Track Listing

1. Brand New Baby
2. Troubadour Blues
3. Bend in the River
4. Pretend - Mark Erelli, Erin McKeown
5. Farewell Ball
6. Let's Make a Family
7. Troubles (Those Lonesome Kind)
8. My Best Was Just Not Good Enough (For You)
9. Fool No. 1
10. Ain't No Time of Year to Be Alone
11. Pilgrim Highway

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #238010 in Music
• Released on: 2004-01-20
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Customer Reviews

A great poet and an awesome singer
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).

A Fabulous Musical Turn
For the most part, this CD is quite unlike Mark's previous efforts because it moves away from the singer/songwriter style that he does quite well and moves in a radical direction that when looked at closely, isn't all that radical for Mark. This kid was meant to do Country Swing and almost writes and performs this music as if he is the reincarnated version of some Country Swing Hillbilly from the 50's. Mark is a musical talent that is growing in leaps and bounds with every new recording. Just listen to each of his past CD's and you come away shaking your head in amazement at just how talented he really is. Please buy everything he's done, but more importantly, see this young man live and you will forever be a devoted fan. If there is any justice in this life, Mark will soon reach a larger audience and everyone will get to appreciate his amazing talent.

eh
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.