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LATEST BILLY ELI NEWS

Newsletter April 18,2010

Press Release April 16, 2010 "Country-Rocker Billy Eli brings his Dust up to the North East"

Newsletter April 9, 2010

Newsletter January 2010

 Super Special Preview of "Thompkins County Blues"

OK. So while I usually never let anybody hear songs I've written  until they're really worked up, it just so happened that while I was sitting around last Saturday waiting for the Cowboys-Eagles game to start, I accidentally wrote a new song.

 

I say accidentally because I wasn't particularly trying to write a song. In fact, I was mostly brain dead due to having spent the previous 4 hours staring mindlessly at a football game and occasionally yelling at the TV.

 

Anyway, I ended up writing a new song, and while it may not ever make the cut to an album, is still, I think, an ok little ditty.

 

Here's what happened.

 

Several months ago I decided that I wanted to put together a little tour in upstate New York. You know, kind of a busman's holiday where I would play a few shows and spend the rest of the time catching up with  friends and musician buddies. I haven't been on the road since last spring, and the last time I was out it was a more hectic schedule with a lot of one nighters followed by long drives the next day. This was going to be completely different - more relaxed with no driving between shows. Everything would be centered around Ithaca, with a couple of shows in Trumansburg. I was thrilled when I was able to get all the dates and places to line up. The only real downside was that the dates and places didn't line up until the last week of January. 

 

Now, while I usually avoid cold weather at all costs, I have somehow managed to end up in upstate New York the last 3 Januarys. It's worth a little bit of freezing-my-ass-off for me to get to see all my friends.

 

So, I get the confirmation on the last show and then I send out a round of e-mails announcing my soon-to-be presence in the great white north. The next day I had at least a half dozen replies asking why in the hell was I coming in January? What kind of brain damage would make me leave Austin for Ithaca in the middle of winter, and why didn't I wait until May(April being a winter month in central NY)?

 

I received so many replies in such a short amount of time that I almost lost my nerve and backed out, but instead I wound up writing this song.

 

It's called  "The Tompkins County Blues," and I wrote it in about two hours on Saturday. I called Jim late that evening and asked if we could demo it the next day(Jim has a sweet little demo studio set up at his house with a decent mic a lot of different guitars and a really righteous beer fridge.)  Jim said Sunday would be perfect, so here's the demo. I don't usually let anyone but the band and production crew hear rough demos, but given the timeliness of the song's content I decided to make an allowance this one time.

 

As always feedback in appreciated and encouraged. I'll talk to ya'll soon, and to all my friends in the great white north, I'll see ya'll in about a week.