Artist James Lee Stanley

Singer-songwriter James Lee Stanley is best known for his work with ex-Monkee Peter Tork and his collaboration with veteran folkie John Batdorf on an album of acoustic Rolling Stones covers, but he leans back toward his meditative side on 2007’s The Eternal Contradiction. Songs like “The Street Where Mercy Died” and “This Fleeting Moment” are as ruminative as one would imagine, and Stanley’s voice keeps the emphasis on the melody, spanning silky baritone and gentle falsetto. In 2008 Stanley decided to look back, reworking his 2002 album Traces Of The Old Road and released it asNew Traces Of The Old Road. 2011’s Backstage At The Resurrection is a decidedly more upbeat affair, and contains songs like the featherweight “Backhand Man,” and the earnest “What Would You Do?” He’s touring with pal Cliff Eberhardt, with whom he recorded All Wood And Doors, a Doors covers album.

Updated 01/10/2012