Bill & Eli Perras
DeLand, Florida, United States
Music
Press
"Eli and Bill are very soft-spoken, humble people. Musically the stuff they do is quite polished. It's about as close as anyone, here, comes to recalling, in our time, the authentic sound of traditional American Music."
- Charles Atkins - FSU Blues Professer
"The songs are all very pleasing and you guys obviously have a lot of talent and a good presence musically. I love Bill's ideas on the guitar." - Steve Gillette - Legendary Performing Singer/Songwriter
"I like your CD alot. Good solid guitar playing and great topical songs sung with verve. Keep singing your dreams." - David Massengill - Master Storyteller & Songwriter
"Honest, direct and unpretentious, Runnin’ Outta’ Georgia was recorded in Central Florida, engineered and mixed by Bill and Eli’s good friend Eddie Kavetsky. The sound is pure, homegrown folk with that signature Perras blues feel. Crisp and clear throughout, Bill’s masterful guitar work is augmented by a collection of musicians and friends dubbed The Florida Acoustic Segue Orchestra. They include Tony Macaluso and Don Waldrop on stand up bass, the harp master, Stan Geberer, on harmonica, John Dupree on piano, Pete Easton on banjo, Steve Rinker on dobro and slide guitar and Lin Valentino adds percussion. Vocal support is lent by “The People’s Army Vocal Group” which includes Ivers, Easton, Joe Waller, Katie Bailey-Waller, Jeri Simpson, Jim DiPaolo and the entire Hiller-Wilson clan, Magda, Chip and young Wyatt. It is a family project filled with ample measures of joy, sorrow and love.
The thirteen tunes recorded on the CD include 10 of Bill and Eli’s originals plus three penned by others. Their original songs expose their personal experiences, emotions and values with candor and vulnerability. There is no guile or artifice in his or her approach. Telling it like it is, they relate Eli’s challenges through major life changes Paid Your Dues and the strength and faith with which she has been blessed while caring for Adam, her disabled son Mama’s Bank Account. Accapella, Eli pours out the pain of the loss of a premature granddaughter in Julia Butterfly. They call ‘em like they see ‘em in I Had a Dream, a no nonsense rebuke of the wealthy and greedy who escape responsibility for their callous actions, and Hey NASA!, a wake up call regarding the launch of highly hazardous materials from Cape Canaveral. My personal favorite is Tribute to a Friend offered in honor of Steve Blackwell, one of our very finest who was taken from us much too soon. Of course, the collection wouldn’t be complete without a little of “the devil’s music” as Bill calls Eli’s Housewife Blues, her pointed reply to his inopportune “what have you been doing all day?” inquiry.
If you haven’t caught one of Bill and Eli’s shows you’ll have plenty of opportunities. They appear at all of Florida’s various folk gatherings and wander around the state sharing their music at folk music venues far and wide. It is a treat that should not be missed".
- Doug Spears - Singer/Songwriter
Discography
CD - BluesGotUs 2005
CD - Runnin' Outta' Georgia 2007
Photos
Bio
The many inspired lyrics given to and interpreted by Eli, combined with Bill's expertise bluesy finger-style guitar playing create a very uniquely modern take on true Americana music in its purest form. Receiving much recognition for their tightly woven musical creativity, and having opened for some long time musical masters such as Bill Staines, John Gorka, Jack Williams, Small Potqatoes, Anne Feeney, Scott Ainslie, Emma's Revolution, and Paul Geremia; they humbly remain true to their personal values. They continue to speak out with strong heartfelt lyrics accompanied by soulful genuine pentatonic rhythms against social injustices, corporate greed, and daily follies in everyday life. They can grip your heart, search your soul, change a mindset, or softly strike a funny bone, all the while leaving the audience with a sentiment for the common good we desire in all mankind.
