![]() ![]() The intensity is turned up only slightly for the wonderful Who You Are, as dobro joins the mix and we get our first taste of those delightful Laurie/ Abbie/ Seth harmonies.Ī capella harmonies provide the intro to the excellent The Gift, one of the album’s true highlights. Opening track, Cosmos, is soft and gentle Ellis sings in a half-whispered voice, his acoustic guitar is discrete, whilst Radoslav’s accordion is so subtle as to be barely noticeable. Over and over, they add that special seasoning that turns an already tasty offering into something quite delicious.ĥ5 gets off to a rather low-key start. ![]() But, perhaps the ace in the hole that elevates 55 from the level of “good” to the status of “excellent” is provided by the divine harmony backing vocals from Laurie MacAllister and Abbie Gardner of the Americana trio Red Molly, and Seth Glier. The production is soft and subtle, often laid back, and prominence is rightly given to Ellis’s vocals and the lyrical content of the songs. Kristian Bush chips in with ukelele, Radoslav Lorković plays accordion and Eric Parker and Mark Dann complete the picture on, respectively, drums and bass. On 55, Ellis’s guitars and piano are supplemented by a small, tight and well-chosen band of fellow travelers. The structure of his songs, the instrumentation and, most notably, Ellis’s vocal delivery prompt repeated comparisons with Stevens’ work – here, I found the similarities most prominent in The Gift, Be The Fire and When Angels Fall, just three of the highlights on this excellent album – and such a comparison is surely no bad thing, is it? I’m sure that I won’t be the first, or last, writer to remark on the similarity between the work of Ellis Paul and that of Tea For The Tillerman-era Cat Stevens. Not that you’d notice any disability purely by listening to 55 the album is beautifully produced and Ellis’s guitar and piano work is fluent, melodic and expressive. He soldiers on and is now looking forward to similar surgery in 2024 to restore movement in his right hand. The tide started to turn in December 2022, when Ellis underwent successful surgery to free the fingers of his left hand, enabling him to form chord shapes once again. It was the onset of Dupuytren’s that inspired Ellis to write the songs that became 55 in a literal race against time, he had no idea whether (or when) the contracture would become so severe that he wouldn’t be able to play at all. The impact of the disease to any sufferer is devastating to a pianist and guitarist, it’s catastrophic. Sadly, he also contracted Dupuytren’s Contracture, a disease that causes the sufferer’s hands to close into fists. During 2020, as COVID tightened its all-pervading grip on the world, Ellis, like many, many musicians to grace these pages, retreated to the sanctuary of his home to write, record and perform livestream shows – to keep the music flowing and also to salvage some semblance of a livelihood from the COVID wreckage. It hasn’t all been plain sailing – not by any means. Along the way, his songs have featured in TV shows and movies and he’s become internationally recognized as a major standard-bearer to the heritage of Woody Guthrie. It’s a career that has seen Ellis perform alongside the likes of Shawn Colvin, Patty Griffin and Vance Gilbert, had him breathing the same rarified air as Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Nanci Griffith and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and which has yielded over 20 albums. His career began back in his college days when he plucked up the courage to step up to the open mic in the clubs and coffeehouses of Boston. We loved it, and our appetite was appropriately whetted in anticipation of the album – and now, happily – the album is here, and I’m pleased to say that our anticipation is amply rewarded.Īs we’ve already reported, 2023 marks Ellis Paul’s 30 th year as a headlining performer. Just about a month ago, At The Barrier had the great pleasure of reviewing Gold In California, the second single and sneak preview of the forthcoming album from Bostonian singer-songwriter Ellis Paul. Well – we’ve had the appetizer now here comes the main course… ![]()
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