Ms. Neko Case
Neko Case is a Canadian singer-songwriter with a voice that other musicians would kill to have, and her songwriting abilities aren't at all shabby either. So far, she has five albums - the early, primarily-covers albumsThe Virginian, the live, mostly-covers short The Tigers Have Spoken, and the three original material albums Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, Furnace Room Lullaby and Blacklisted (though the latter contains two covers, and her EP Canadian Amp was mostly covers as well). Neko is famed for being at the front of 'alternative country' (and many times, 'country noir'), smoothly melding John Denver and Patsy Cline with provoking, poetic lyrics, haunted narratives and hints of modern technology. While most of her songs are barely over two minutes long, they're jam-packed with world-wise musings and clever musical twists.
Note: Most of these are in .m4a format, so you'll need Winamp or iTunes to play them.
From Fox Confessor Brings the Flood (2006):
Hold On, Hold On
Dirty Knife
At Last
From The Tigers Have Spoken (2004):
If You Knew
From Blacklisted (2002):
Things That Scare Me
Deep Red Bells
Blacklisted
Ghost Wiring
From Furnace Room Lullaby (2000):
Furnace Room Lullaby