Re-issue of Eilen Jewell's 2005 debut album
Eilen Jewell burst onto the Boston music scene with her 2005 debut, Boundary Country. Reaction to her music was swift, with many comparing her talents to those of Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch, and June Carter Cash. Discover Boundary County, a stunning collection of thirteen original songs about trying to get along in a world gone wrong. On her first full-length studio album, Jewell drew from a wide range of inspirations, including Howlin' Wolf, Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, and Bob Dylan. No stranger to adversity, Jewell lost the previous album she recorded, a collection of covers and originals, when the studio burned down and the masters were destroyed. Boundary County, rather than being an attempted resurrection of the previous effort, headed confidently in new directions, whether with the barroom stomp of "Mess Around," the rock-steady "Back To Dallas," the beautiful dirge "Till You Lay Down Your Heavy Load," the Masters of War-like "The Flood," the Harvest whine of "Boundary County," the tent-meeting shuffle of "Gotta Get Right," the cowboy blues of "Fourth Degree," or the highway blues of "Blow It All Away." Her first-rate backing band on this recording, made at Chris Rival's Middleville Studio, includes drummer Jason Beek, also of Whoa! Man! Jesus!, fiddler Daniel Kellar and upright bass player Johnny Sciascia, both former Tarbox Ramblers, dobro/lap steel legend Jerry Miller of The Spurs, and Greg Glassman of Tastes Like Gravy String Band on banjo. Crafting a unique style that mixes poetic ballads with swinging rockers, Eilen Jewell ranks among the best in the Americana genre today. As the reigning Queen of the Minor Key, Jewell leads a tight quartet who blend influences of surf-noir, early blues, rockabilly, and 1960s era rock and roll. Over the course of a decade, Eilen and her band have toured relentlessly. They have performed for legions of fans from Boston to Boise and Madrid to Melbourne at festivals, theaters, rock clubs, and coffeehouses. Eilen's fans marvel at her warmth, unique wit, and onstage humor alongside her beautiful songs and fiery performances.
