Acclaimed acoustic performers ANDY COHEN, ELEANOR ELLIS and WILLIAM LEE ELLIS return as a trio with this new album, WHISTLIN’ PAST THE GRAVEYARD. Released on Cohen’s Riverlark label, the ambitious project is a 21-track tour-de-force of old-time blues, gospel, ballads, ragtime, and country song that surpasses their previous high bar, the 1993 Marimac outing, Preachin’ in That Wilderness.
In the intervening years all three musicians have established themselves as noted artists in the folk and blues worlds, both on stage and in the studio: Eleanor records for the Patuxent label, Andy for Earwig Music, and William for Yellow Dog, where his latest solo album, Ghost Hymns, earned a Blues Music Awards nomination for Acoustic Blues Album of the Year.
Produced by William Lee Ellis and River Hartley (Ghost Hymns), Whistlin’ is a truly unique listen, one that fits no single musical category; rather, it explores with fingerpicked verve and joy the expansive palette of America’s musical past, still relevant and very much alive in the sound of this remarkable trio.
ANDY COHEN: “A singularly unique figure, Andy Cohen deserves some long overdue accolades.” – ALL MUSIC GUIDE
ELEANOR ELLIS: “A celebrated master of the country and Piedmont blues, one of the most significant women in the acoustic genre… a torchbearer.” – LIVING BLUES
WILLIAM LEE ELLIS: “A masterful genre-bender who sounds completely at home and thoroughly invested in whatever style he tackles.” – ACOUSTIC GUITAR
TRACK LIST
1 Columbus Stockade 4:12
2 Riley & Spencer 3:29
3 Pearl River Blues #2 2:21
4 Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard 1:43
5 Mr. Furry’s Blues 3:13
6 Do Right Woman 2:42
7 Police Dog Blues 3:03
8 Won’t That Be a Happy Time 1:50
9 Shuckin’ Sugar 3:09
10 Handful of Frets (For Fats Waller) 2:08
11 Chicken 2:31
12 South Nashville Blues 3:02
13 Make Believe Stunt 1:51
14 I Will Turn Your Money Green 2:37
15 Memphis Minnie and Me 2:30
16 I’m Goin’ Home 3:02
17 Red River Blues 3:27
18 I’ll Be Rested (When the Roll Is Called) 3:03
19 Drunkard’s Lament 2:25
20 Ye Banks and Braes 2:16
21 I Am Born to Preach the Gospel 2:50
CREDITS
ARTISTS Andy Cohen + Eleanor Ellis + William Lee Ellis
SPECIAL GUESTS:
Steve Feinbloom + Fraser Speirs + Vernita Weller + Julie Coffey
RECORDED November – December 2024 AT Spicy World Studios, Burlington, VT
PRODUCED BY River Hartley + William Lee Ellis
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Andy Cohen
ENGINEERED AND MIXED BY River Hartley
MASTERED BY Jim Godsey
COVER AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS ADAPTED FROM Les Songes Drolatiques de Pantagruel BY Richard Breton, François Desprez (ILLUSTRATOR)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN 1565. THESE IMAGES ARE FROM AN 1869 REPRODUCTION
PRINTED BY LOUIS PERRIN OF LYON AND ARE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
GRAPHIC DESIGN BY Al Brandtner AT Brandtner Design
INSERT BOOKLET COVER PHOTOGRAPHY BY Jennifer Sirey
SPECIAL THANKS TO Michael Frank, Neil Rossi, Nate & Trevor at Advanced Music