ELIZA GILKYSON Shares a Track From Her New Album with Billboard

Eliza Gilkyson, the two-time GRAMMY™-nominated (2006/2014) folk singer, songwriter and activist is one of the most respected musicians in Folk Roots/Americana music today. In keeping with the idea of folk music as an instrument for change, Gilkyson is announcing her new release, 2020, a collection of politically charged anthems designed to motivate, reflect and inspire action during what she believes will be "the most important USA election of our lifetime." She is sharing the song "Sooner or Later" today at Billboard, which writes "the bluesy, biting 'Sooner or Later' is intended as a rallying cry and a statement of purpose." Gilkyson examines the inequality in our world right now and warns that sooner or later we're "gonna rise up, gonna take all back."

Produced by Eliza's son, Cisco Ryder, 2020 features songs that are designed to be audience sing-a-longs in the Pete Seeger tradition of motivational political anthems, from the call for unity of "Peace in Our Hearts," to blistering condemnations of the current regime's policies with "Sooner or Later" and "My Heart Aches." Along with these new songs (including two co-writes with students from her summer songwriter workshops in Taos, NM), she has recorded two folk favorites: Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" and Pete Seeger's "Where Have All the Flowers Gone." Gilkyson's timely new song, "Beach Haven," was drawn from a letter written by Woody Guthrie in 1952 directed to Beach Haven Apartment's landlord Fred Trump (POTUS' father) regarding his racist, segregationist renter policies. The song is Woody's joyful invitation to Trump to "open your doors" and "rip out the strangling red tape" that keeps the apartment from embracing all races.

"One More Day" finds Gilkyson reflecting on the sobering realities of climate catastrophe while celebrating her commitment to life, love, community and Planet Earth with the songs "Beautiful World of Mine," "We Are Not Alone" and "Promises to Keep."

Featured artists include Eliza's tried and true band of beloved Austin musicians: Mike Hardwick (Jon Dee Graham, Jerry Jeff Walker, Charlie Sexton) on pedal steel, slide and electric guitars, Chris Maresh (Eric Johnson) on bass, Bukka Allen (Alejandro Escovedo, Joe Ely, Terry Allen) on keyboards, Warren Hood on fiddle, mandolinist Kym Warner (Green Cards) and producer Cisco Ryder on drums, with cameo appearances by rising star Jaimee Harris, folksinger Betty Soo and the WEWIM Choir of Austin, a support group co-founded by Eliza and singer Charlie Faye to nurture local female musicians working to get their careers off the ground.

Gilkyson, daughter of folk artist Terry Gilkyson and sister of LA-based artist Tony Gilkyson, is held in high regard by critics and her fellow songwriters alike; she recently supported Richard Thompson on his fall 2019 U.S. and had her song "The Great Correction" covered in 2018 by Joan Baez. Gilkyson will be touring her new release during 2020 with various musical accompaniment from solo to trio configurations, with songs that range from the personal to the communal, highlighting a perspective that moves beyond US politics into the international collective and our imperative to respect all of humankind and the natural world as united citizens of the earth.

Gilkyson says: "2020 was born out of a visceral impulse to promote unity, commitment and action during this epic and critical showdown of power versus people in the USA and our world today.

"May human decency prevail."

Go to http://elizagilkyson.com for updates.

Listen to "Sooner or Later" below.

TOUR DATES

SAT, Apr 4 Silver City, NM - Mimbres Arts
TUE, Apr 7 Seattle, WA - Royal Room
THU, Apr 9 Vancouver, BC - Rogue Folk Club
THU, Apr 16 Bainbridge Island, WA - Treehouse Café
THU, Apr 30 Exeter, NH - Word Barn
FRI, May 1 Boston, MA - Community Church of Boston
SAT, May 2 Canton, CT - Roaring Brook
SUN, May 3 Cambridge, MA - Club Passim
TUE, May 5 New York, NY - CITY WINERY Pier 57
THU, May 7 Sutton, MI - Sutton Bay Theater
SAT, May 9 Boyne City, MI - Freshwater Concerts
FRI, May 15 Houston, TX - Mucky Duck
SAT, May 16 Austin, TX - Cactus Café
FRI, May 29 Denver, CO - Swallow Hill Presents
WED, Sep 9 Berkeley, CA - Freight & Salvage
SAT, Sep 19 Los Angeles, CA - McCabes
SUN, Sep 20 Huntington Beach, CA - Huntington Beach Loft Concerts