The question of whether white geezers can or cannot realistically sing the blues is usually rhetorical, but very occasionally a performer crops up who suggests...well, yes, there really might be the odd exception to the rule lurking out there.
Not that TG ELIAS should be re-branded as ‘Blind Lemon Elias’ or something equally ridiculous but this Yorkshire-raised, Manchester-based genre-straddler brought to us by the ever-vigilant Liverpool Viper label certainly peddles a potent blend of blues, gospel and country, all served up with a witty contemporary streak and plenty of lyrical panache.
His self-titled debut is rarely less than engaging, taking in everything from vivid, folk-flecked narratives (‘The Vagrant Son Of A Policeman’) through to wasted’ n’ blue love songs (‘Southbound Otley Highway’) and even the kind of fatalistic, Townes Van Zandt-esque outings such as the gripping ‘Ballad Of Lenny Crow.’
Musically, it’s a relatively sparse acoustic affair, though further colour is provided by bass, harmonica, glockenspiel and percussion. Paul Hemmings also weighs in with a couple of typically tasteful guitar solos, not least on the superb battle-of-the-sexes tug of war ‘Final Ever Fling As An Englishman’ (“I had my hand on the wheel, but took my foot off the gas of your broken down vehicle of woe”) where an excellent vocal foil is also supplied by Lucy Bennett. There’s also the occasional surprise encounter, such as the strange tunings/ tabla-fuelled ‘(Prelude To) God’s Own Land’ and the almost Jeff Buckley-style flights of vocal fancy on ‘God’s Own Land’ itself.
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Steeped in the great British story-telling tradition and keen to embrace the blues (and a lot more) on his own terms, TG Elias is more than deserving of a little elbow room, especially as he’s battling so gamely in the horribly over-subscribed folk troubadour’s corridor.
The Viper Label online
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