Eric Hutchinson Releases 6-Song EP 'SING ALONG!'

Today is the day we release SING ALONG! with Eric Hutchinson - six new, original, gospel-inspired folk and protest songs that feel instantly timeless.

"I believe that anybody with a voice can sing," Eric says. "Using your voice is powerful and the fun of making music and singing together in harmony can be universally healing and unifying. It's been a hard few years for everyone. Since I was a kid, what I've always done to heal in any times of distress, was to sing."

Furthering his inspirational sentiment on making this album, Eric explains to FolknRock, "I felt very changed by living through the last few years and I wanted to write about it. These songs are more inclusive and I loved getting to sing as part of a group instead of just as an individual. In the end, my songwriting has always been asking "why?". These new songs are a deepening of asking why but are also hopefully uplifting and inspiring. I also think they're super fun. "

SING ALONG! with Eric Hutchinson is the artist's eighth studio release and his first new work since the fierce global reckoning with racism that was illuminated by the historic actions of the Black Lives Matter movement.

"I grew up in a diverse suburb of Washington D.C., surrounded by people of all colors, speaking multiple languages," Eric says. "So I was ashamed to learn how many blind spots I still have. The past few years have opened my eyes, in new ways, to how so many people, especially those of color, are marginalized and robbed of their basic civic rights.

Eric's new collection of songs touch on togetherness, tolerance, inclusivity, progress, and justice. "These themes felt like the only thing I could possibly write about right now," he says. Songs like "Everybody's Gotta Beating Heart" and "Right Side of History" are melodious folk- soul grooves that find Eric examining our basic rights as human beings, and what our personal actions mean in the long-term.

"The Littlest Candle" and "Hey Look I Found It! (My Inner Peace)" are joyful tracks, meant to inspire and build up the listener toward progress. "Pick Up The Pace" is a witty protest song about the realities of climate change. The album closer "Sing Along With Me", is a simple, soulful ode to the power of singing when nothing seems to be going your way.

Together, the songs create a guiding force that is schooled in the traditions of American folk music. SING ALONG! was heavily inspired by Black artists like Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Big Bill Broonzy and Elizabeth Cotten, as well as the recorded works of Alan Lomax, an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings, which played an important role in preserving the folk music traditions of the early 20th century.

In early 2022, Eric assembled an elite and diverse eight-member band of musicians to perform and record his new project, live in the studio. He recruited Clyde Lawrence on keys, Ian Allison on bass, Jimmy Coleman on percussion and Wayne Tucker on trumpet, plus vocalists Caleb Hawley, Melanie Nyema, and Veronica Frommer-Stewart.

The group united in NYC's Lower East Side, in the middle of a blizzard, to make music in person, together, and document the party. "I was determined to make the album totally live and with no headphones. Just musicians in a room, making music together. A very antique idea these days," Eric says with a laugh. "I loved the idea of setting up a few microphones and recording something live and true - with no edits, no tricks, and nowhere to hide as a songwriter and a performer."

Eric hopes that his new songs and his own examination of his place in this world will inspire others to look inward and at the community around them. "I don't claim to have the answers and I know that my music won't solve our problems," he says. "But I am hopeful these songs will lift the listener, and invite the listener to celebrate diversity, look around at the injustices currently present in life, and question how he, she or they might make even the smallest difference in the name of good."

Listen to the EP here:

Tour Dates

September 2, 2022
London, United Kingdom
Piano Smithfield

September 8, 2022
Boulder, CO
Roots Music Project

September 9, 2022
Telluride, CO
Sheridan Opera House

September 10, 2022
Denver, CO
Ophelia's Electric Soapbox

September 21, 2022
Boston, MA
City Winery Boston

September 22, 2022
New York, NY
City Winery New York

September 23, 2022
Washington, DC
City Winery Washington DC

September 24, 2022
Philadelphia, PA
City Winery Philadelphia

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