The Makin Waves Song of the Week is "A Light To Come Home To" by Jersey roots rocker Lisa Bouchelle featuring Americana legends Amanda Shires and Larry Campbell.
Trenton-raised, Jersey Shore-based singer-songwriter-guitarist Lisa Bouchelle is an artist highly respected by her peers and lauded as a rising artist by Spin, Paste and GQ.
“A Light To Come Home To,” the all-star leadoff track of her forthcoming album, is the Makin Waves Song of the Week.
As the Makin Waves Song of the Week, “A Light To Come Home To“ also can be heard between 6 and 8 p.m. on July 17 on “Radio Jersey” at ThePenguinRocks.com. If you miss it, you can tune in any time in the archives at The Penguin, Mixcloud and RadioJersey.
The heartwarming opener of the September-bound LP, “Vandals, Thieves & Lovers,” features many well-known names from the Americana world, including three Grammy winners.
Lisa is joined by the superb violin stylist Amanda Shires, and her solo is complimented by virtuoso guitarist Clay Cook from Zac Brown Band, who also adds Hammond organ to the track. Larry Campbell, an Americana Music Association Lifetime Achievement Award winner, adds banjo and mandolin, while Doyle Grisham from Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band contributes pedal steel.
The rhythm section of drummer Rich Scannella (Tonic) and bassist Hal B. Selzer (Joan Jett & The Blackhearts) lay the foundation, and Lisa’s soaring vocals bring home the universal message of a well-earned respite after a hard day’s work.
“All people, no matter their job or walk of life, need a ‘light’ to come home to after a hard day’s work,” Lisa explained. “'Light’ isn’t necessarily a lamp that shines, but is different and personal for all people: a significant other, a dog, a book, a cup of tea or a cold beer. For me, it’s my guitar that waits for me in my living room. It’s comforting to know that after you go out and ‘give it your all,’ there is comfort to return to afterwards that will serve to recharge our body and renew our spirit.
“Some artists write when they’re happy,” she continued. “Some write when they’re down and out. I write every single day, and that’s why I think this album encompasses so much: the joy and the pain, the hope and the doubt, the bitter and the sweet. That’s life.”
Lisa also is joined on “A Light To Come Home To” by Arlan Feiles on piano, Everett Bradley on percussion, and Stephen DeAcutis on electric and acoustic guitar. Stephen mixed the album with Niko Bolas. Greg Calbi of Sterling Sound mastered.
Additional special guests include Asbury rocker Jake Clemons — son of the Big Man — and Laurel Canyon legend Waddy Wachtel.
Throughout the intoxicating new album, Lisa grapples with the full spectrum of the human experience, balancing darkness and light in equal measure as she navigates her way through love, loss, loneliness, and liberation.
Born in Trenton, Lisa found refuge in music at an early age. Her parents’ relationship was a tumultuous one — her mother struggled with alcoholism and her father worked three jobs just to make ends meet — and the only pause in the fighting seemed to come when Bouchelle sang.
“Even as a little kid, I realized that when I performed, my family suddenly got along,” she recalls. “That became a motivating factor I carry to this day, a desire to transcend whatever struggles or conflicts people are dealing with and bring them together through music.”
Tragically, Bouchelle lost both of her parents at a young age, but her desire to write and perform only grew stronger in the face of her loss. She learned to make her own breaks, booking gigs at coffee shops and open mic nights and saving up to record her own independent albums, which eventually led to a distribution deal with Universal. Critics were quick to take notice, with Paste and GQ both recently hailing her as an “Artist to Watch” and Relix dubbing her “one of the underground music world’s most respected artists.”
Lisa has been building a loyal fan base with constant touring, often driving across the country with just the guitar on her back.
Check her out live July 17 and Aug. 17, Rush Lounge, Golden Nugget Casino, Atlantic City; July 26 and Aug. 23, The Waterfront Forked River; Aug. 1 and Oct. 25, Sharrott Winery, Hammonton; Aug. 9, Original's Restaurant & Bar, Philadelphia; Aug. 11, Big Joe Henry Variety Show, Franklin Avenue Stage, Seaside Heights; Aug. 14, Ashlynn Distillery, Morrisville, PA; Aug. 15, Shady Brook Farm, Yardley, PA; Aug. 21 and Sept. 19, Rossi's Bar & Grill, Hamilton; Aug. 27, Sept. 24 and Oct. 29, Bailey's Bar & Grille, Levittown, PA; Aug. 29, Villian & Saint, Ocean Casino, Atlantic City; Sept. 23, 20,000 Miles Gram Parsons Tribute Show with Pat Guadagno, James Maddock, Avenel Performing Arts Center; Oct. 3, NOLA Lounge, Ocean Casino, Atlantic City, and Oct. 31, Lizzie Rose Music Room, Tuckerton, with Coyote Jack Band.
Lisa also will play in duos with Jersey singer-songwriter-pianist Sandy Zio July 25, Working Dog Winery, Robbinsville, and with fellow Trenton rocker Ernie White, Aug. 8, NOLA Lounge.
Stream “A Light To Come Home To“ on most platforms here.
Bob Makin has produced Makin Waves since 1988. Follow Makin Waves on Facebook and Instagram and contact Bob at [email protected].
