July 10, 2011

Eleanor McEvoy: Alone

Eleanor McEvoy
photo: Shane McCarthy

Irish singer-songwriter Eleanor McEvoy wasn't feeling too chipper when she stepped up to the mike of The Grange, a barn turned into a a recoding studio in Norfolk, to cut songs from her back catalog with just her voice and her guitar. There is deep sadness throughout the album, which she named simply called Alone.

McEvoy's popularity reached a peak career's reached in a peak in 1992 when she contributed the title track of the A Woman's Heart album, a bestselling collection of contemporary Irish singers. She was picked up by the majors Geffen and Columbia, but those matches weren't made in heaven. She has continued releasing albums on a regular basis, making money by means of composing songs for TV and movies soundtracks.

Alone finds her without a deadline or a producer down her neck. She has stripped down the songs as if she were cutting superior demos. Songs like Sophie about anorexia and the laconic You'll Hear Better Songs (Than This). A cover of the PF Sloan composition Eve of Destruction, a hit for Barry McGuire in 1965, sounds even more alarming when she decided to slow it down a bit.

Her fans will appreciate this reassessment of her output, and newbies will want to to explore her discography more thoroughly by going back to the original albums.

Eleanor McEvoy: Alone

Alone is released on Moscodisc. Release date: September 12th.

Tracks:
  1. Did I Hurt You
  2. Harbour
  3. I'll Be Willing
  4. What's Her Name
  5. You'll Hear Better Songs (Than This)
  6. Sophie
  7. Just For The Tourists
  8. Days Roll By
  9. For Avoidance of Any Doubt
  10. Only A Woman's Heart
  11. Did You Tell Him
  12. Eve of Destruction
  13. Bonus Track: You'll Hear Better Songs (Than This) (acoustic)

UK live dates:
  • 09/21 Glee, Birmingham
  • 09/22 Hammersmith Irish Centre, London
  • 09/23 Discovery, Winchester
  • 09/24 Glee, Nottingham
  • 09/25 Komedia Studio Bar, Brighton
  • 09/26 Cellars, Portsmouth
  • 09/27 Cox’s Yard, Stratford on Avon
  • 09/28 Trades Club, Hebden Bridge
  • 09/29 Bootleggers Music Bar, Kendal
  • 09/30 Mount Stuart House, Isle of Bute
  • 10/01 Cultural Centre, Bellshill
  • 10/02 Sounds In The Suburbs at the Woodend, Glasgow
  • 10/03 Malones, Edinburgh
  • 10/05 High Barn, Essex
  • 10/06 Ironworks, Oswestry
  • 10/07 The Met, Bury
  • 10/09 Hootenanny, Iverness

» eleanormcevoy.com

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