Cleveland's Steve Madewell To Release Fourth Solo Album

Next week, local singer/songwriter Steve Madewell plans to release his fourth solo album, which he recorded both in his barn and at Cacophony Cottage in Cornwall, England. Madewell performs both as a solo artist and with ensembles, and he worked with Brit producer Martin Stansbury (whom he met through friend and fellow songwriter Sarah McQuaid) to build this selection of tunes. Northeast Ohio-based musicians such as Alex Bevan, Eric Diaz, Andrew Bonnis and Christine King perform on the record as well.

The album opens with the murder ballad “Haunted,” a tune that finds Madewell singing about "finding my final resting place." Other highlights include “Drake Hollow,” a jangly number about the Underground Railroad, and the sparse duet "I Can’t Get You Off Of My Mind." “All I Want” offers a commentary on police brutality.

“As far as shows, well, I am giggin' all the time,” says Madewell, who has a concert coming up on Friday, Sept. 20, at the Millard Fillmore Presidential Library. "I’m sure I’ll do a few tunes off of this project [at the Fillmore show]. Quite often, I am playing 50 percent or more of my own stuff."

Madewell's last record cracked the top 20 on the Folk Alliance chart when it came out in 2022. He plans to distribute this new release to about 1200 folk DJs across the nation, and by tracking airplay, can get house concerts in different cities.

“With the state of music streaming, it is almost a rhetorical question to ask, ‘Why am I doing this?’" he admits. "I am not going to sell that many records; I only printed 300 CDs and will mail over half of those to the DJs who prefer a physical item. But the songs keep coming, and I keep writing them down.”

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