Ellis Paul has been traversing lands and discovering their riches since 1965. Born in the potato farming country of upstate Maine, he struck out for Boston after excelling as a middle and long-distance runner in high school on the strength of results good enough to earn an athletics scholarship to Boston College. It was there that he turned to guitar and songwriting after fate intervened to sideline his athletics career in the form of a knee injury.
Open mic stages and New England coffee houses were the incubator that set him on the fast track to honing his craft as a singer-songwriter-guitarist in the early 1990s. Before long he had emerged as one of the brightest lights in the galaxy of prodigiously talented stars working the Boston-area folk scene at the time, a cohort that included Patty Griffin, Patty Larkin, Vance Gilbert, Dar Williams, and Martin Sexton, among others. Paul’s distinguished discography, released on the Rounder, Black Wolf, and his own Rosella labels, was also launching at around this time. Stories (1994) and A Carnival of Voices (1995) stand out as particularly impressive examples of his precocious command of folk song forms and growing confidence as a lyricist. The 1990s and early 2000s saw him accumulate a cabinet full of music awards, maintain heavy annual touring schedules, and steadily build a nation-wide audience of loyal fans, an audience that continues to grow with the release of each new album.
Several critics have noted that Ellis Paul embodies a distinctively Boston school of songwriting, characterized by observational economy, vividly drawn characters and a “show-don’t-tell” philosophy of lyric writing. And indeed, he does exemplify all of these traits in his extensive catalogue, brilliantly and abundantly.
But to focus on him as a master of songwriting alone is to miss the bigger picture, for he is and does so much more. An original American renaissance man, he is also an illustrator, poet, children’s book author, producer, music tour leader, collaborator, innovator, educator, commencement speaker, honorary doctorate recipient, respected spokesperson among his peer group of leading folk artists, and esteemed mentor to newer songwriters such as Rebecca Loebe, Antje Duvekot, and Seth Glier. Then there are his forays into other media, such as song placements in successful movies, covers by Grammy nominated artists, his Parent’s Choice Foundation award for two children’s albums, and his headlining roles as a performer at Woody Guthrie festivals and tribute concerts. The achievements and accolades go on and on.
More recently, his 22nd and latest album, 55 (2023), culminates a string of outstanding recent releases stretching back at least as far as Chasing Beauty (2014) and The Storyteller’s Suitcase (2019), each of which has continued to set the bar ever higher on his oeuvre. From the emotionally charged, sophisticated Americana of “Plastic Soldiers” and “Kick Out the Lights (Johnny Cash)” from Chasing Beauty, to the abject pathos of “I Ain’t No Jesus,” the metaphysical heartbreak of “The Innocence and the Afterlife” and the hilariously unreliable narration of “4th of July,” all from The Storyteller’s Suitcase, Paul turns his attention to midlife reflections on 55.
In this latest suite of songs he examines who and where he is, checking the pulse of an exhausted, post-COVID nation in the process, and further refines his storytelling craft. A case in point is “Holy,” a devastating masterpiece that discloses only just enough for us to paint our own picture of the tragedy of the doomed dreams of a young Irishman. Allowing space for his listeners to add their own individual and shared layers of meaning is something Ellis Paul creates with consummate ease. That’s why legions of fans each have their own favorite Ellis Paul stories, encounters, shows, and, of course, songs. Like all great artists, he is able to communicate with us all, but in languages that are unique to each of us.
But while he may seem to have made all this sound easy, it wasn’t. The making of 55 coincided not only with the COVID years, but also with his ongoing struggles to manage Dupuytren’s contracture, a debilitating condition that afflicted both of his hands with potentially career- ending consequences for playing guitar and piano. Fortunately, potato farming and distance running teach endurance and resilience!
The storyteller closes his suitcase, but the worlds within it keep changing, the traveler keeps moving on, and brand new vistas keep opening up with each twist and turn in the road. From Maine to Big Sur, Okemah to Homer, Alaska, from hardscrabble rustbelt towns to peachy Georgia, from the plains of Texas to the snows of Alberta, these lands are our lands. This land is his land.
“Born in Okemah shoes, with the Dust Bowl blues, a friend of the working man,” was how Willis Alan Ramsey described Woody Guthrie, a description that doubles to perfectly situate Ellis Paul’s exploration of the fractured, kaleidoscopic landscape of America’s soul. Ellis Paul shares his land with us. And in sharing it with us, the truth he reveals is that it is also ours.
In the tradition of Woody Guthrie, Charlie uses his music as a vehicle to build a better world through programs like Music to Life, Stop the Hate, monthly performances in the local spinal cord injury unit, and countless charities and events that advocate for human rights and environmental action. Charlie’s music is both informed and inspired by the amazing individuals who give themselves to these causes. He does not see his music as political, but honest. Honest about the events the songs are written about. Honest about the impact these events had on our lives, and honest about the agency and advocacy resulting from these events. Charlie believes if you have an honest song, the truth will shine.
Throughout the 90’s and early 2000s, Charlie was a regular throughout the Great Lakes region performing at bookstores, cafes, festivals, and hosting open mics. His 1997 performances at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum during their weeklong program Woody Guthrie: Hard Travelin’, helped to establish him as a local authority on Guthrie’s music and life. This led to more workshops and performances throughout the US on the subject.
In 2010 Charlie sustained a spinal cord injury leaving him as a high functioning quadriplegic. Following surgery and physical therapy, set out to re-establish his music career with a new enthusiasm born out of his personal tragedy. Recognizing that his former level of activity in his new physical situation was unsustainable, he his focus turned toward building a stronger national presence in the folk community. This focused helped to gain him attention from a wider audience and helped to establish his music on folk radio programs throughout the USA and Canada. His song “Remember Who We Are” won second place in the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival. His CD Something to Believe was the featured album on WFMT Chicago’s Midnight Special, and his song “Up Among the Stars” was featured on No Depression.
His involvement in a wider folk community led him into service where he began volunteering with Folk Alliance International where he is currently serving on the Board of Directors. This work included serving as a workshop coordinator for Folk Alliance Region Midwest where he ultimately took over the role of FARM President (2020-2023). He has also serves as president to the Northeast Ohio organization Folknet. Charlie is also a juried artist with Music to Life, a member of the Folk Alliance Cultural Equity Council, and serves as the disability advocate and chair to the City of Cleveland Heights’ Transportation Advisory Committee.
During the pandemic, Charlie found a new role as a music educator through Roots of American Music, teaching songwriting workshops with the Stop the Hate- Sing out program, guiding 10 classes into the finals with two overall wins and three runner up awards. Grants were awarded to the classes. He also teaches elementary classes in a program called Blues is the Backbone, a history of American music.
In addition to current civic and non-profit work, performs for festivals, house concerts, farmers markets, and various venues throughout the United States. He is looking forward to returning to a touring schedule. A railroad enthusiast, Charlie builds his tours around rail routes.
