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Joe Ely | |
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.jpg) Ely in 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1947-02-09)February 9, 1947 (age 78) Amarillo, Texas, U.S. |
| Origin | Lubbock, Texas, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1970–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | joeely |
Joe Ely (/ˈiːli/; born February 9, 1947)[3] is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was "one of the main movers" ofAustin, Texas'progressive country scene in the 1970s and '80s.[3]
He has had a genre-crossing career, performing withBruce Springsteen,Uncle Tupelo,Los Super Seven,The Chieftains,James McMurtry,The Clash,Lyle Lovett,John Hiatt, andGuy Clark.
Born inAmarillo, Texas,[3] Ely spent his teenage years inLubbock, Texas,[3] and attendedMonterey High School.
In 1971, with fellow Lubbock musiciansJimmie Dale Gilmore andButch Hancock, he formedThe Flatlanders.[3] According to Ely, "Jimmie [Gilmore] was like a well of country music. He knew everything about it. And Butch was from the folk world. I was kinda the rock & roll guy, and we almost had a triad. We hit it off and started playing a lot together. That opened up a whole new world I had never known existed."
In 1972, the band recorded their first album.[3] Because the band's initial breakup occurred just after their first album was cut, the three musicians have followed individual paths, but have appeared together on each other's albums. They reformed for 2002'sNow Again.
Ely's ownfirst, self-titled album, was released in 1977.[3]
The following year, his band played London, where he metpunk rock groupThe Clash.[3] Impressed with each other's performances, the two bands later toured together, including appearances in Ely's hometown of Lubbock, as well asLaredo andCiudad Juárez in Mexico, across the border fromEl Paso, Texas.[3] The Clash paid tribute to Joe Ely by including the lyrics "Well there ain't no better blend than Joe Ely and his Texas Men" in the lyrics of their song "If Music Could Talk," which was released in 1980 on the albumSandinista!.[4] Ely sang backing vocals on the Clash single "Should I Stay or Should I Go?".Joe Strummer planned to record with Ely's band, but died before that ever happened—one of Ely's greatest regrets.[5] Another collaboration was with Dutchflamenco guitaristTeye, with whom he recordedLetter to Laredo (1995)[6] andTwistin' in the Wind (1998).[7]
Throughout his career, Ely has issued a steady stream of albums, most on theMCA label, and a live album roughly every ten years.
On May 1, 1982, Joe Ely put on the Third Annual Tornado Jam in Lubbock to a crowd of 25,000. The Jam includedLeon Russell,Joan Jett andThe Crickets. The first Tornado Jam was fundraiser to help Lubbock afterthe Tornado, thus the name. The second Annual Tornado Jam had a crowd of 35,000.[8]
In the late 1990s, Ely was asked to write songs for the soundtrack ofRobert Redford's movieThe Horse Whisperer, which led to re-forming The Flatlanders with Gilmore and Hancock.[3] A new album from the trio followed in 2002, with a third in 2004.[3]
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In February 2007, Ely releasedHappy Songs From Rattlesnake Gulch on his own label, Rack 'Em Records.[3] Ely said in an interview withCountry Standard Time that he thought it would be easier to release the material on his own label, instead of dealing with a regular record label and their release cycles. A book of Ely's writings,Bonfire of Roadmaps, was published in early 2007 by theUniversity of Texas Press. In early 2008, Ely released a new live album featuring Joel Guzman onaccordion recorded at the Cactus Cafe in Austin, Texas in late 2006.
The Flatlanders released their albumHills and Valleys on March 31, 2009.
In 2011, Ely released the critically acclaimed album,Satisfied at Last.[3]
" Treasure of Love" by The Flatlanders was released in 2021 on Ely's Rack'em records.
In September 2015, Ely releasedPanhandle Rambler, an album with a reflectivewest Texas feel. Lonestar Music Magazine says "the title fits the record just right, neatly framing a dozen songs that fit together thematically like a map of both the West Texas landscape and of Ely's epic decades-spanning musical ramble.[9]
Ely spent 2016 as the reigning "Texas State Musician", a one-year designation which he formally accepted in a ceremony at the State Legislature that spring.[10]
In October 2022, he was inducted to theAustin City Limits Hall of Fame.[11]
On February 5, 2019, Ely andJohn Waite filed a class-action lawsuit againstUniversal Music Group (UMG) claiming the company is violating their right to terminate grants of copyright after 35 years in accordance withcopyright law of the United States by ignoring Notices of Termination. May 3, 2019, UMG filed a motion to dismiss the case, stating the Notices of Termination were not valid because the songs were not grants of copyright butworks for hire.[12][13]
| Year | Organization | Award | Nominee/Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Country Music Association Awards | Vocal Event of the Year | Buzzin' CounsinswithJames McMurtry,Dwight Yoakam,John Prine, andJohn Mellencamp | Nominated |
| 1999 | Grammy Awards | Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album | Los Super SevenwithLos Super Seven | Won |
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| Preceded by | AMA Lifetime Achievement Award for Performing 2007 | Succeeded by |
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