Melissa Ruth: Bio & Press

MELISSA RUTH & THE LIKELY STORIES- AIN'T NO WHISKEY
"I love everything about this album..." -John Conquest, 3rd Coast Music
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Melissa Ruth and her husband, guitarist Johnny Leal, had been tracking an acoustic follow-up to 2008's Underwater and Other Places for a year when Melissa stumbled upon a 1958 Guild electric guitar at a local music store. Inspired by the guitar and informed by the couple's old jazz and blues collection, Ruth began writing. Once she had penned what turned out to be her title track, Ruth says that a theme for a new record began to emerge.

"All of the songs on the album are about travel or transition, almosts and maybes. Everyone is looking for something: love, acceptance, peace, happiness. The idea behind Ain't No Whiskey is that there are no quick fixes for feelings of longing and desire."

Realizing the intimate nature of her work, Melissa turned to her family. With backgrounds in blues, jazz and funk, her husband Johnny and his brother, drummer Jimmy Leal, were the clear choice for Ruth. "I knew that the songs needed musical soul to support their lyric content and I knew that these boys had soul in spades."

In December of 2010, Ruth and the Leal brothers holed up together, sharing meals and listening to old vinyl. Most of their rehearsal time was spent crafting their sound, a sound they call doo-wop twang. Says Ruth: "Even though we come from entirely different backgrounds, we play from the same place... something that I think is a bit inherent to family bands. We all really believe in letting a song breathe." As the record neared completion, and in keeping with the all-in-the-family theme, Ruth asked her sister Leah and Leah's husband Talon Nansel to sing harmonies on a few songs. Ruth: "It feels really right-on to know that everything you hear on this record was created by someone in my family."

Ain't No Whiskey is the second release on Ruth's own label, Both Ears Records. The first release was 2008's Underwater and Other Places, produced by Hank Alrich of Armadillo Music Productions in Austin, TX. Dubbed homegrown folk-sass, the songs on the album were recorded live and underwent minimal studio production. Additionally, most of the songs on Underwater and Other Places were written by the time Melissa was 21. The record served to showcase the undeniable potential of the young artist.

Canadian-born Melissa Ruth was raised in rural British Columbia on a balanced diet of borscht and Bob Dylan. Melissa and Johnny met in Northern California where they were both studying music. The pair now live in Eugene, Oregon where they are public school music teachers. Jimmy is a fish biologist with the Bureau of Land Management in Oregon. The trio plan to continue to tour in support of Ain't No Whiskey.


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DOO-WOP TWANG: Melissa Ruth is a classically trained musician with back-porch sensibility. At once literary and soulful, charming and heartbreaking, Ruth and sideman Johnny Leal create music that is both down-home intimate and downtown immediate.

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Most all the albums I've reviewed this month have one thing in common-- survivors of a mammoth listening session, they were made by people who have some fucking clue how to construct an album. One, Melissa Ruth's, was a surprise, the others, not so much.

First thing you learn as a music writer, probably in any field but, in my experience, particularly with singer-songwriters, is that you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince. Or, in this case, a princess. Though she misfired with the overwrought and overwordy Underwater and Other Places (2008), second time out, Melissa Ruth, a Eugene, OR, music teacher is truly addictive. I love everything about this album, the vocals, the songs, the arrangements and the 'Doo Wop Twang' artistic vision. In between the two recordings, she fell in love with a 1958 Guild Freshman (one pickup, one tone knob), "It was a light switching on in my understanding of guitar." She also came to realize that "The songs were asking for wide open spaces," and with her sultry, compelling voice backed only by her husband Johnny Leal slide, rhythm and bass guitars and his brother Jimmy Leal drums, she gives different shades of dark poetry about transformations and transitions, woven with subtle traces of blues, country and jazz, a wonderfully contrasting light, airy setting. From the first track, you want to hear the whole album, and then you want to hear it again.
(4.5 out of 5 Stars)

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I was interested in working with Melissa Ruth because I immediately found her songs fascinating. Lots of artists are putting forth 'original' material, but little of it is anywhere near this original. She has a very personal take on all of it - lyrics, melodies, accompaniment - that brings forth a truly refreshing perspective, one completely outside the 'cookie cutter' approach to which so many young artists fall prey.

