Playing Chess

In her first full-length, Toronto singer Elise LeGrow puts a fresh spin on blues and soul classics. The title is a wink at Chess Records, the legendary Chicago label that recorded the original songs, but these selections feel wonderfully modern. Remaking hits by Chuck Berry (“You Never Can Tell”), Bo Diddley (“Who Do You Love”), and Fontella Bass (“Rescue Me”), LeGrow dares to change the tone—stripping them down, speeding them up, or simply swapping gritty guitars for rich, romantic piano. On “Long Lonely Nights,” Questlove plays drums on a song first recorded by his father, the late Lee Andrews of Lee Andrews & the Hearts. A special moment.

‘Playing Chess,’ is an ambitious, bold debut album that showcases the Canadian powerhouse’s spellbinding ability to redefine the permanence of pop. Out via S-Curve Records/Awesome Music/BMG, the 11-track collection masterfully channels LeGrow’s peerless vocal power and visionary mystique, featuring the backing of Questlove and The Roots, The Dap-Kings, and R&B legend Betty Wright. The album is a re-imagination of highlights and obscurities from the catalog of Chicago’s seminal electric blues label, Chess Records. LeGrow’s takes on pioneers like Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, and Fontella Bass have found fans in the likes of Action Bronson and Jools Holland, while amassing acclaim from Billboard, Okayplayer, Salon, Relix, MOJO, and many more. Made for newcomers and crate diggers alike, ‘Playing Chess’ features hidden gems like “Can’t Shake It” – a little-known, unissued Etta James track – and “Long Lonely Nights” by Questlove’s father, Lee Andrews. Produced by S-Curve Records founder Steve Greenberg, R&B legend Betty Wright, and studio wizard Mike Mangini (the same trio of Grammy-winners behind Joss Stone's twelve-million-selling 'Soul Sessions' album) in Brooklyn’s Mission Sound and The Bunker, ‘Playing Chess’ is a dynamic introduction to LeGrow’s “seductive powers of invention” (Okayplayer). She previously performed on BBC’s ‘Later…with Jools Holland’ and Arte’s ‘Berlin Live.’ She has topped Spotify’s viral charts in Canada and has climbed them in the U.S. Recently signed to Paradigm Talent Agency, she’s preparing for series of international tour dates in 2018.