ALLIGATOR PREPARES NEW RELEASE FROM ERIC LINDELL
Passionate blue-eyed soul smothered with a big heap of New Orleans funk makes you feel like dancing all the way down Canal Street. --Los Angeles Daily News
Alligator Records has set a March 24 street date for Gulf Coast Highway, the new CD from soul, rock and blues singer, songwriter and guitarist Eric Lindell. Only a few short years ago, Lindell was known only to a small but enthusiastic group of fans in his native Northern California and his adopted home town of New Orleans. Once he hit the national music scene with his 2006 Alligator Records debut Change In The Weather, critics and fans around the world celebrated the arrival of a roots rocker with dozens of unforgettable original songs. His combination of sweet, blue-eyed soul with groove-laden R&B, swamp pop, funk and blues won him critical and popular acclaim across the country. Writers and disc jockeys made comparisons to Van Morrison and Delbert McClinton. With his 2007 release Low On Cash, Rich In Love, his popularity increased exponentially. A February 2008 appearance on Late Night With Conan O’Brien put him in front of an audience of millions of people worldwide.
Recorded at Balance Studio in Mandeville, Louisiana, Gulf Coast Highway features 12 original songs and three inspired covers. The CD finds Lindell reaching new performing and songwriting heights. His soul-drenched mix of roots-rock, sinewy blues, swampy R&B and a hint of honky-tonk soul permeates every song. With musical help from some of the Crescent City’s finest players, including the Galactic rhythm section of Robert Mercurio and Stanton Moore on some tracks, Lindell has created his most fully realized lyrical and musical statement yet.
Born in San Mateo, California in 1969, Lindell spent countless hours in San Francisco, soaking up the musical sounds of the city, eventually leading him to pick up first the bass and then the guitar and harmonica. Lindell listened to the music of The Impressions as well as Buddy Guy. He discovered blues greats Junior Wells, Jimmy Reed and Albert King before drifting toward the R&B sounds of Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway, soaking up the soul and learning how to craft a song. After performing at bars on the West Coast with a few short-lived bands, Eric formed his own group in 1993 and quickly gained a loyal California audience thanks to countless performances and many late-night jam sessions. Established stars like Charlie Musselwhite and Tom Waits attended his gigs, as did overflow crowds of music fans.
Lindell left for New York in 1998, gigging there regularly before heading down to New Orleans in 1999, where he quickly discovered the roots music scene. He gravitated toward the West Bank dive bars of Gretna and Algiers, Louisiana, where he befriended many older swamp pop musicians who helped him get more regular gigs. Before long he met up with Galactic’s Stanton Moore, and the two jammed together often. Some of New Orleans’ finest players, including keyboardist Ivan Neville and drummers Harold Brown (War) and Johnny Vidacovich, often joined him on stage. Galactic bassist Rob Mercurio began sitting in as well, and word of Lindell’s immense talents quickly spread around the city.
Lindell’s 2006 Alligator Records debut, Change In The Weather, delighted and surprised music fans hungry for a truly original artist. Lindell’s deceptively simple sounding songs, laid back grooves and hook-laden melodies were fueled by guests including Brown, Neville and Moore. Critics across the country went wild, with reviews and features in Relix, OffBeat, Harp, Guitar Player, Down Beat, The New Yorker, The New York Press and many other national and regional publications. Singer And Musician magazine put Eric on the cover and many newspaper entertainment sections did the same. The Chicago Sun-Times said, “Eric Lindell is a tremendous raw talent with a poet's soul. He writes from the heart with a fully realized musical vision.”
The 2007 release of Low On Cash, Rich In Love pushed Lindell farther into the spotlight. Appearances on Late Night With Conan O’Brien, his return to Mountain Stage and reviews in USA Today, Relix, Down Beat, Harp, Living Blues, Blues Revue and many other national and regional publications solidified Lindell’s stature as an artist who simply could not be ignored.
Lindell’s live shows draw as much attention as his material. Fun, funky, high-energy and set-list free shows keep fans clamoring for more and coming back again and again. His unstoppable grooves, rocking, deeply rooted, original songs and excellent musicianship never fail to fill the dance floor. Guitar Player says, “Impressive, super slinky classic blues and rock with a taste of country twang. Lindell is bound to win over roots music fans for years to come.” The Philadelphia Inquirer simply called his music, “timeless blue-eyed soul.” The Boston Herald calls him “a ferocious talent.” With the release of Gulf Coast Highway, and a full slate of tour dates around the country, Eric Lindell’s talent and soul will shine brightly from the Gulf Coast to stages all over the world.
