“Only A Song” :: Ben Sollee and Jim James (My Morning Jacket)

After the the earnest beauty in his last album Learning To Bend (which included that Southern-sweet cover of “A Change Is Gonna Come“), Kentucky’s Ben Sollee is back this month with a 2-song EP, currently available only on tour.

The opening track finds Sollee pairing with another musician friend from Louisville that you may know: Jim James of My Morning Jacket. Their simply-strummed acoustic duet blends Sollee’s gentle musings of optimism with Jim’s distinctively gorgeous harmonies. It is a timely song of hope in the face of seemingly overwhelming hopelessness.

I wouldn’t make a sound if I wasn’t so angry
I wouldn’t be running if there wasn’t so far to go
I wouldn’t keep on if there wasn’t something worth keeping
I want to believe the mountain can be moved

But this is only a song
It can’t change the world

But why try? Why even sing at all?
… There is beauty in freedom and folks like me
Came over on boats, flew in on planes, crawled under fences and fought wars
to find some unity

Only A Song – Ben Sollee and Jim James

BEN SOLLEE ON TOUR
1 Nov – Louisville KY / 930 Listening Room w/ Bootsie Ann
5 Nov – Nashville TN / The Basement
6 Nov – Atlanta GA / The 5 Spot
7 Nov – Chapel Hill NC / Nightlight
8 Nov – Washington DC / Iota
11 Nov – Brooklyn NY / The Bell House
12 Nov – New York NY / Mercury Lounge
13 Nov – Boston MA / Great Scott
14 Nov – Philadelphia PA / World Cafe Live
15 Nov – Pittsburgh PA / Club Cafe
17 Nov – Chicago IL / Schuba’s
18 Nov – Minneapolis MN / 400 Club
21 Nov – Seattle WA / TBA
22 Nov – Portland OR / Balcony Bar At The Hawthorne Theatre
24 Nov РSan Francisco CA / Caf̩ Du Nord
25 Nov РLos Angeles CA / Hotel Caf̩