Wildcard - Ben Russell

June 10, 2014 / John Blevins

Ben Russell, violinist, vocalist and songwriter, can be seen performing with several NYC ensembles, hiking unfamiliar trails in upstate NY, and drinking unique tequilas in numerous Northeast watering holes. In coming up with this list, I found that I kept thinking of musicians in pairs or groups. Like the old timey, scratchy, rough around the edges music of both Mississippi John Hurt and Doc Watson. Man, I love how they tell a good story. Or the meditative and/or cerebral music of Mitsuko Uchida's Mozart, Henry Cowell playing his own music, or Keith Jarrett's improv concerts in Japan (Sun Bear). I like those in a quiet space. I'm fascinated by how Bruce Molsky and Tim Eriksen meld their voice with their violin, but each with his own style. I wouldn't be writing music if it wasn't for those guys. And lastly, I'm often listening to songwriters over and over again. Randy Newman, Leonard Cohen, and the Beach Boys are on the top of my list right now...