rendition of "Truckstop" and Cash's reading of an excerpt from the Tennyson poem "Sir Galahad" are show-stopping moments.