The 2017 release of the wonderful Wintres Woma, his first so-called solo album, seemed to be a logical, healthy respite from assisting with the creative needs of others that would allow him to serve his own. Twenty years later he’s contributed to a staggering volume of records and shows and projects both in Chicagoland (see Jeff Tweedy Tortoise Eleventh Dream Day Brokeback) and far from it (see Richard Thompson Laetitia Sadier Michael Chapman Steve Gunn Joan Shelley Nap Eyes). Jim moved to the United States in the late ’90s from his native England with the intention of making himself absolutely essential to the Chicago music scene. This fact is immaterial to this writing.) James Elkington is a friend of mine, and I have long enjoyed and indeed found satisfaction from witnessing the juicy fruits of his successful labors. (This of course best functions symbiotically, and friends will pull each other along the lumpy bumpy road of life and work like those plastic monkeys in the barrel with the interlocking arms. They’re good to have-if you’re not a total sociopath, your friend’s successes will instill joy and satisfaction in you, and you might find that your friend inspires you to labor harder and more lovingly in your own involvements. Maybe you have a friend or two who manages to succeed at doing the things they lay out for themselves to do. Casting glances back to British folk traditions as well as toward avant-garde horizons, these brilliant new songs, as accessible as they are arcane, buttress Elkington’s brisk guitar figures and baritone poesy with strings, woodwinds, and backing vocals by Tamara Lindeman of the Weather Station. Album page: Artist page: Other options (physical/DL/stream/int'l): /PoB50Ĭhicago songwriter and guitarist James Elkington-who has collaborated with everyone from Richard Thompson to Jeff Tweedy to Tortoise-recorded his sophomore album at Wilco’s Loft, expanding upon his celebrated 2017 debut Wintres Woma (PoB-034) as well as his recent production and arrangement work for the likes of Steve Gunn, Nap Eyes, and Joan Shelley.
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