Ben Sollee - Learning To Bend [Slipcase]

Artist:

Sollee, Ben

UPC:

718122915231

See Also:

Daniel Martin Moore/Ben Sollee - Dear Companion [Digipak] [2/16] *

Description:

Personnel: Ben Sollee (guitar, cello, organ); B?la Fleck (banjo); Cheyenne Marie Mize (violin); Rayna Gellert (fiddle); Allison Reber (viola); Emily Hagihara (organ, percussion); Dick Sisto (vibraphone).
Audio Mixer: Duane Lundy.
Recording information: Shangri La Studios, Lexington, KY (2007).
Arranger: Ben Sollee.
When you think of folksingers walking down the long lonesome road, you usually think of them with a guitar slung over their shoulder. Ben Sollee`s a wandering folksinger too, but he`s dragging a cello behind him as he drifts from town to town, club to club. Like Crooked Still`s Rushad Eggleston and Tristan Clarridge, who play old-time and bluegrass music on the instrument, Sollee is interested in breaking cello stereotypes. He`s played blues with Otis Taylor and new whatchamaycallit Chinese grass with B?la Fleck and Abigail Washburn in the Sparrow Quartet. On his debut album, Sollee takes a giant step in reinventing his instrument with ten original tunes and one unexpected cover tune. On "How to See the Sun Rise" Sollee turns in a soulful vocal whilst playing bowed triplets on the cello. The `50s feel is augmented by Clayton Vaghn`s bass, with Dick Sisto`s jazzy vibes coming as a pleasant surprise. It`s a beautiful bit of retro R&B with a simple, elegant lyric. "Bury Me with My Car" has a rompin` stompin` country chorus and a verse that references Egyptian, Roman, and Chinese burial rituals, all cultures that buried important people with their boat/chariot/saddle. It`s hard to tell if he`s protesting or celebrating American car culture, which gives the tune a nice edge. "It`s Not Impossible" is a poignant acoustic rocker with a lead banjo and some smooth sax work by Jacob Goran; Sollee`s bowed cello underscores his vulnerable lead vocal as he sings of his inability to cry. "Boys don`t cry" he laments, hoping all the while for "the kiss that brings tears to my eyes." Sollee plays finger-style cello to complement his brother Bob`s folksy guitar picking on "Prettiest Tree on the Mountain," a perfect country heartbreak song. Sollee rewrote Sam Cooke`s "A Change Is Gonna Come," and delivers the new lyrics in an effortless tone that has uncanny echoes of Cooke`s style. The drums and rhythm guitar give the rhythm a slight reggae lilt that fits the tune perfectly. "A Few Honest Words" is addressed to George W., it`s a slow tune that combines R&B and old-time fiddle music to take the President to task for his lies. Sollee`s short solo, plucking and bending the strings of his cello, and his sincere vocal, make it a beautifully gentle protest song. Sollee was classically trained on the cello, but he`s interested in taking the instrument in new directions and his first solo effort is a giant step in redefining the instrument`s parameters. ~ j. poet

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. Few Honest Words, A
2. How To See The Sun Rise
3. Bury Me With My Car
4. Bend
5. It`s Not Impossible
6. I Can`t
7. Prettiest Tree On The Mountain
8. Panning For Gold
9. Change Is Gonna Come, A
10. Built For This
11. Copper & Malachite

Album Information

Release Date:

06/10/2008

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Folk

Label:

Thirty Tigers

Producer:

Ben Sollee

Catalog Number:

229152

Original Release Year:

2008

# of Discs:

1

SPARS Coding:

DDD

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

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