Ellis Paul + with Special Guest The Michael Clem Trio + Lizanne Knott October 28, 2011

Ellis Paul is one of the leading voices in American songwriting. He was a principle leader in the wave of singer/songwriters that emerged from the Boston folk scene, creating a movement that revitalized the national acoustic circuit with an urban, literate, folk pop style that helped renew interest in the genre in the 1990's.

His charismatic, personally authentic performance style has influenced a generation of artists away from the artifice of pop, and closer towards the realness of folk. Though he remains among the most pop-friendly of today's singer-songwriters - his songs regularly appear in hit movie and TV soundtracks - he has bridged the gulf between the modern folk sound and the populist traditions of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger more successfully than perhaps any of his songwriting peers.

He is a critically-acclaimed singer, songwriter, poet, and troubadour originally hailing from a potato farming family in northern Maine. He is the recipient of thirteen Boston Music Awards, second only to multi-platinum act, Aerosmith. Over the course of fifteen years, Ellis Paul has built a vast catalog of music which weds striking poetic imagery and philosophical introspection with hook-laden melodies.
http://ellispaul.com/

For almost 20 years, longtime Jammin Java friend Michael Clem, has been and still is a member of nationally touring, Virginia-based, folk-rock quartet Eddie from Ohio. For the past two years, he's been putting his musical roots down in Charlottesville. One of the principle songwriters of EFO, Clem continues to hone his left of center lyrics in neo-traditional forms with his newly formed trio. Filling out this threesome is veteran Rusty Speidel (SGGL) on lead guitar, and holding down the low end is Berkeley School of Music grad Thomas Gunn on upright bass, who both help round out Clem's new batch of originals with harmonies and considerably greater height.

"A songwriter, a guitarist and observational comedian... Think Blink-182 with words by Todd Snider and you get an idea of what Clem does within the confines of folk-rock." -The Washington Post

"A multi-dimensional performer, Michael Clem's songs touch universal human conditions that expose our doubts without ever being preachy. His dry and sly wit and clever arrangements soothe the soul but include a social commentary bite that encourages us not to take our lives too seriously. When these tunes are delivered by the Michael Clem Trio's tasty 3 part harmonies and masterful accompaniment from Speidel and Gunn, you will be glad you found them." -Aer Stephen ("Folk & Beyond" 91.1 FM WTJU in Charlottesville, VA)
http://michaelclem.com/

An award winning songwriter, Lizanne Knott has been captivating audiences throughout the Northeast and garnering accolades from radio listeners and peers around the globe. She has performed at some of the most prestigious listening venues, up and down the east coast and throughout England, steadily gaining ground wherever the road takes her.

 A frequent featured artist on London's acclaimed Bob Harris Show, BBC2 and other BBC stations, she also receives airplay on AAA radio throughout the US and is a local favorite here on Philly's WXPN. Her music has been used in independent films, TV movies, documentaries and by national non-profit organizations.
 Her most recent 2009/10 release "South of Graceland" rose to the Number 6th 
spot on Amazon UK for Hot Bestsellers, New and Pre-Release (Country/Americana) putting her on the same page as Rosanne Cash and Taylor Swift.
http://www.lizanneknott.com/home.html

Official Website: http://www.jamminjava.com/