Lyman Ellerman: Closer to Home
Writing sad songs is what Lyman Ellerman claims to do best and I don’t typically disagree with his own assessment, except in the case of his latest album. Closer to Home, rather, is full of sentiment, camaraderie, love, faith, and hope. This album will fill your heart full of exactly what we need at a time like this: the things that matter to you most. It’s about shared experiences and realizing that pure joy comes from the simple things in life. Sometimes these are the things we often take for granted. Lyman has lived enough life to understand this and he has the lyrical prowess to put those feelings into words. This album is a tribute to those special moments and relationships that balance our life. It should be a reminder that those we surround ourselves with can have the ability to fill us up with contentment when we need it most. Not to be taken too lightly, Ellerman, in his usual fashion does tackle some difficult topics as well. Humanity and humility are always the common denominators.
Photo by Liz Ellerman
The most salient part of this album is the instrumentation. You can tell that these tracks were recorded with care and attention to the music and the players. The music stands out as significantly as the lyrics. The team set out to create a traditional country music recording and they made good on their intentions. Lyman’s manager and collaborator, Larry Brake of Elephant Rock Music, shared with me that they wanted to use old school recording session techniques and acoustic instruments. “No auto-tune, no samples, no beats…not a single post production overdub on the record.”
The star of the album, “World of Song,” was recorded pre-pandemic at the Cash Cabin studio in Hendersonville, TN. At the helm was Grammy award winner Chuck Turner, who engineered and co-produced the track. The track features world-class musicians Rick Lonow on drums, Dennis Couch on upright bass, Smith Curry on pedal steel, Ryan Wariner on acoustic guitar, and Justin Moses on fiddle and mandolin. Brake told me of what a special session that was for not only himself and Ellerman, but for the entire team. Everyone relished swapping stories and memories and was very grateful for the opportunity to work on such a powerful song in such a sacred studio. He said, “you could almost feel Johnny, June, and all the other great artists that recorded in the studio and vocal booth, smiling down.”
Lyman Ellerman and Billy Don Burns. Photo by Catherine Matthews
On a night that Ellerman was examining his own course throughout his music career, he began thinking about the expansive road his friend, Billy Don Burns, has traveled himself. Lyman began writing about the life of a singer-songwriter; the heartbreak and the triumphs and the toll those highs and lows take on a musician trying to make a mark in this arduous business. Lyman struck a chord within Burns when he sent him a copy of the song and asked Billy Don to record it with him. Burns said this of the song, “It ripped my heart out of my chest. None of my songs ever hurt me more than this one did. I’m talking “Stranger,” “Dark Side of the Spoon,” “Memories Cost A Lot.” None of them hit me more than this one.” “World of Song” plays out like a condensed version of Billy Don’s biography and that's exactly what BDB saw in those lyrics. On the recorded version, you’ll hear gritty, haunting guest vocals from the legendary songwriter, Billy Don Burns, as he speaks about the road-weathered life through the words of Ellerman.
And the days move slow / Some barely a crawl / When your destination is a cold curtain call / Before you realize where you are / You’re already gone / Yeah, you’re all alone in your world of song
You can read more on our April coverage of the single release here: http://bit.ly/WorldofSong
Despite scheduling constraints, Ellerman and Brake wanted to finish what they had started back in 2019. For the rest of Closer to Home, Ellerman recorded at the Nashville Music Group studio. It was produced by Jeff Williams and Lyman Ellerman for Woodshed Resistance Records with Larry Brake as executive producer, and engineer, Denny Knight. Even though they were unable to secure the time at the Cash Cabin studio or reassemble the same production team and players, the remainder of the album was still produced with the same attention to detail as the recording of “World of Song.” Playing on the rest of the tracks are Lyman Ellerman on acoustic guitar/vocals, Jeff Williams on acoustic guitar/banjo/percussion/harmony vocals, Jamey Garner (High South) on harmonicas, Dave Roe upright bass, Deanie Richardson on fiddle, and Steve Hinson with the dobro/electric slide.
From trying to get as much as you can out of life while you’re able in “Pour It Til It’s Gone” to breaking your back to provide for your family in “Illinois Coal,” Ellerman taps into the real-life hustle and hardships of the working-class man.
Illinois coal, Illinois coal / You’re digging up a fortune in a black diamond hole / And the company town owns the company store / You’re just a selling your soul for that Illinois coal / Selling your soul for that Illinois coal
Ellerman writes fondly about his musical inspirations in “Tokens from Heroes.” He pays homage to the writers of the songs from his youth that helped shape his own songwriting career. As another nod to fellow musicians and friends, Lyman sings about leaning on each other in tough times and enjoying the camaraderie between old pals. He even brought in his friend and contemporary, Josh Morningstar, to sing guest vocals for the song “Old Friend in the Corner.” It’s an inspiring song about understanding where the other has been in their life and then lifting each other up to be the kind of person your friends can count on. I think this song is especially poignant right now as we can’t spend time with loved ones like we usually would. So, it’s a valuable reminder to continue reaching out and elevating each other with support.
Lyman Ellerman & Chuck Turner. Photo by Larry Brake
A couple of my favorites on the album are “My Kind of Place” and “Some Things.” These two songs illustrate Lyman’s way of recognizing the most important things in life: family. “My Kind of Place” is a fiddle-forward, up-tempo track telling the listener about the simple things in life that manifest true happiness. Ellerman knows that your locale is not necessarily important as long as you are in good company. “Some Things” is a slower swaying tune with a bellowing harmonica that talks of the things that fill up the soul.
Closer to Home closes with “Dream,” a commentary track from Lyman describing how the final track, “You Dream,” came to fruition. If you are not familiar with the Ellerman’s story, they lost their only son, Ryley, a few years ago. This song describes a very vivid and quite wonderful dream that Lyman had about his son shortly after his passing. Lyman talks of how mementos are a wonderful way to fondly remember your loved ones, but how dreaming about them makes them seem alive again, even if just for a short time.
I encourage you to not only sit down and enjoy Lyman Ellerman's Closer to Home, which is now available on all media outlets, but to dig deep into his catalog. His sincere and powerful songs appeal to our sensibilities with the use of music and lyrics to heal our troubled hearts. If you're new to Ellerman's work, there has never been a better time to become a fan.
Find more about Lyman here:
