Tinsley Ellis In Concert

Tinsley Ellis In Concert @ SHAMc
Friday, January 22, 2027
Doors open at 7 PM /Show starts at 7:30 PM

Atlanta-based musician Tinsley Ellis – known for decades as one of the greatest electric blues-rock guitarists of his generation – is now also recognized as one of the very best contemporary acoustic blues guitarists, songwriters and performers in the world. With 2024’s critically acclaimed, Blues Music Award-nominated Naked Truth, Ellis unplugged with his first-ever acoustic album. On it he mixed his own striking original songs -- inspired by Son House, Skip James, Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters -- with a few reinvented covers. According to No Depression, “Even though it’s just Ellis and his acoustic guitars, there’s plenty of hell-raisin’ blues going on. With the ghost of Elmore James looking over his shoulder and Wolf leaning in…Ellis proves he’s an icon.”
Now, with his new album, Labor Of Love, Ellis delivers a raw, edgy, self-produced set of 13 original compositions, all performed with pure, emotional honesty. The songs spin modern tales of floods, conflagrations, voodoo spirits, personal travails and heaven-sent prayers. From the feral opener Hoodoo Woman to the John Lee Hooker-groove of Long Time to the evocative, Skip James-inspired To A Hammer to the Son House-style stomp of Sunnyland, Ellis inhabits his songs in a way that is simply astonishing.
Each performance carries the weight, experience and hard-earned wisdom Ellis learned over four decades on the road, making Labor Of Love as profoundly deep and moving as any music he has made in his career. It covers the gamut of emotions, finding good times in the hard times, mixing gentle beauty with foot-pounding ferocity.

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Safety Harbor Art and Music Center (SHAMc) is a nonprofit arts organization dedicated to bringing people together through live music, visual art, workshops, youth programs, and delightfully creative community events. Our intimate listening room welcomes nationally recognized artists for close-up performances in front of a limited-size crowd, creating a concert experience that feels personal, memorable, and unlike a traditional venue.

Concert seating is located indoors within our covered, open-air pavilion, so please dress appropriately for the weather. Ample street parking is available; please observe all posted restrictions, including no-parking signs and yellow curbs.

Due to our liquor license, outside open containers of any kind-including water bottles-are not permitted on the premises. Our Happy Garden Bar offers adult beverages, sodas, and water for purchase. Food is not available on-site.