Fans of John Prine will appreciate the sharp storytelling of Abe Partridge—an emerging Alabama folk singer with a knack for spinning gritty gothic tales and a rich gravelly voice akin to Tom Waits.
Background: At 37, Partridge has already lived quite an interesting life. He moved to Kentucky in his 20s and studied to be an evangelical minister. When the calling faded he joined the Air Force and served in Qatar. After returning home to Alabama, he started indulging the urge to share some of his experiences in song, blending a mix of influences that range from grunge to blues masters like Son House. A performance at the Gulf Coast Songwriter Shootout led to Nashville connections and the recording of his first record, White Trash Lipstick, which came out in 2016. Partridge’s second record, Cotton Fields and Blood for Days, was released in January.
Key Tracks: “Ride Willie Ride” is a mellow twangy rumination about past mistakes that pays tribute to another one of Partridge’s influences, Willie Nelson. The distorted “I Wish I was a Punk Rocker” comes more from the Jack White side of the roots spectrum, as Partridge delivers a hillbilly-garage stomper about feeling like a misfit.
See Him: Partridge mainly plays around home in Mobile, Ala., but he’s starting to venture out to folk-friendly rooms around the South. He’ll play Tybee City Limits in Tybee Island, Ga. (June 9) and Barley’s Taproom in Knoxville, Tenn. (July 3).
