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7/1/2006
Graham Clarke
You probably figured that William Lee Ellis couldn’t top his previous album, and, indeed, Conqueroo did set the bar very high. However, the roots guitarist/singer/songwriter has teamed with producer and Memphis music legend Jim Dickinson for his latest release for Yellow Dog Records. The result, God’s Tattoos, is another stunning piece of American music that, like its predecessor, gets better with each subsequent listen.
As on his prior releases, Ellis’ music embraces blues, gospel, folk, and pop in usually equal measure, sometimes in the same song. This time around, he has added rhumba to the mix with the stellar title track, whose title refers to, as Ellis explains, “the indelible ink of experience,” or the scars, both emotional and physical, that we accumulate over our lifetimes. It’s a haunting track and quite different from anything on Ellis’ previous recordings for Yellow Dog, with able help from Dickinson on keyboards, Reba Russell on backing vocals, and Rick Steff’s ethereal accordion.
Ellis’ love for gospel blues shines bright on most of the tracks, including the Southern rock update of the Rev. Gary Davis standard, “Search My Heart” (with strong vocal support by Russell and Jimmy Davis). Ellis also pays tribute to Davis with the impressive “Jesus Stole My Heart.” “Four Horses” is an Apocalyptic narrative with some rousing slide guitar, and on a tender reworking of the Mississippi John Hurt tune, “Here Am I, Lord Send Me,” Ellis is assisted by his wife, Julie Coffey, on backing vocals. In the liner notes, Ellis claims two of the tracks came to him in dreams, one being the Davis tribute, the other being “Cold and Weary,” a solemn track in recognition of the homeless.
On “Perfect Ones Who Break,” Ellis ventures more toward a pop vein with satisfying results. “The Call,” written in the wake of 9/11, features Ellis’ slide guitar and soulful vocal support from the Memphis group, the Masqueraders. There are also two instrumentals that further showcase Ellis’ guitar proficiency. On the fascinating “When Leadbelly Walked the River Like Christ,” Ellis plays his acoustic guitar with an E-bow. The second instrumental, “The Missing Moon and Stars,” is more traditional, with Andy Cohen’s dolceola complementing Ellis’ guitar beautifully.
Amy LaVere (bass) and Paul Taylor (drums) provide superlative backing and Dickinson’s production is, as expected, outstanding.
William Lee Ellis is fast distinguishing himself as not only a master guitarist, but also a gifted songwriter. God’s Tattoos is an exceptional release that will appeal to fans of all music genres, most especially blues and roots music fans.