Ella Hanshaw was a self-taught musician and aspiring country star from West Virginia who spent her long life writing and singing a total mountain’s worth of her own songs, most of which being spirituals that reflected her Pentecostal faith. Despite touring and making appearances all across her home state, she was never professionally recorded. Instead, she had only made private home recordings and demos. Spinster, one of my favorite labels around today, is putting out her first ever collection of songs on June 13th.

Compiled by her granddaughter, this album gathers together some of the finest selections of her Christian and secular songs. Regardless of the tone or the intention, every track here is an expertly crafted tune, with undeniably catchy hooks and sweet melodies. With a tender, twangy voice that blends so nicely with the harmonies of her group, the Hallelujah Hill Quartet, you can absolutely hear and feel the passion for her craft and her faith. The liner notes state that she truly believed her songs flowed into her from the lord.

Hanshaw also viewed her songwriting as a form of divine healing from her pain and hardships. This is especially true with the album’s first released track, the heartfelt and melancholic “One More Hill,” of which she composed as a way to work through the agony of having ruptured and fused discs in her spine. This is so lovingly and skillfully performed, you can tell immediately just how strongly she felt this artistic connection to a higher power. Check it out:

You don’t have to be fans of Christian music to appreciate this album. If you are a fan of the likes of Dolly Parton or Rosalie Sorrels or even the earnest home recordings and songwriting of someone like Connie Converse or Karen Dalton, this is an album to check out. Click here to preorder Ella Hanshaw’s Little Black Book on vinyl, CD or digital today.

-KH