One of the things I love to do is to take to the road and listen to music. Many of the artists of the Blue Moon find me among the audience at their shows across the country. I try to tell them up front---hey, I just love the music, I'm not a stalker... After doing shows throughout the Blue Moon season, it's nice to kick back and enjoy them form time to time. Admittedly, sometimes I want to get at the controls of a sound board and fix the mix...as I once did at a Madison, WI show for SONiA--- but that's another story.
Sometime back, I caught a co-bill with two of my favorites, Ellis and Susan Werner in Minneapolis at a great venue, the Cedar Cultural Center. After the show, I was struck by Ellis' warmth and fond memories of the Blue Moon. The last time he had played here, his show came up just before that of his good friend, Vance Gilbert. Ellis primed the Blue Moon audience to urge Vance to give him one of Vance's prized airplanes that he meticulously crafts after many hours of work. The Blue Moon patrons eagerly obliged Ellis' request throughout the night. Ellis let me know in Minneapolis that he appreciated the efforts of the Blue Moon audience, but sadly, he was still waiting for that Vance Gilbert airplane. Perhaps like unrequited love, there is a song in all of this unfulfilled desire.
As a rising star in the song writing world, Ellis is well known for his passionate yet literate character sketches that strike at the heart of the human condition. Telling details, Ellis Paul’s songs merge big ideas with incidental moments. His last album, Sweet Mistakes, features 11 new tracks and one remix of Ellis’ most recent writing treasures. Ellis’ expanding audience has grown even further since the title track from the album… “Sweet Mistakes” was chosen by the Fralley Brothers (Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary) for the film Shallow Hal, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Jack Black (20th Century Fox). The Shallow Hal soundtrack includes Ellis Paul in the company of such artists as: Sheryl Crow, Shelby Lynne, PJ Harvey, Lucinda Williams and Neil Young. His most recent album, The Speed of Trees, is already garnering critical praise. The Boston Globe recently hailed him as "a national folk star and to many the quintessential Boston songwriter: literate, provocative, urbanely romantic." While living the troubadour's lifestyle, the applause and accolades have followed him wherever he performs. Ellis won the Kerrville (TX) "Best New Folk" Award and the Acoustic Underground Competition. USA Today tagged him as a "Best Bet for Stardom," and his records have charted in the Top 5 of the CMJ and Gavin Triple-A radio polls. Dirty Linen magazine has called Ellis "one of contemporary folk music's most influential voices." To learn more about Ellis Paul go to his web site at: www.ellispaul.com/