photo: Alex Maness
Curtis Eller's American Circus have pity on the working man. They sing about big shots who lost out in the end (Richard Nixon, General Lee, Sonny Liston), and major disasters (the economic collapse of 1929 and the horrors of war). Main man and banjo player Curtis Eller is there to tell the tale, a field reporter with his banjo.
How to Make It in Hollywood is a cheerful album about things going bad, filled to the rafters with old time folk songs wrapped in old time jazz. It could have been recorded a couple of decades ago, but its contents still ring true in the 21st Century. Feel free to sing along and drink to their health.
Curtis Eller's American Circus:
Curtis Eller: banjo & lead vocal
Louis Landry: drums, percussion, organ, piano, accordion, melodica, vocals
Shea D. Broussard: harmony vocal, hand percussion
Dana Marks: harmony vocal
Shea D. Broussard, Joseph Dejarnette, Douglas Vuncannon: upright & electric basses
How to Make It in Hollywood is a self-released album. Buy it from their website.
Tracks:- Old Time Religion
- 1929
- Butcherman
- Battlefield Amputation
- Three More Minutes with Elvis
- The Heart That Forgave Richard Nixon
- If You're Looking for a Loser
- Moses in the Bulrushes
- Busby Berkeley Funeral
- Thunder & Beehives
- 03/06 Rest-au-rant, New York, NY
- 03/07 Pete's Candy Store, Brooklyn, NY
- 03/23 The Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham
- 03/24 The Bell, Bath
- 03/26 The Musician Pub, Leicester
- 03/27 Mad Ferret, Preston
- 03/28 The Ruby Lounge, Manchester
- 03/29 Cube Cinema, Bristol
- 03/30 Kenn Village Hall, Somerset
- 03/31 The Old Queen’s Head, London
- 04/03 The Adelphi / New Adelphi, Hull
- 04/04 Assembly Rooms, Presteigne
- 04/05 The Heeley Institute, Sheffield
- 04/06 The Maze, Nottingham
- 04/07 The Tin at The Coal Vaults, Coventry
- 04/10 Civic Theatre, Barnsley
- 04/11 Seven Arts, Leeds
- 04/12 The Hop, Wakefield
- 06/28 Mystery Brewing Company - Taproom Hillsborough, NC
- 07/23-27 Floydfest 2014, Floyd, VA