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You can hear influences from rockabilly to honky-tonk, but as much as Ruth has developed her vocal approach and songwriting, the band has created a cohesive sound that borrows from everywhere but isn’t a knock off....

Just like a college student exploring new ideas, Ruth tried on many musical styles before finding the right fit. Identity is an ever-shifting thing, but for Ruth, once she found the effectiveness in letting her music breathe, she started to find something more authentically her. And the bluesy sound with that dash of twang seems a perfect match for her family band.

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Ain't No Whiskey is an album where Ruth takes creative chances where she must but delivers solid performances all the way, often tinged with a bluesy lustre.

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With her intimate feel and hometown attitude, Melissa Ruth has enchanted listeners with her music driven lyrics and beautifully sultry voice. This girl-next-door-turned-rock-star is ready to take your eardrums for a ride.

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When you think of the folk singers of the 60s and 70s, it's amazing to recall how casually their natural, comfortable songs so easily told the tales of so many lives. Tom Rush’s "Driving Wheel," Joan Baez’s "Diamonds & Rust," and Sandy Denny’s "It Suits Me Well," come immediately to mind as deceptively simple songs that are musically brilliant. Melissa Ruth’s latest album Underwater & Other Places, shows that this classically trained musician has the skills and creativity to join the ranks of superb folk artists.

"Ruth never overplays her musical hand. The stories she tells in her songs are pure and natural as is her music and vocals. Ruth knows a good story doesn’t need a lot of slick production and elaborate instrumentation to shine; the song can stand on its own merits.

"Consider "Fate or Circumstance." In telling stories of the downtrodden and corporate chains that bind many, Ruth could easily have turned this into another ho-hum liberal cry. The problem with some of those tunes of course is that they seem less about concern over a wrong and more about an artist's "message" sometimes seeming almost like parodies.

"Ruth never takes that road. Instead her complex stories are told through simple guitar work and stark vocals that offer commentary – powerful to be sure – but not righteous indignation.

"That’s not to say that Ruth’s music is simplistic. Far from it. "Honey From the Hive" which hints of blues and a touch of R&B, and "Sooner Break Than Bend," which showcases intricate guitar work and subtle percussion, highlight Ruth’s considerable range and creativity.

"Let’s hope Ruth, who can clearly fill the void left by so many great folkies, breaks out of the pack. Her music deserves to be heard.
Reviews: Melissa Ruth

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Ruth’s sensitive guitar playing shines through in each song, and though her tunes are lyrically driven stories, they’re not history lessons like those of Laura Veirs. Neither are they as languorous as those of Devon Sproule, and certainly not as fragile as the Be Good Tanyas, but fans of any of these women would find good company in Melissa Ruth.
Local Americana Goodness

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While she’s no Joan Baez vocally, Ruth’s voice is pretty. She has a good range and shows tremendous potential. Her college teacher already might need to eat her words about whether Ruth has “it” if she ever hears her former student’s CD or sees her play live. Ruth’s “it” is love, compassion, humor, good guitar skills, a pretty voice, a capable band and a desire equal to her audience’s to connect with people.

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Melissa Ruth brings easy-to-feel lyrics and an earthy melody to listeners.... Her hometown-folk picks at the memories of warm autumn nights and good company.

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A sensitive blend of prose and melody; her music warms you with magical imagery and well crafted songwriting.

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Holy shit....Melissa and Johnny have an amazing trio goin on!! They shred some guits for real and she is screaming spot on pitch and warble fucking free. I was blown away by the overdrive seriously. Girlfriend is a rock star and there is no flower folk wanking. You know I dont front the props! come see Melissa, and some musicians who are the real thing. warble free, no man hating/ prude bitch/ tori jewel wining. promise.