Christopher Russell
Leaving Pretoria
© 1998 Christopher Russell (791022058222)
CD IN STOCK. ORDER NOW. Will ship immediately.
Radio roots-rock with a bit of country and blues thrown in for good measure; Guitar-textured, gig-tested songs about people in transition.
tracks
- 1 Alimony Money
- 2 Emma Said
- 3 Hip Hugging Dress
- 4 Nothing Ever Was
- 5 All My Love Shine
- 6 Leaving Pretoria
- 7 Cold Bed
- 8 Lonesome Blue
- 9 Falling For You
- 10 Say What You Mean
- 11 You Got It Made
- 12 I Remember
- 13 You Just May Be the One
try this
albums you will love
genres you will love
By Location
Recommended if you like ...
notes
Weaned on tidewater Maryland AM radio, Christopher Russell parlayed a passion for Beatles, Byrds, Monkees, and Motown into a songwriting avocation.
His essential guitar and vocal skills were honed on underground subway platforms in Montreal, Canada. Christopher then took to dozens of small stages on the Washington D.C. acoustic music circuit in the late 1980s. In this milieu, Christopher embraced song writing in earnest, drawing from the pop aesthetics of Elvis Costello, John Hiatt, Richard Thompson, and Marshall Crenshaw. Local D.C. luminaries such as Steve Erwin and Kevin Johnson also left tire marks on Christopher's notebook.
His work eventually culminated in a 1998 compact disc, Leaving Pretoria. One of his crowd-pleasers, Hip Hugging Dress, was covered by the DC-area band Blame it on Jane on their debut disc, Love and Tonic. Christopher Russell mixes performances with professional travel. He insists that his presentation skills are the product of "stage knees" developed through his musical pursuits.
A bunch of D.C.-area musicians contributed to this collection:
Hassan Ali: drums
Jerry Bresee: acoustic guitar, backing vocals
Mary Byrd Brown: backing vocals
Matt Holsen: backing vocals, producer
John Previti: stand-up bass
Rob Receveur: electric guitar, bass, backing vocals
Lisa Taylor: drums
Sue Ledesma Westlake: drums
Mike Woods: dobro
Christopher Russell: guitars, bass, harmonica, keyboard, percussion, vocals
reviews
Please log in to review this album.
- author: GMU Broadside Online
Do you remember when music consisted of people who could write and play without the help of a lot of fancy computers and flashy costumes? Christopher Russell does.... The range of songs showcases Russell's talent in singing, writing, and performing. When you are done with this CD, you feel as if you have listened to such a wide range of music that you might has well have heard three or four different CD's at a time.
- author: Don Tabler, "Northern Virginia Rhythm"
Record companies looking for someting that can make a tired, jaded, overpaid talent sound fresh, vibrant, and dewy-eyed, stop what you are doing and get a copy of this.
- author: Mark Bounds, "Music Monthly"
Deftly performed and produced... left a decent taste on my musical pallet.
- author: Shawn Reynolds, "Fat Fingers"
Infectious songs reminiscent of Squeeze, but with the punch of Elvis Costello... an absolute joy to sit back and tap your feet to or stand up and grab the closest person to spin around.