Steve Bell back on the road with JUNO nominated album, coming to Cornwall
Veteran singer/songwriter Steve Bell’s 22nd solo release came into its rich collaborative style in the early days of the pandemic. “It’s the only time in my career that I’ve had the opportunity to focus on recording a project without having to head out on the road every second week,” says Bell. “As worrisome as the pandemic was, it also allowed me, and the musicians I worked with, to get into a creative zone and stay there till the project was done. And I can hear it in the end product.”
If you opt for a physical copy of the album, you’ll get an accompanying booklet of reflections Bell wrote on each song, which will expand and deepen your enjoyment. In telling the story of each song, Bell invites us both into the creative process of his songwriting and opens paths of deeper reflection, even meditation.
The album recently received two JUNO nominations: one for Contemporary Christian Gospel Album of the Year, and a second for Album Artwork of the Year (art designed by Roberta Landreth).
Bell has been back on tour with his new material since last fall. “My first love is, and will always be, live performance,” he beams. “I’m happiest and at my best when on a stage in front of people.”
He will be performing in Cornwall on Friday, November 17, 7:30 PM at St. Peter’s Catholic Church (2900 Second St E).
Tickets and info at stevebell.com/events.
Accolades / Reviews for Wouldn’t You Love To Know:
[It is rare] to find a musician who can grow and change while still somehow having such a distinctive way of composing that you recognize his or her work over many years despite any experiments with new styles. Paul Simon is on that short list. So is Bruce Cockburn. And so is Canadian Christian singer-songwriter Steve Bell. Bell’s new album Wouldn’t You Love to Know brings us songs that immediately sound like Steve Bell, even as he clearly breaks considerable new ground. (John Stackhouse)
The album bears a poet’s touch, in lyric lines, and songcraft richly burnished for collaboration with a stellar array of gifted artists. (Kevin Belmonte)
Wouldn’t You Love to Know is a shimmering, pulsating example of the sort of work that can come into being when creative vision, astonishing craft, and emotional power formed in the crucible of life and loss come together. (Carolyn Arends)
This is not an album for easy listening. Bell invites us to put in the work of paying close attention, dwelling in the imagery, drinking in the meanings, letting the music wash over us, take us where it will. From the pensive to the whimsical, with prophetic insight and priestly care, this is art for such a time as this. (Brian Walsh)
