Ellen Foley has a new album, ‘Fighting Words‘ that has been out for a couple of weeks now, her first release in eight years. It’s certainly not what one might expect from the singer who was a foil to Mr Loaf on ‘Bat out of Hell‘, but it is a personal record. As she says: “Every song on ‘Fighting Words’ could represent something I’ve made it through in life, whether it be personal relationships or experiences I’ve had as a singer and actress. My songwriter, Paul Foglino, is well acquainted with the peaks and valleys of my history. He does an amazing job interpreting them into songs for me to sing. As for the album title, let’s just say that I was not a fan of the previous presidential administration. There is a definite undercurrent of resistance in songs like ‘Leave Him Janie’ or ‘This Won’t Last Forever’.”
Which may well be true – but anyone who takes a listen to ‘Leave Him Janie‘ could be excused for thinking that Ellen Foley has been inspired by the likes of Roger McGuinn, or even Fairport Convention. These are folk chords – and that call and response is pure shanty. And all coupled with a crunching backing that wouldn’t be out of place behind Ian Hunter. Who, of course, Ellen Foley has also worked with.
