Biography
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Born
1 December 1940 (age 83)
Ed Askew (born Edward C. Askew in Stamford, Connecticut, in 1940) is an American singer-songwriter and painter who first recorded in 1968. He collaborated with Sharon Van Etten on his 2013 album For the World.
Askew is known for his album in the original ESP Disk’s vague rock/folk/freak series, issued eponymously and since reissued as Ask The Unicorn.
Years later, thanks to detective work by Clint Simonson of the De Stijl Records imprint, it turned out that Askew had recorded a follow-up to his ESP Disk in 1970 that had lain in the can for decades. Originally released as a limited vinyl edition by Simonson himself, Little Eyes stands as one of the most magical outsider/freak albums .
Askew has a highly idiosyncratic vocal style that is equal parts quizzical bubble-gum chewing kind on shrooms and doe-eyed real people Richard Brautigan character. Perhaps the closest comparison would be to Tom Rapp or Judee Sill’s old buddy Tommy Peltier. His instrumental conceptions certainly owe a massive debt to bob Dylan circa 64/65 - who the fuck didn’t - especially his spine-tingling harmonica work but it’s the beautiful arc of the songs that will keep you coming back, the way he combines rough, fluffed performances with eye-watering lyrical sentiments, heartbreaking phrasing and weird, clunky chords played on a ‘Martin tiple’. If you ever dug the whole late-60s freak-folk fall-out as documented by Pearls Before Swine, Bleib Alien, Tim Buckley, The Fugs, The Roots Of Madness et al you are gonna crease. Simply put, one of the most beautifully cracked singer-songwriter albums of a timeless age. Only the hardest of hearts could resist it. This new CD edition comes with six incredible bonus tracks culled from various radio broadcasts across 1970 and 71 and liners by Byron Coley. Highly recommended. Ed has subsequently released FOR THE WORLD on Tin Angel records. http://www.tinangelrecords.co.uk/edaskew/index.html
He collaborated with Sharon Van Etten on his 2013 album For the World.
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