We recently had the opportunity to check out new live album, The Bear Is The Mountain – Live 1979-1985’, from, songwriter, painter, music producer,- Robert Ellis Orrall. You can listen to The Bear Is The Mountain – Live 1979-1985, Here

The new live album, from Robert Ellis Orrall, is a trip ( literally) as t transports listeners back to the acclaimed singer-songwriter’s early-’80s glory days around Boston, showcasing his trusted band of musicians who could conquer any stage at any time, from the seedy dive bars on the outskirts of town to the glossy main stages of posh downtown theaters. But it also brings us forward, planting its flag in the modern day, delivering these four friends and collaborators back to the stage as one cohesive unit, and offering a glimpse – and a sound – of just what is to come. 

The Bear Is The Mountain showcases a band at its sweaty, bluesy, breakneck-pace peak – Orrall on lead vocals and keyboards; Kook Lawry on guitar and vocals; Don Walden on bass and vocals; and David Stefanelli on drums and vocals. The record also features Brian Maes (touring keyboards in 1983); Eddie Grenga (tour keyboards in 1984); and a pair of original Robert Ellis Orrall band members in guitarist Douglas Millett and drummer Sus. 

Reclaiming the magic they first felt decades ago, Orrall, Lawry, Walden, and Stefanelli are all back together again after a 35-year break, coming together during the pandemic, not only to  help Orrall unearth and polish up these lost recordings, but also create an exciting new chapter. It started with 2022 collaborative record 467 Surf & Gun Club and last year’s studio album The War Between Us (recorded in 1986 at Downtown Recorders), continues with the summer live shows, and eventually leads to a new album on the way, Wrong Thing, showcasing the quartet’s first new all-original music in nearly four decades, due out in the fall.   

The Bear Is The Mountain pulls from Orrall’s three studio albums for RCA Records: 1981’s Fixation, 1983’s Special Pain (his Top 40 debut with Carlene Carter, “I Couldn’t Say No,” is excitedly included here), and 1984’s Contain Yourself, all originally recorded in Wales with producer Roger Bechirian (Elvis Costello, Squeeze). It’s a snapshot in time, one before Orrall relocated to Nashville to become a prolific songwriter, producer, and in-demand collaborator, with five Number 1 songs to his credit across an eclectic and expansive 350-track catalog. 

The album kicks off with a manic rendition of “Inspired,” originally recorded in 1979 with former members Millet on rhythm guitar and Sus on drums. The energy from the recording explodes out of the speakers, and sets a brazen tone for the 15 tracks that follow, all offering an odd cohesion for songs that at some points have six long years wedged in between recordings. But it paints a vivid picture of Orrall’s band, and comes across like one compact live concert where the band was firing on all cylinders. 

It was finding this recording on a cassette tape that made me search for more,” Orrall says about “Inspired,” perhaps enjoying what the title suggests for this new era as much as the recordings’ quality itself. “I dug deep and uncovered about 30 cassettes, digitized them, and then found the 16 best sounding/slash/best performances. When we got back together to rehearse, we actually pulled up some of those live tapes to remind us of the changes you make when you’ve been playing constantly for years. More reminders than inspiration, because we’re beyond ‘Inspired’ to be playing all these songs again.”

And play them they will. After the Marblehead gig over Fourth of July weekend, Orrall and his band canvass New England for the summer circuit, just like old times (with admittedly a bit more space between gigs), with additional shows July 17 as part of the Wildcat Concert Series in Jackson, New Hampshire; August 22 at The Cut in Gloucester; and September 13 at Two To Lou Music Festival in Sandown, New Hampshire.

The Bear Is The Mountain – Live 1979-1985, from Robert Ellis Orrall , is a beautiful melodic example of how the past can get us excited and energized for the future.