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NEWS
Jeff Ellis releasing new album, competing in Mountain Stage's songwriter contest
Local musician Jeff Ellis began playing guitar at age twelve. His latest solo album, ÒCovering the Distance,Ó is set to be released late this month.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- October is set to be a big month for 27-year-old singer/songwriter Jeff Ellis of Huntington.
His latest solo album "Covering the Distance" is set to be released late this month.
While working on that album, Ellis also was accepted into the 2008 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest. The contest is one of North America's premier showcases of emerging performing songwriters in all genres of music, including pop, rock, folk, jazz, old-time, world music and many crossover styles.
"It was like winning an award or something," Ellis said. "It was my third year trying out, but this is the first time I've made it to the finals."
That means Ellis will compete with 11 other finalists on Saturday, Oct. 11, in Charleston for a chance to perform the next night during an internationally broadcast "Mountain Stage" show. He's looking forward to competing against the variety of talent.
While Ellis would like to get a recording contract, he says he's more concerned with entertaining his audience and writing music and lyrics that truly represent his experiences.
And those are becoming increasingly varied.
With influences such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Neil Young, it is easy to see why Ellis has matured from a hard-rock jamming vocalist to a thoughtful, socially conscious musician.
Ellis began playing the guitar at age 12 and found friends to play with in his hometown of Chapmanville, W.Va. Hoping to live in a more musical environment, Ellis moved to Huntington at 17 and began taking classes at Marshall University in 2000.
He played with a number of local musicians and eventually formed the band Guinness Clarke's Wine in 2000.
Between going to the occasional class and playing gigs at night, Ellis had to fulfill the commitment he made to the Army Reserves when he was 17.
"I (joined) on a whim," Ellis said. "I've never been able to stay in one place for too long. I figured I'd be able to get out and travel and be able to come back to continue my music career."
Ellis was deployed to Fort Bragg, N.C., in 2002, was put on active duty and was deployed to Kuwait in 2005 with the 261st Ordinance Company. Before he was deployed, he produced a 10-song solo album titled "The Enemy."
While in Kuwait, Ellis served as ammunition support for forces traveling through the Iraq/Kuwait border. He also inspected and confiscated any materials not allowed to be transported through the borders.
Though the region has plenty of conflict and fighting, Ellis said the only thing he had to fight off was boredom.
"About 99.5 percent of the time, you are bored and hot," Ellis said. "We pretty much watched 'Desperate Housewives' and sweated. If you ever want to catch up on your DVD TV series watching, go to Kuwait."
With little to do, Ellis said he spent most of his time writing songs, playing and giving guitar lessons to fellow soldiers. He attributes his renewed musical focus away from hard-rock and toward folk/Americana music to his time in Kuwait.
Instead of "singing and flailing around on stage," Ellis said he started focusing on soulful song writing. Though he became more focused on music, the opportunity to play music publicly or to have bands visit his camp were few and far between.
With few options for entertainment, another soldier suggested four months into Ellis' deployment that he perform in camp. Ellis did and enjoyed playing with visiting bands and at religious services for two military camps every week.
By the end of his year in Kuwait, Ellis had about 52 songs complete or almost complete. While on a visit home, Ellis produced several tracks for his second solo album, titled "A Front Seat for the End of the World."
When he returned to Huntington in September 2006, Ellis finished work on the album and released it in spring 2007.
The album is a mixture of first-person accounts and character songs focusing on story-telling and war stories. One song, "In Harm's Way," tells the story of a roadside bombing while "All Masters Will Serve" serves as a denouncement of the wealthy's control over the poor.
Since returning home, Ellis has performed at Huntington clubs and bars while attending Marshall as a junior English major. Ellis also fulfilled a longtime dream when he performed on National Public Radio's "Mountain Stage" in October 2007. A staple for Americana music, Ellis said his experience on "Mountain Stage" was both his most "humbling and proudest" moment. He performed four songs, including the fifth track of his new album -- "The Men in Sago Mine."
After performing around the city for more than a year, Ellis decided to make "Covering the Distance."
Ellis used what money he had from his performing gigs, his part-time job at Lowe's Home Improvement and from the Army Reserves to hire Eddie Ashworth to produce and engineer the album.
Ashworth, a faculty member of the School of Media Arts and Studies at Ohio University, has produced for such bands as Sublime and Pennywise. Working with Ashworth, Ellis wanted to create a different sound for his newest album, set to be released in late October.
"Eddie's a great producer to work with," Ellis said. "We were serious in the studio, but not too serious to get stressed out about what we were doing."
To infuse his new album with a mixture of folk, bluegrass and rock music, Ellis was aided by local band Bud Carrol and the Southern Souls. No longer relying just on his acoustic guitar to carry the album, Ellis implemented new sounds. In "Covering the Distance," Ellis used everything from fiddles, mandolins and accordions, to stand-up basses and cellos.
"It's cool to see your vision go from an acoustic demo to a fully-produced stereo track," Ellis said.
On several tracks, Ellis showed his musical range by putting down his harmonica and acoustic guitar and playing other instruments such as the mandolin and bass guitar. For live shows, however, Ellis plans to stick to the guitar and harmonica.
Ellis plans to keep playing in Huntington and promote his new album. He hopes his new sound will entertain his current fans and bring new ones to his shows.
Aside from promoting the new album, Ellis re-enlisted in the Army Reserves to "look out" for his 23-year-old brother, Joe, also serving in the 261st Ordinance Company. Ellis said the money from the Army Reserves, about $15,000, will go toward furthering his music career and education.
While serving again in Kuwait, Ellis said he plans to continue his old routine of "making sure people aren't bringing any SCUDs home for souvenirs."
For information on upcoming shows or for samples of his new album, visit Jeff Ellis' Myspace page at www.myspace.com/jeffellismusic.
