Ascendant New York singer/songwriter Josh Elkes, release his debut, self titled EP in March 2013. The twenty-one year old's four original songs—intimate stories of loss and redemption seemingly beyond the young songwriter's years—recalls, at times, the classic work of Leonard Cohen, The Go-Betweens, Bright Eyes and others, and features an array of heartfelt, personal emotion including heartbreak, forgiveness, and hope.
Recorded North of New York City in Westchester and Rhinebeck, NY, the EP was produced and mixed by Grammy Award winning producer/mixer Neil Dorfsman (credits include Dire Strait’s Brothers In Arms, Bruce Springsteen’s the River) and Clifford Carter (James Taylor, Art Garfunkel), along with Elkes. The record was mixed at Saint Claire Recording Studio in Lexington, KY and mastered by another Grammy winner, Ted Jensen, at Sterling Sound in New York. Along with his songwriting, Elkes provides guitar and vocals for the EP and is backed by Carter on piano, drummer Joe Bonadio (Roseanne Cash, Sting, Marc Cohn), guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Duke Levine (J Geils Band, Shawn Colvin), electric bassist Whynot Jansfeld (the Weepies, Gavin DeGraw), and upright bassist Richard Hammond (Marc Copley, East Village Opera Company).
The unlikely involvement of Dorfsman—a music industry veteran who has worked on classic albums by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Dire Straits and more—stems from an encounter with a mutual acquaintance who passed Dorfsman a CD of the songwriter's early tracks at a garage sale in Upstate New York. Immediately recognizing Elkes as a unique voice with a talent for songwriting, Dorfsman soon got in touch, striking a fast friendship. Once Clifford Carter joined the team, the three of them began a strong working relationship. Dorfsman and Carter began to introduce Elkes to the group of eclectic and talented musicians who make up his band.
Elkes performs regularly in and around New York City, most recently completing a four-month residency at The Living Room in Manhattan. His live performances feature Clifford Carter on piano, and Joe Bonadio on drums/percussion. See below for a list of upcoming shows. More to be announced soon.
lyrics
Some people change, other people change for the worse
Some people change, other people change for the worse
I won’t say which one she did, but I’ll tell you it’s not the first
I change too, I went uptown and got a job
I change too, I went uptown and got a job
They taught me just how money gives, money takes, and it leaves you robbed
All that I’ve done has made me what I’ve become
No not who I will be, or what I was
Now I’m all alone, I’m thinking this aint so bad for me
Now I’m all alone, and I’m thinking this aint so bad for me
I got myself two good friends, fear and uncertainty
Sometimes I’m lying, other times I’m just not telling the truth
Sometimes I’m lying, other times I’m just not telling the truth
One will leave you guessing, the other leaves you thinking you got nothing to lose
Once you were a diamond, now you’ve turned to dust
What you were once worth, now you’re not worth much
New York singer/songwriter Josh Elkes’ intimate stories of loss and redemption go beyond the twenty-one year old's young-
songwriter's years. His debut EP to be released March 19th, was produced/mixed by Grammy winner Neil Dorfsman (Dire Straits) and Clifford Carter (James Taylor), along with Elkes. Mastered by another Grammy winner, Ted Jensen, at Sterling Sound.
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