Joe Ely - Love in the Midst of Mayhem '2020

Tracks list

Tracklist

01. Soon All Your Sorrows Be Gone
02. Garden of Manhattan
03. A Man and His Dog
04. Theres Never Been
05. Your Eyes
06. All You Are Love
07. Cry
08. Dont Worry About It
09. You Can Rely On Me

“When everything shut down, there were times for me that were absolutely
maddening,” Ely said. “I was sleeping more than I should. Finally,
my wife, Sharon, and I decided we should focus our energy on what we do
best.”
Ely turned his attention to writing and recording. Love in the Midst of Mayhem
is a collection that reflects his mindset over the past couple of months.
“We had so much time on our hands with everything shut down,” he
said. “Initially, I was only going to release a couple of songs, but more
songs kept coming together that fit where we are in the world right now.”

“It’s put together straight from the emergency we have right
now,” says longtime Ely friend and acclaimed artist Terry Allen.
“Every song is about love, for love, to love and with love… love
when we need it most. Love in the Midst of Mayhem is not just a joy to listen
to, it’s a necessity.”

The release of Love in the Midst of Mayhem is a bit unconventional in the world
of record releases. “These are different times,” Ely adds. “I
wanted these songs to be heard now rather than in six months.”
Joining Ely on the album are guitarists Mitch Watkins, Rob Gjersoe, Bradley
Kopp, bassists Roscoe Beck, Glen Fukunaga, Gary Herman, Jimmy Pettit, drummers
Davis McLarty, Pat Manske, Steve Meador, keyboardists Joel Guzman (also on
accordion), the late Reese Wynans and the late Bill Ginn.

“There are a lot of wonderful songs on Love in the Midst of Mayhem,”
said actress and writer Jo Harvey Allen. “I especially love ‘You Can
Rely On Me’ – so sweet a song. As always we can rely on Joe and in
this time of Pandemic appreciate his music even more.”

From the moment he made his debut in the 1970s, Joe Ely has blended
rock-and-roll sensibilities to hardcore honky tonk and become one of the most
recognizable and respected artists to hail from the Lonestar state.
Growing up on the vast and empty plains of West Texas, his legend was forged
onstage with relentlessly riveting live performances, hammered out over
thousands of shows and countless touring miles from Lubbock to London and back
again the long way around.

He has been embraced as a kindred spirit by artists as diverse as Bruce
Springsteen, Tom Petty, Linda Ronstadt and The Clash. Over his four-decade
career, the multi-award-winning Ely has been at the forefront of Outlaw Country,
Alt-Country, Texas Country and Americana, and recognized as one of the best
songwriters of his generation.

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