Eli was born at the foot of the mountains of Virginia, and with no TV growing up he spent Saturday nights around the radio with local shows and Prairie Home Companion. He picked up the guitar at age 13 after watching his older brother play and began to teach himself.

He’s released 7 albums since his 2007 debut, and his latest. “High Dollar Gospel” has received high marks, with the Atlanta Auditory Association writing:

“Raw scratchy soaked vocals give the songs texture, traditional blues riffs provide a familiarity and songs about lost love, bad decisions and the never ending struggle between good and evil are nothing new. However, once you play it again and again the songs begin to open up to expose layer upon layer of sound and lyrical details that are hidden within Cook’s stories… Bluesman, folk singer, story teller and guitar slinger are all apt descriptors of Eli Cook. His songs have as much in common with Howlin’ Wolf as they do with Steve Earle.”

As always, a portion of your tab goes to Music Maker Relief Foundation to help support American roots music by directly partnering with the artists who make it.