From Sing Out! Magazine - Vol. 52 No. 1 - Spring 2008 - Page 110
BILL AND ELI PERRAS CD - "Runnin' Outta' Georgia"
After listening to this release from the Perras' I would have selected "I Had a Dream" as the title cut, as it speaks to their dreams for change, the need to make good of bad, right of wrong. "If only my dreams could come true," they sing. Their songs of protest . a magnifying glass applied to our society and a marker underlining the issues that require discussion and debate. Each has its own unique sound and groove, its own mission, and all creating an interesting mix.
One of the strongest messages comes with "Front Page News," Bill's slow, loping guitar blues about the Katrina disaster, venting all of our frustration and anger over the aftermath of the storm and the lack of response. With frustration closer to home, "Housewife Blues" is Eli's response to all of those who question the workload of the housewife, a little tongue and cheek but speaking truth to word, giving ammunition to those who feel the need to defend their good work. The similarities between modern times and the times most of us boomers grew up in seem to go unnoticed by many, but the déjà vu feeling I have doesn't escape the Perras family. They've resurrected a Country Joe McDonald ode to peace, "Free Someday," a ballad the band used to sing outside White House during the Vietnam war era. "We'll all be free someday" they hope.
Even closer to home is the heart and Eli's unaccompanied ballad, "Julia Buttefly", is a tribute to their granddaughter who passed away far too soon. It reaches us all deep inside and speaks to the sorrow that gives birth to the blues. Even though the melody resembles an early-American hymn, it is draped in the spirit of the blues. "Tribute to a Friend" is equally as poignant and personal as they deal with the loss of a close friend.
Throughout, the duo is assisted by a collective of musicians they call the Florida Acoustic Segue Orchestra, playing stand-up bass, piano, banjo, percussion and slide. Of the performers, I was driven most to the slide work of Steve Rinker. His Dobro solo on "Housewife" is sweet and soulful with just enough sass, and his riffing with electric (lap steel?) slide on "Florida Blues" and "Paid Your Dues" really caught my ear. Great tone and sustain in all the right places. Stan Geberer's phrasing on harmonica on "Tribute" adds another sad voice to the mix and really helps set the mood of the piece.
This is a collection of topical songs that point to the social issues that frustrate us every day, from corporate injustice to the homeless, from political inaction to stereo-types, and prejuice. Each song thoughtfully brings the human condition to light and most offer a silver lining, the possibility of change if we get off our butts and reach out to each other. Their website is "BluesGotUs". Hopefully their "blues" will get us. --- RDG
Some of the venues where Bill & Eli have shared their music are:
All That Jazz Cafe - Cocoa, FL
Barberville Pioneer Days - Barberville, FL
Barrington Coffee House - Barrington, NJ
Cantab Lounge - Cambridge, MA
DeLand Original Music Festival - Deland, FL
FairGrinds Coffeehouse - New Orleans, LA
Florida Coalition for Peace & Justice Pick-In - Hampton, FL
Florida Folk Festival - White Springs, FL
Folk's Cafe - Wilmington, NC
Freedom Blues Festival - Tallahassee, FL
Friends of Joe Prine Concert Series - Lakeland, FL
Gamble Rogers Folk Festival - St. Augustine, FL
Great Hudson Sloop Revival - Croton-on-Hudson, NY
Kerrville Folk Festival - Kerrville, TX
Koolbeanz Coffeehouse - Cocoa, FL
Lake County Folk Festival - Eustis, FL
Leu Gardens - Orlando, FL
Mosaic Concert Series - Lake Helen, FL
Mother's Musical Bakery - Sarasota, FL
Neutral Ground Coffeehouse - New Orleans, LA
Rose Garden Restaurant & Pub - Upton, MA
Sacred Grounds Coffee House - Tampa, FL
Sailing Squadron - Sarasota, FL
Sarasota Folk Festival - Sarasota, FL
Savannah Folk Society - Savannah, GA
Skipper's Smokehouse - Tampa, FL
South Florida Folk Festival - Fort Lauderdale, FL
Sunshine
Links
