Eli 'Paperboy' Reed will play Groningen and Utrecht this weekend

Eli “Paperboy” Reed is a survivor. He was one of the first of the new wave of singers and songwriters to embrace unabashedly soulful music and he has been tearing up stages all over the world with his heart-stopping falsetto screams for more than a decade with no plans to slow down. From humble musical beginnings growing up outside of Boston, at 18 Reed moved to Clarksdale, Mississippi and cut his teeth playing and singing in juke joints all over the Delta. From there he took the well-trod path to Chicago where he spent a year as minister of music the Southside church of Soul legend Mitty Collier. 

Soon after returning to Boston, he was bit by the songwriting bug and released his first full length, “Roll with You” in 2008. Reed’s combination of powerful soulful vocals coupled with his strong pop sensibility as a songwriter made people all over the world stand up and take notice. Soon there were calls coming in from everywhere; television shows in the UK, festivals in Australia, and a jaw-dropping schedule of national and international tour dates. 

On, “Hits and Misses”, his latest release, Eli presents a new collection from that venerated progenitor of all things Soul, Rhythm and Blues and Americana. The Paperboy is eight albums deep in to a career that spans close to two decades. His bonus tracks could easily be another’s hits singles. From vividly reimagined covers spanning every genre to his own dance-or-cry originals, leftovers these are not.

The album also includes covers of Bob Dylan’s “To Be Alone With You,” a noirish R&B take on Steely Dan’s 1972 hit, “Do It Again,” and Merle Haggard’s “I’m Gonna Break Every Heart I Can,” showcasing a vocal intensity that’s not quite as present in the nearly spoken word original. “Steal Away“ and “I Don’t Know What the World is Coming To” were cut live at FAME in Muscle Shoals, with the swampers David Hood, Jimmy Johnson and Spooner Oldham.

Reed’s take on Motörhead’s classic “Ace of Spades” was the first single released from the collection. Reimagined as a soul revival, the pulsing organ, Memphis-style horns, and chicken scratch guitar serve as a backdrop for Reed’s signature vocal wails. So convincing is Reed’s rendition of “Ace” that listeners will wonder if it was Motörhead doing the covering rather than the other way around. 

Eli 'Paperboy' Reed will play Groningen or Utrecht this weekend:
11/05: Groningen, NL - Rhythm & Bluesnight
12/05: Utrecht, NL - TivoliVredenburg