Eilen Jewell
Letters From Sinners and Strangers
Signature Sounds - 2006
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available on amazon
When this disc arrived admidst great buzz about this hot new talent, there was a holding of breath to see if it would live up to its hype, and it exceeded expectations and continues to grow on the listener. Forget about classifying this disc as it will be futile, it is eminently modern and thrust in the present moment, and yet it harkens back to the time and work of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys and Benny Goodman (thanks to Alec Spieglman on clarinet and bass clarinet), the fiddle work of Daniel Kellar, the spare drum work of Jason Beek, and the upright bass of Johnny Sciascia. The band is rounded out with Jerry Miller on electric guitar and Eilen on harmonica and the acoustic guitar on all but 3,6, and 8, where Jerry trades in his electricity and picks up the acoustic guitar.
She wrote all but 5 of the 12 songs, those she didn’t write are written by the likes of Bob Dylan
(a stop time version of “Walking Down the Line”), a Charlie Rich staple “Thanks A Lot,”, a traditional tune, an adaptation she did of a speech by Martin Luther King, and a stunning version of Eric Anderson’s, “Dusty Boxcar Walls,” which might just snatch your breath away with its longing and heartache. Her own tunes are straight ahead with their intent and meanings, she doesn’t try to cloak her thoughts in artful subtle insinuations, she speaks her mind, and doesn’t mince her words with a refreshing clarity that is not brazen. This is a true synergy of country combined with the blues, the music that at times harkens back to Bob Wills and Bessie Smith and yet it is not nostalgic though it might cause you to relive some memories of a time gone by. Absolutely wonderful.