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\n\tThis week, Kaitlin Butts celebrates inking a label deal with Republic by issuing a tender revamping of a Jimmy Eat World hit. Meanwhile, Riley Green<\/a> teams with Jamey Johnson<\/a> for a robust new collab, and ERNEST<\/a>, Sammy Arriaga and newcomer Joshua Slone also offer new tracks.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tExplore\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n See latest videos, charts and news<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \n\tCheck out all of these and more in\u00a0Billboard<\/em>\u2018s roundup of some of the best country, bluegrass and\/or Americana songs of the week below.<\/p>\n \n\tKaitlin Butts, \u201cThe Middle\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tButts, who recently inked a deal with Republic Records, offers up a revamped version of Jimmy Eat World\u2019s 2001 hit, transforming it into a soothing, hopeful, acoustic-driven track driven by guitars, fiddle and understated percussion. Butts\u2019 version comes across as tender, wise and thoughtful, particularly on lines such as \u201cJust do your best, do everything you can\/ And don\u2019t you worry what their bitter hearts are gonna say.\u201d That\u2019s a timeless message people of all ages can cling to.<\/p>\n \n\tJamey Johnson and Riley Green, \u201cSmoke\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tJamey Johnson welcomes Riley Green for this barn burner, intertwining Johnson\u2019s weathered, gravelly vocal with Green\u2019s burnished twang as they explore the motif of \u201csmoke\u201d with varying meanings throughout the heartbreak-driven track. At various points throughout \u201cSmoke,\u201d the titular phrase references the plumes billowing from an ex\u2019s tires as she speeds away, or the wisps of smoke curling from the end of the lit cigarette he\u2019s using to obscure his pain. Green and Johnson wrote the song with Erik Dylan and recorded the track at the Cash Cabin and Big Gassed Studios, with production from Kyle Lehning and Jim \u201cMoose\u201d Brown, which captures complementary ties between Johnson and Green\u2019s distinct styles.<\/p>\n \n\tERNEST, \u201cBlessed\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tIn his latest, ERNEST weaves a tale of love and legacy, as this song looks at a piece of land being handed down generation after generation. \u201cGranddaddy bought this slice back in 1962\/ It came with a barn, a dog in the yard and a Chevrolet painted blue,\u201d he sings, before sketching his own dreams of passing the land down to his son. Reserved guitars, bass and drums put ERNEST\u2019s vocal at the fore, as he brims with pride about passing down wisdom he hopes his son will continue learning from. \u201cBlessed\u201d precedes ERNEST\u2019s upcoming project Live From The South<\/em>, out Nov. 21.<\/p>\n \n\tSammy Arriaga, \u201cBefore the Next Teardrop Falls\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tFirst-generation Cuban American Sammy Arriaga bridges cultures and languages, combining English and Spanish-language tracks on his bilingual country Latin album Heart in Texas<\/em>, which released Oct. 31. The album also includes Arriaga\u2019s heartfelt, Spanglish rendition of Latin country trailblazer Freddy Fender\u2019s classic \u201cBefore The Next Teardrop Falls\u201d (Fender\u2019s original topped both the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and Hot 100 in 1975). Arriaga\u2019s version simultaneously pays graceful homage to Fender\u2019s original, while, like the rest of the songs on the album, Arriaga stamps every lyric and message with his unique artistry and warm, welcoming vocal tone.<\/p>\n \n\tJoshua Slone, \u201cYour Place at My Place\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tInterscope signee Slone makes a striking entrance with his 16-song, debut album Thinking Too Much<\/em>, which features Slone as the sole writer on each track. The angst-fueled \u201cYour Place at My Place\u201d finds him musing about unfruitful attempts to move past a faded relationship. \u201cNo one\u2019s ever taken your place at my place,\u201d the Kentucky native concisely laments. His full project showcases his vivid, vulnerable songwriting, cementing Slone as one of country music\u2019s most compelling new voices. <\/p>\n\n