DEAR AMERICA

Description

TALENTED BLUES ROCK SONGWRITER JOINS THE PROVOGUE STABLE If you could call out to your country, what would you say? With the flagship song of his latest album, "Dear America," the songwriter found himself unpacking a seven-decade relationship with a partner of extreme behavior. Eric Bibb has known many different Americas: the good, the brutal, and the crooked. Born in New York on August 16, 1951, the love-at-first-sight of the 60s folk revival remains a vivid era in his memory. Yet, just as persistent are the dark periods of that society, like last year, when protesters highlighted the open wound of race relations in the United States while a bitter presidential election exacerbated jagged battle lines. This album is a love letter because America, for all its associations with pain and its bloody history, has nevertheless always been, despite everything, a place of incredible hope and optimism. The album was recorded, before the pandemic shut down studios, at Brooklyn's Studio G with producer/co-writer Glen Scott, as well as a studio band including drummer Steve Jordan and the sensational Memphis guitarist Eric Gales. The chemistry of "Dear America" is palpable, with each musician playing with strong emotional commitment. The result is a thoughtful record that takes the pulse of these feverish times while bringing the songwriter back to his proud New York roots. "I live in Sweden," says Bibb, "But I grew up in New York. So being there, to record this album that has so much to do with my whole journey – it was truly inspiring." And, just as the history of the United States is both bright and dark, "Dear America" is a record that mixes the problems that poison the nation with hope, love, and a brighter path. Not all is lost, Bibb emphasizes, and neither are we.