Release Date: 29 June 2015
Label: Black Hen Music
Packaging Type: Jewel Case
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 875531008371
Genres: Blues
Description
It's as thin as the edge of a razor, the road separating Heaven from Hell, sin from salvation, redemption from despair. It's a lonely road to go down and like the old gospel says, you've got to walk it for yourself. Kelly Joe Phelps has been doing lot of soul searching since his last record, 'Western Bell' came out in 2009. Three years later, his journey has wound its way to a recording studio in Vancouver, and Kelly Joe has once again beaten a path to Steve Dawson's door with a new batch of songs tucked into his satchel that reflect both the new insights gained along the journey as well as things that have been dropped by the wayside. Together Phelps and the veteran producer embarked on a three day recording odyssey that has resulted in 'Brother Sinner and the Whale', a record that may very well come to be recognized as the best of an already very impressive body of work. Since his debut album 'Lead Me On', came out in 1994, the Pacific Northwest based singer and songwriter has written and performed some of the most compelling slide guitar based music ever recorded. Though he spent his early years playing free jazz, he has never strayed too far from the roots music world that has become his passion.
Playing a lap slide in a style that both evoked the sounds of the ancients
and pointed towards new possibilities for the instrument, Kelly Joe's music seemed to originate in another time as he sang with the voice of an old soul, weary with experience, yet excited with all of the prospects that life brings.
It's amazing to consider how three days spent in a recording studio has allowed Phelps to redefine who he is as an artist with a solo record that builds on all of his lyrical, compositional and technical strengths to form the best album of his career.
Tracklisting
Big Dave McLean
Ndidi O
Steve Dawson
Steve Dawson
John Wort Hannam
Steve Dawson
Great Uncles Of The Revolution
Jim Byrnes
Thorbjorn Risager & The Black Tornado
Parchman Prison Prayer
Shawn Pittman
Little Walter
Jimmie Vaughan
Jimmie Vaughan
Various Artists
Memphis Minnie
