Eric Lindell (born 1969,

Northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating ...

California, United States) is an American singer-songwriter. His recording career began in 1996 as a regional Sonoma County-based artist. Since 2006, when he was picked up by

Alligator Records Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the '' Living Blues'' magazine in Chicago in 1970. History Iglauer started the label using ...

, he has toured nationally and internationally. He recorded three albums for Alligator and has since issued several CDs on smaller indie labels.

Background

Lindell grew up in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

. He began playing in bands at the age of 15. Among his early musical influences were

Fishbone Fishbone is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1979, the band plays a fusion of ska, punk, funk, metal, reggae, and soul. AllMusic has described the group as "one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative ...

and Black Flag. Lindell started playing in Northern California bars and clubs, first on guitar, and later moving to bass, while working as a baker during the day to make ends meet. After a few years, he moved to New York City briefly, and then relocated to

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in 1999. In New Orleans, he recorded with

Harold Ray Brown Harold Ray Brown (born March 17, 1946) is a founding member of War, an American funk band in the 1970s to 2000s. Harold had a number of roles over the years, acting as drummer, percussionist, vocalist, and bandleader. Brown is the oldest of si ...

(formerly of

War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

) as well as members of Galactic, including

Galactic Galactic is an American funk band from New Orleans, Louisiana. Origins and background Formed in 1994 as an octet (under the name Galactic Prophylactic) and including singer Chris Lane and guitarist Rob Gowen, the group was soon pared down to a ...

Stanton Moore Stanton Moore (born July 9, 1972) is an American funk, jazz, and rock drummer from New Orleans. Most widely known as a founding member of Galactic, Moore has also pursued a solo recording career (beginning with his 1998 debut '' All Kooked Out ...

and

Ivan Neville Ivan Neville (born August 19, 1959) is an American multi-instrumentalist musician, singer, and songwriter. He is the son of Aaron Neville and nephew to the other members of The Neville Brothers. Career Neville has released four solo albums and ...

(with whom he now occasionally plays in a side project called Dragon Smoke.) By 2005, he had become well known on the New Orleans music scene, having appeared in local clubs and at the

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of vi ...

. As a result of the exposure, he was signed by

. Alligator's initial release by Lindell was ''Change in the Weather'', a compilation of tracks from his various self-produced albums and EPs, some released on his own Sparco Records label. Notably, the self-titled album and Piety Street Sessions with Marty Joyce on drums, Cass Faulconer on bass and Marc Adams on B3 as well as others. ''Change in the Weather'' yielded the radio single "Give It Time" which received major play on

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, ...

-formatted stations around the country and was featured in an episode of the ''

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'' TV show. His second Alligator release was produced for the label by Lindell. The radio single, "Lay Back Down", was again well received by AAA, and also appeared in the TV shows ''

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'' and '' Friday Night Lights''. ''Gulf Coast Highway'', his third Alligator release (also self produced), found him accompanied by members of Galactic as well as members of Lindell's touring band. "If Love Can't Find A Way" was the featured radio track. He typically performs about 100 live appearances a year. He has made recent trips to perform in Europe and made his first Australian appearance in 2007. He made his network television debut on ''

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'' in February 2008. Lindell's ''Change in the Weather'' was nominated for the 7th annual Independent Music Awards for Jam Album of the year.

Critical reviews

Lindell's music has been described by ''

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'' as "pumping soul into funk, blue and roots-rock." (April 23, 2009). The ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' called Lindell "a tremendous raw talent…with a fully realized musical vision." (January 20, 2008). The ''

Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California, after the unrelated ''Los Angeles Times'', and the flagship newspaper of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado ...

'' stated, "Lindell serves up bluesy blue-eyed soul. The shuffling interplay of electric guitars, percolating organ and Creole horns never fails to make you feel like dancing." (January 27, 2008). Lindell's musical style borrows from 1970s blues-rock,

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

, and R&B. His style has also been called "

blue-eyed soul Blue-eyed soul (also called white soul) is rhythm and blues (R&B) and soul music performed by white artists. The term was coined in the mid-1960s, to describe white artists whose sound was similar to that of the predominantly black Motown and St ...

", a common shorthand used for Anglo blues singers that has been applied to artists like

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

, among others.

Discography

* 2023 ‘’Oakland’’ (Sparco Records) * 2021 ‘’Weed and Gasoline’’ single (Sparco Records) * 2018 ''Revolution in Your Heart'' (

) * 2016 ''Matters of the Heart'' (2016 Red Parlor Records) * 2012 ''I Still Love You'' (Sparco Records) * 2011 ''West County Drifter'' (M.C. Records) * 2011 ''Cazadero'' (Sparco Records) * 2010 ''Between Motion and Rest'' (Sparco Records) * 2009 ''Gulf Coast Highway'' (

) * 2008 ''Low on Cash, Rich in Love'' (

) * 2006 ''Change in the Weather'' (

) * 2005 ''Tragic Magic'' (Sparco Records) * 2003 ''EP Volume 1'' (Sparco Records) * 2003 ''Piety Street Session'' (Sparco Records) * 2002 ''Eric Lindell'' (album) (self-released) * 1996 ''Bring it Back'' (Grizzly Records)

References

External links

*
Eric Lindell's record label Sparco Records

Eric Lindell at Alligator Records
* Eric Lindell at All Music Guide
Interview from ''An Honest Tune''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lindell, Eric 1969 births Living people American rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock singers American rock songwriters American male singer-songwriters Singers from New Orleans Singer-songwriters from California American bakers Singer-songwriters from Louisiana Guitarists from California Guitarists from Louisiana 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians