Joe Ely (born February 9 1947 in Amarillo, Texas) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist whose music touches on honky-tonk, country and rock and roll. He has had a genre-crossing career, performing with Bruce Springsteen, Los Super Seven, and James McMurtry in addition to his early work with The Clash and more recent acoustic tours with Lyle Lovett, John Hiatt, and Guy Clark.
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Biography
Early life and career
Ely spent his formative years from age 12 in Lubbock, Texas. Shortly after high school, in 1970, with fellow Lubbock musicians Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock, he formed The Flatlanders. According to Ely, "Jimmie was like a well of country music. He knew everything about it. And Butch was from the folk world. I was kinda the rock & roll guy, and we almost had a triad. We hit it off and started playing a lot together. That opened up a whole new world I had never known existed." In 1972, the band released their first and— until 2002's Now Again— only album, but have appeared together on each other's albums. Since the band's initial break-up just after their album was cut, the three musicians have followed individual paths.
Solo career
Ely's own first, self titled album, was released in 1977. The following year, his band played London where he met punk rock group The Clash. Impressed with each other's performances, the two bands would later tour together, including appearances in Ely's hometown of Lubbock, as well as Laredo and Ciudad Juarez in Mexico, across the border from El Paso, Texas. Ely would contribute backing vocals on "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" from Combat Rock (1982), and Ely's Live Shots includes photos of Clash member Joe Strummer performing as a guest with Ely's band. From the mid-1970s, Ely has issued a steady stream of albums, most on the MCA label. Ely's energetic live performances have become legendary, and he has released a live album roughly every ten years (the last was Live at Antone's in 2000). In the late 1990s, Ely was asked to write songs for Robert Redford's movie The Horse Whisperer, which led to reforming The Flatlanders with Gilmore and Hancock for an appearance on the movie soundtrack. A new album from the trio followed in 2002, with a third in 2004. In February 2007, Ely released "Happy Songs From Rattlesnake Gulch" on his own label, Rack 'Em Records. A book of Ely's writings, "Bonfire of Roadmaps" was published in early 2007 by the University of Texas Press. Ely also will release a new live album featuring Joel Guzman on accordian and recorded at the Cactus Theater in Lubbock. This album is scheduled for release in early 2008. Ely said in an interview with Country Standard Time that he thought it would be easier to release the material on his own label instead of dealing with a regular record label and their release cycles. As for The Flatlanders, recording is underway for a new album.
Discography
- Joe Ely, 1977, MCA
- Honky Tonk Masquerade, 1978, MCA
- Down On The Drag, 1979, MCA
- Live Shots, 1980, MCA (credited to The Joe Ely Band)
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- Texas Special (4-song studio EP included with the original Live Shots LP)
- Musta Notta Gotta Lotta, 1981, MCA
- Hi-Res, 1984, MCA
- Lord Of The Highway, 1987, Hightone Records
- Dig All Night, 1988, Hightone Records
- Milkshakes And Malts, 1988, Sunstorm Records
- What Ever Happened To Maria, 1988, Sunstorm Records
- Live At Liberty Lunch, 1990, MCA
- Love And Danger, 1993, MCA
- Chippy, 1995, Hollywood Records
- Letter To Laredo, 1995, MCA
- Twistin' In The Wind, 1998, MCA
- Los Super Seven, (as band member) 1999, RCA Nashville
- Live At Antones, 2000, Antones Records
- Now Again (with The Flatlanders), 2002
- Streets Of Sin, 2003
- Wheels Of Fortune (with The Flatlanders), 2004
- Live 72 (The Flatlanders), 2004
- Live From Austin (with The Flatlanders), 2004 (Recorded 2002)
- I Heard It On The X (with Los Super Seven), 2005
- Ten In Texas (compolation, Sunday Morning Coming Down), 2005, Icehouse Music
- Happy Songs From Rattlesnake Gulch, 2007
- Silver City, 2007
Charts
Album charts
| year | album | chart | peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Live Shots | Billboard Pop Albums | 159 |
| 1981 | Musta Notta Gotta Lotta | Billboard Pop Albums | 135 |
| 1990 | Live at Liberty Lunch | Billboard Top Country Albums | 57 |
| 1995 | Letter to Laredo | Billboard Top Country Albums | 68 |
| 1998 | Twistin' in the Wind | Billboard Top Country Albums | 55 |
| 2000 | Live at Antone's | Billboard Top Country Albums | 66 |
| 2003 | Streets of Sin | Billboard Top Country Albums | 51 |
Singles charts
| year | single | chart | peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | "All My Love" | Billboard Country Singles | 89 |
| 1981 | "Musta Notta Gotta Lotta" | Billboard Mainstream Rock | 40 |
See also
References
- "Son of the Circus", Austin Chronicle, Vol. 18, Issue 5.
- "Joe Ely Remembers The Clash", Austin Chronicle", 19 May 2000.
External links
- JoeEly.com - Official home page
- Joe Ely at the Internet Movie Database
- Joe Ely feature and CD reviews] at Country Standard Time
