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Last night and this morning, I was thinking about which folk musician to listen to today.
When I stumbled upon the album The Speed of Trees, I took it as an omen:
it was time to spend the day with Ellis Paul.
That decision was doubly confirmed when I received a Facebook notification that today was Ellis’ birthday!
Translucent Soul (1998)
This morning, I cued up Translucent Soul,
the first Ellis Paul album I ever bought.
The album was released in 1998, but I probably picked it up a year or two later.
While I liked the whole album, it was the title track that really turned me into a fan.
His best-known song, “The World Ain’t Slowing Down”,
also appears on Translucent Soul and gained wider recognition when it was used as the theme song
in the Farrelly brothers’ movie Me, Myself and Irene starring Jim Carrey and Renée Zellweger.
About Ellis Paul
Ellis Paul (born Paul Plissey; January 14, 1965) is an American singer-songwriter and folk musician.
Born in Presque Isle, Maine, Paul is a key figure in what has become known as the
Boston school of songwriting—a literate, provocative, and urbanely romantic folk-pop style
that helped ignite the folk revival of the 1990s.
His pop-folk songs have appeared in movies and on television, bridging the gap
between the modern folk sound and the populist traditions of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger.
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The Day After Everything Changed
After listening to Translucent Soul,
I followed it with The Day After Everything Changed,
which may be my favorite Ellis Paul album.
The only time I saw Ellis live was at The Tin Angel in Philadelphia,
when he was touring in support of The Day After Everything Changed.
It was a wonderful show, and after the set he autographed my copy of the album,
which now has a special spot in my collection.
The bottom line: Ellis Paul is a terrific singer-songwriter
with a unique, distinct, and expressive voice.
If you haven’t explored his music, today is a good day to start!
The Storyteller’s Suitcase a Great Album
Ellis continues to write powerful, socially conscious songs.
One standout is “The Battle of Charlottesville”,
written after the tragic events in Charlottesville.
It appears on his 2019 release The Storyteller’s Suitcase
and shows his ability to blend storytelling with current events.