Tinsley Ellis

Biography

Tinsley Ellis (born June 4, 1957) is an American blues and rock musician, who was born in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and grew up in South Florida. According to Billboard, "nobody has released more consistently excellent blues albums than Atlanta's Tinsley Ellis. He sings like a man possessed and wields a mean lead guitar."
Rolling Stone said, "On assertive originals and standards by the likes of Jimmy Reed and Junior Wells, Atlanta's Tinsley Ellis unleashes feral blues guitar. Nonstop gigging has sharpened his six-string to a razor's edge…his eloquence dazzles…he also achieves pyrotechnics that rival early Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton."

Biography

His love for electric blues grew by listening to British Invasion bands such as the Yardbirds, the Animals, Cream, and the Rolling Stones. Ellis has stated that the first guitar playing he heard were songs like "Dirty Water" by The Standells, and "Secret Agent Man" by Johnny Rivers, but that he then "got into the real stuff" like Freddie King. Inspired by a live appearance by B.B. King, where King broke a guitar string and gave it to a 15-year-old Ellis—which he claims to still have in his possession to this day—he was determined to become a blues guitarist. In 1975, he played with the Haygood Band while attending Emory University near Atlanta. Two years later, already an accomplished musician, he returned to Atlanta and joined his first professional blues band, the Alley Cats, a group that included Preston Hubbard (later of the Fabulous Thunderbirds). Ellis graduated from Emory in 1979 with a degree in history. In 1981, he formed the Heartfixers, with the singer and harmonica player Chicago Bob Nelson. The group recorded three albums for the small Landslide record label, one with the singer, Nappy Brown before breaking up in 1988. The same year, Ellis signed a recording contract with Chicago's Alligator Records.
His debut solo album on Alligator Records, Georgia Blue×Georgia Blue1988 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Can't You Lie3:522Texas Stomp1:493You Picked a Good Time4:434I've Made Nights by Myself2:365Crime of Passion3:546Hot Potato3:237Double Eyed Whammy3:298She Wants to Sell My Monkey2:579Look-Ka-Py-Py3:2910As the Years Go Passing By4:0911Free Man3:5712Lucky Lou3:21, was released in 1988. It received mixed-to-poor reviews. Alligator then reissued two earlier albums, Cool On It×Cool on It1986 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Drivin' Woman4:122Cool on It4:343Hong Kong, Mississippi3:204Second Thoughts3:395Sailor's Grave on the Prairie2:226Greenwood Chainsaw Boogie1:397Tulane3:198Time to Quit9:339Sugaree3:2310Wild Weekend2:57 and Tore Up (on which the Heartfixers backed Nappy Brown). Ellis' next four releases were Fanning the Flames (1989), Trouble Time (1992), Storm Warning (1994), and Fire It Up (1997). Artists including Peter Buck (of R.E.M.), Derek Trucks, and Chuck Leavell joined him in the studio. He worked with the record producers, Eddy Offord and Tom Dowd.
Ellis' reputation and media coverage continued to grow. He appeared on NBC-TV Sports during the network's 1996 Summer Olympics coverage.
Ellis shifted to Capricorn Records in 2000 and released Kingpin. In 2002 he joined Telarc Records, producing two CDs: Hell or High Water and The Hard Way. All the while Ellis never stopped touring. "A musician never got famous by staying home," Ellis says. Ellis claims to have performed live, at least once, in all 50 of the United States.
He returned to Alligator Records in 2005 with the live album, Live – Highwayman. In 2007 he released the studio album, Moment of Truth×Moment of Truth26 June 2007 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Say Too Much6:182Somebody4:123Get to the Bottom5:104You’re Gonna Thank Me3:525Tell the Truth5:576Too Much of Everything3:337Bringin’ Home the Bacon6:568Freeway Soul3:469I Take What I Want4:0710Sleep on It4:2111Stare at the Sun5:1212Shadow of Doubt6:00, followed in 2009 with Speak No Evil×Speak No Evil6 October 2009 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Sunlight of Love4:162Slip and Fall4:003Speak No Evil5:084It Takes What It Takes6:015The Other Side4:156The Night Is Easy4:137Left of Your Mind3:458Cold Love, Hot Night4:209Amanda4:2210Loving for Today6:0211Grow a Pair4:3112Rockslide3:47. Ellis continues to tour over 150 nights a year around the world.
