Andy Cohen + Eleanor Ellis + William Lee Ellis

Acclaimed folk/blues artists Andy Cohen, Eleanor Ellis, and William Lee Ellis come together for the first time in decades to celebrate their new trio album for Riverlark, Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard, a collection of 21 traditional and original songs and instrumentals that marks a return on record following their classic 1990s Marimac outing, Preachin’ in That Wilderness.
ANDY COHEN is a virtuoso finger-style guitarist described as “a walking, talking folk-blues-roots music encyclopedia.” During the Sixties folk revival, he got hooked on the music of luminaries old and young, from Big Bill Broonzy to the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, although his most profound experience came at 16 when he first heard blues/gospel icon Rev. Gary Davis. He has since devoted his life to studying, performing, and promoting traditional blues and folk music of the pre-World War II era and has toured and played with, among others, Martin, Bogan & Armstrong, John Jackson, Rev. Gary Davis, Jim Brewer, and Honeyboy Edwards. Based these days in Memphis, Tenn., Andy holds a master’s degree in anthropology and has more than a dozen recordings to his credit, including Oh Glory, How Happy I Am: The Sacred Songs of Rev. Gary Davis and numerous albums on the Earwig label. He is a recipient of both the Eisteddfod Award from the Eisteddfod Traditional Music Festival and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the California Autoharp Gathering.
ELEANOR ELLIS has been praised “a celebrated master of the country and Piedmont blues, one of the most significant women in the acoustic genre” (Living Blues). The Louisiana native has performed at clubs, festivals, and concerts in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, notably with gospel street singer Flora Molton, bluesman Archie Edwards, and, on occasion, Delta blues great Eugene Powell. She is a founding member of the DC Blues Society and the Archie Edwards Blues Heritage Foundation and is producer/editor of the noted Piedmont blues documentary Blues Houseparty. Among Eleanor’s many recordings are the recent albums, I Do Just What I Do and Comin’ a Time, both on the Patuxent label, appearances on numerous anthologies, and two records with Flora Molton, I Want to Be Ready to Hear God When He Calls, and Flora Molton, the latter made for Radio France. Eleanor has also worked at the Archive of New Orleans Jazz at Tulane University and at the New Orleans Jazz Museum.
WILLIAM LEE ELLIS is a roots music fingerpicking guitarist and songwriter who has been hailed a “wizard on steel strings” (Blues Revue) and “one of our finest contemporary songwriters” (Living Blues). He has released five albums on the Yellow Dog Records label, notably 2023’s Ghost Hymns – a Blues Music Awards nominee for Acoustic Blues Album of the Year – and he has backed his faither banjo/fiddle composer Tony Ellis, on numerous studio projects and in concert. William holds a PhD in ethnomusicology, has played Mountain Stage, MerleFest, and the Kennedy Center among other venues, and is a guitar-instructing alum of Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch and Augusta Blues Week. He lives with his wife and daughter in Vermont, where he is Professor of Music at Saint Michael’s College.
The trio will be promoting their new album on tour through much of 2026.
“If you like the acoustic play of Jorma Kaukonen, this is similar territory, with songs grasped both from history and from now…Old timey has seldom sounded so good timey.” – Sam Lewis, At The Barrier
“This is an album for lovers of vintage blues, folk, and country—and particularly for those who are enamored with artists like Ry Cooder. You can certainly leave it to this trio to make a music history lesson entertaining from start to finish.” – John Gjaltema, Altcountry.nl
Food & Bar: Our full food and drink menu will be available before and during the show.