Infamous Angel

Infamous Angel is the debut studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Iris DeMent. It was released by Philo Records in 1992. The liner notes were written by John Prine, to whom DeMent's music has been compared by Los Angeles Times critic Robert Hilburn.^[1]

Infamous Angel
Studio album by Iris DeMent
Released	October 7, 1992
Studio	Cowboy Arms (Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre	Country folk
Length	38:28
Label	Rounder (Philo), Warner from 1993
Producer	Jim Rooney
Iris DeMent chronology
Infamous Angel (1992) My Life (1994)

In 1995, her song "Our Town" was played in the closing moments of the last episode for the CBS TV series Northern Exposure. It has been recorded by Kate Rusby, Jody Stecher, Kate Brislin, and Trampled by Turtles

The Transatlantic Sessions version of "Let the Mystery Be" became the theme song for the second season and series finale of The Leftovers.

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Chicago Tribune	[3]
Christgau's Consumer Guide	B+[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[5]
Entertainment Weekly	A[6]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide	[7]
Pitchfork	9.0/10[8]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	5/10[9]

Track listing

All songs by Iris DeMent except as indicated.

1. "Let the Mystery Be" – 2:46
2. "These Hills" – 3:40
3. "Hotter Than Mojave in My Heart" – 2:33
4. "When Love Was Young" – 3:38
5. "Our Town" – 4:58
6. "Fifty Miles of Elbow Room" (Rev F.W. McGee) – 3:12
7. "Infamous Angel" – 3:46
8. "Sweet Forgiveness" – 2:44
9. "After You've Gone" – 4:04
10. "Mama's Opry" – 3:25
11. "Higher Ground" (listed as "Traditional" in the liner notes but in fact by Johnson Oatman, Jr. (lyrics) and Charles H. Gabriel (music)) – 3:34

Personnel

• Iris DeMent – lead and harmony vocals, guitar

Additional musicians

• Jeff Black – harmony vocals (11)
• Flora Mae DeMent – lead vocals (11)
• Jerry Douglas – Dobro (7)
• Stuart Duncan – fiddle, mandolin
• Emmylou Harris – harmony vocals, guitar (10)
• Mark Howard – guitar
• Jeff Hushkins – bass
• Roy Huskey, Jr. – bass
• Hal Ketchum – harmony vocals (11)
• Al Perkins – Dobro (1–6, 8–11)
• Jim Rooney – producer, harmony vocals (6, 11)
• Pete Wasner – piano

Technical

• Richard Adler – recording and mixing engineer
• Kelley McRae - cover photography

Charts

Chart (1996)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)[10]	83