Ellis built his own music’s story by being a prolific road machine over the last thirty years. Over 5000. Along the way, he landed some major soundtracks, won 15 Boston Music Awards, and had a few country artists cut his songs. He recorded 19 albums, many for Rounder Records. The highway brought the kind of dedicated following that normally is reserved for radio stars. For this album, a thousand people would give him over $100,000 to bring The Storyteller’s Suitcase to life. He started his own label, Rosella Records, named for his two young daughters. He also made a vow on this recording to just to write about the stuff that was important to him, at a time in our history when these stories have to be told. Songs that had to be written regardless of the consequences. He wasn’t chasing after a hook or a line for commercial purposes or to land a soundtrack. He was writing to start over and find his own footing. Songs about love, family, and then outwardly about community, our country, and how our collective values are currently misplaced.
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