Search - Mark Erelli :: Hillbilly Pilgrim

A great poet and an awesome singer

P. Parry | Arlington , VA, USA | 06/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I saw Mark open for the Subdudes a few months ago and now I'm hooked. As a fellow native of rural New England, I listen to his lyrics and think he could be talking about my hometown, my relationships, my life."Bend in the River" and "Farewell Ball" are great anthems to the decline of small-town life, but he focusses on the determination of people, and subtly refrains from the anger and finger-pointing of many folkies. "Troubadour Blues" is awesome -- pay attention to how the list of legends changes each time the refrain comes around. It also shows he's not afraid to be political, but again subtly: I had to check the date on the album to know which president he was sarcastically thanking with the line "each time you open up your mouth you give me something I can use." My only disappointment is that, even on this latest album, he still hasn't recorded his incredibly moving September 12th anthem "The Only Way". (...0but as great as Ellis is, his recording doesn't compare to Mark's live performance)."

Eh

Danielle | RI | 06/13/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Since I bought this album I heard Mark say that Pilgrim Highway is kind of incongruous with the rest of the material on this album- I bought it thinking it would all sound like that track, generally. But this is the western swing album he made, with the one folky, acoustic hymn at the end. hmmm. I'd also like to know what album Ghost is on, I can't seem to find it listed anywhere. This album is OK but not in the vein I was expecting."