Imagine you’re sitting on the front porch of your farmhouse listening to your big brother play his guitar. It’s a beautiful summer’s evening and you just had an enormous dinner of spaghetti and meatballs. Your mother is sewing up the holes in your socks and your father has pulled out his old trumpet to jam with his son. These are the kind of images Amos Lee’s new album, Mission Bell, conjure up.
A Jack Johnson/Keb’ Mo’ contemporary, Lee hails from Philadelphia Pennsylvania with a jazz/folk/soul style. His first album was produced by Norah Jones, who made a guest appearance on several tracks, and her bassist Lee Alexander. Mission Bell is Lee’s fourth album. He spent a year and a half on writing and re-writing this extremely personal album and expanding the musicality of his previous work.
Songs to listen for: “Flower” has a quicker pace and Lee sings about a very specific instance of love. Another strong one is the gospel-style “Jesus” which boasts vibrant guitars and strong percussion.
Rolling Stone have said he was one of their top 10 artists to watch. They couldn’t have been more wrong– he’s even better than that.