He has shared stages with Warren Haynes, Widespread Panic, the Allman Brothers Band, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimmy Thackery, Otis Rush, Willie Dixon, Son Seals, Koko Taylor, Albert Collins and Buddy Guy.
In early 2013, Ellis was a part of the 'Blues at the Crossroads 2' tour which celebrated the music of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. The tour also included Kim Wilson and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, James Cotton, Bob Margolin and Jody Williams. Also in 2013, Ellis launched his own label, Heartfixer Music, and has since released several albums: the all instrumental Get It!×Get It!19 March 2013 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Front Street Freeze4:242Sassy Strat4:333The Milky Way6:454Detour3:285Anthem for a Fallen Hero4:186Get It!4:207Fuzzbuster3:448Freddy’s Midnight Dream4:309Berry Tossin’4:4210Catalunya5:57, Midnight Blue×Midnight Blue2013 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1If the River Keeps Rising3:522Mouth Turn Dry4:573Surrender5:194It's Not Funny4:235See No Harm4:286The Only Thing3:207Peace and Love4:428Harder to Find6:429That's My Story6:4310Kiss of Death7:06, Tough Love×Tough Love2015 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Seven Years4:202Midnight Ride4:433Give It Away4:194Hard Work3:065All in the Name of Love5:096Should I Have Lied4:067Leave Me5:058The King Must Die5:149Everything4:0310In From the Cold6:07 and, in 2016, Red Clay Soul. In 2014, Ellis was a guest performer on Eli Cook's album, Primitive Son. In 2017, Ellis launched a new side project called Tinsley Ellis Blues Is Dead, in which he performs the blues and R&B songs recorded by Grateful Dead and other Fillmore era acts.
Commenting on Ellis's album, Ice Cream in Hell×Ice Cream in Hell31 January 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Last One to Know4:442Don’t Know Beans3:433Ice Cream in Hell4:134Foolin’ Yourself4:305Hole in My Heart6:456Sit Tight Mama4:007No Stroll in the Park4:418Evil Till Sunrise3:039Everything and Everyone4:0010Unlock My Heart3:5411Your Love’s Like Heroin7:07, AllMusic stated "On Ice Cream in Hell, Ellis' songwriting and singing finally match the prowess in his playing, and we are all richer for it." During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ellis was "determined to grow as a songwriter," according to AllMusic; he is stated to have written 200 songs in just a year and a half. The resulting album, Devil May Care×Devil May Care21 January 2022 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1One Less Reason5:092Right Down the Drain5:003Just Like Rain4:304Beat the Devil3:505Don’t Bury Our Love5:196Juju5:027Step Up4:058One Last Ride6:11928 Days4:0010Slow Train to Hell5:15, released in January 2022, was met with overwhelmingly positive reviews.
Ellis announced the pending release of a new album, Naked Truth×Naked Truth9 February 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Devil in the Room3:322Windowpane2:563Death Letter Blues4:284Silver Mountain3:255Don't Go No Further2:546The Sailor's Grave on the Prairie4:037Tallahassee Blues4:058Hoochie Mama3:439Alcovy Breakdown2:2810Horseshoes and Hand Grenades3:0511Grown Ass Man2:4712Easter Song1:52, in November 2023, after a series of well-received acoustic shows throughout the year. The album, which was also his first composed entirely of acoustic music, was released on February 9, 2024. Ellis released a single, "Devil In The Room", after making the announcement.

Compilations

1996 – A Celebration of Blues: The New Breed (St. Clair CBL25152)