Multi award winning independent singer-songwriter Elles Bailey releases her fifth studio album, Can’t Take My Story Away, with UK and European tour dates to follow. It’s another inspiring collection of captivating, soulful and emotionally charged songs with strong leanings towards blues, roots and Americana, all of which provide an honest and vulnerable glimpse into Elles’ story over her ten year career.

Bristol-born smoky-voiced singer-songwriter Elles Bailey has been steadily honing her craft for almost a decade now and, with four strong albums already behind her, Elles stature and fanbase are now at an all time high. Elles last album Beneath The Neon Glow in 2024 reached number one in both the Jazz/Blues Albums Chart and iTunes Albums Chart as well as reaching number 12 in the UK Official Albums Chart. Elles went on to win Artist of the Year at the 2025 UK Blues Awards as well as Vocalist of the Year and Broadcaster Of The Year. Now Elles starts 2026 with the release of her new album Can’t Take My Story Away which has a much different concept and approach than her previous albums.

Elles’ previous albums have been written very much with a specific focus in mind, providing a snapshot of that particular time and inspired by the events and feelings around her. The new album however has been in the making for some three years now although, in reality, the songs and lyrics for some of the songs have been lurking in Elles bunker for a much longer period stretching back over her ten year career. It’s a collection of songs which provide an honest and vulnerable glimpse into Elles’ story over these ten years covering the high times and the low times, with numerous personal challenges coming to the fore. But suffice to say that the one constant throughout is Elle’s stunning vocal prowess which is both gritty and emotionally charged thereby creating a warmth and sincerity which has become the trademark of her work.

As Elles explains, “There’s definitely an empowerment to this record. I feel like that has actually evolved since I first started making it – as though I was a different person. There is a quiet strength running through this album and a deep-rooted honesty and whilst there are some moments that reflect on some of the hardest chapters of my story, there’s a feeling of joy threaded through every note. It’s like a kind of light has found its way in, even in some of the darkest moments.”

It’s essentially been body of work that has been taking shape behind the scenes amidst her other album recordings and her heavy touring schedule which has included prestigious support slots for the likes of Van Morrison, Jools Holland and Rag’n’Bone Man, all of which have helped to raise Elles’ profile significantly. And there is little doubt that producer Luke Potashnick was a very significant architect in fashioning the songs and sound on this album through his close collaboration with Elles, alongside his role in hand-picking the musicians who play on it, which in this case are different to Elles usual touring band.

Title track Can’t Take My Story Away opens the proceedings with a narrative full of painful self-reflection about a broken relationship. But just as Elles smoky tones are initially riddled with hurt, the big brassy horns rise up above the classic Americana rhythms almost as a sense of defiance as her stunning vocals shine through like a beacon of positivity and ultimately freedom. Working on this song with producer Luke Potashnick, Elles explained how they “worked on those themes of empowerment, and stepping away from relationships that try to control you. Because even in the pain of walking away, there’s freedom, too.” This is something that radiates through the latter part of the song which closes with the lines, ‘I’ll take comfort in knowing that you won’t trouble me again, there’s a moment after all the hurt when you finally learn to accept.’

Growing Roots immediately shifts into a funky blues-infested rhythm as Elles’ soulful vocals sit front and centre, charting the challenges of forever being on the road and trying to make a name for yourself as an artist before finally finding that newfound confidence and space to slow down and take stock. As Elles describes, “The track is a love song about finding your person—the one who makes you want to set aside your gypsy heart and finally settle down.” Better Days is another groove laden song delivered by Elles with a deeply impassioned vocal and a real fire in her soul. And no wonder given that it was a song given to her by the parents of her late friend Matt Long who emerged on the UK blues scene around the same time as Elles as the singer, guitarist and songwriter for the award-winning band Catfish, but who tragically died of cancer. A fitting and moving tribute indeed.

Blessed is a slow and beautiful ballad which was inspired by the experience of being loved for “exactly who you are” and serves as a wonderful reaffirmation that good can come out of any situation if you are patient and strong enough. It’s imbued with sweeping strings which add to the emotive feel of the song as Elles rejoices that “God truly blessed me with you.” Constant Need To Keep Going is a countrified ballad with a reflective and melancholic vibe which takes us back to Elles’ ongoing struggles with life on the road as she tries to find a solution. Meanwhile Take A Step Back has a bold and brassy Motown vibe as Elles reflects on a hard-wired relationship which is ‘being pushed to the point of breaking, fighting fire with fire.”

The painful struggles of challenging relationships continue to be explored through How Do You Do It, a sauntering blues song infused with some glorious slide guitar and fine work on the keyboard as Elles reflects with some disdain, “One minute I’m all you need, then I’m nothing at all.” Angel is a song which has been transformed since it was first written with Aaron Lee Tasjan back in 2023 at a time when Elles was suffering a not uncommon bout of imposter syndrome due to losing her voice and thinking she had caused some lasting damage to it. Rediscovering the lyric of this ballad, its tempo has now been uplifted with a strong Motown rhythm embellished with a dazzling brass section and Elles raw, blues-soaked vocals which have an undeniable gospel-infused intensity which takes me back to a classic era in the late 60s and early 70s.

Through the stark, moody and poignant Dandelion, Elles negotiates her way through the melancholy strings to extol the virtues of the collective resilience of humanity, perhaps recognising an increased level of confidence in herself to leave past struggles behind and focus only on what can be controlled. However, that doesn’t stop further deep and personal reflections on Elles’ profound experiences of mental health in the sombre yet beautifully formed tones of Tightrope. The album closes with Starling, which is a stripped-back piano led song forming the perfect backdrop for a solemn and heartfelt tribute to a close friend whose death was clearly hard to bear.

In essence, Can’t Take My Story Away is Elles Bailey’s cathartic ride through personal and evocative reflections, full of empowering stories of resilience, survival and ultimately transformation into a new sense of freedom. The album’s foundation stone was overturned at a time when Elles admits she was in a dark place, confirming that “It’s been a real journey to love myself, to feel comfortable in my own skin. It all started when I was in a really low spot, and then the most recent recording session, I realised I felt like a totally different person.”

It really does feel like a true privilege to join Elles on this journey to personal freedom and to get such an honest and heartfelt insight into the struggles she has endured throughout her career. It is an inspiring album that bristles with such an unrivalled sense of spirit, soulfulness and positivity that it is enough carry you out of even your darkest hour, with songs that shine brightly like a beacon of hope for all those whose lives feel stalled or suppressed by their current state of being. And with such outstanding talent and songs on display, there seems little doubt that the numerous awards she has so rightly picked up over recent years will continue to come.

Elles has announced a UK and European tour to showcase this new album alongside her ever growing and impressive back catalogue of songs. Elles will be joined by her usual touring band augmented by a brass section which will add a new and very exciting dynamic to her live shows. The tour comprises the following dates:

February
20 Stuttgart, Im Wizemann
21 Munich, Ampere
22 Nuremberg, Hirsch
23 Aschaffenburg, Colas-Saal

March
19 London, Islington Assembly Hall
20 Warwick, Arts Centre
21 Bristol, Electric
24 Manchester, Band on the Wall
25 Glasgow, St Luke’s
26 Gateshead, Glasshouse 2
27 Holmfirth, Picturedrome

You can buy tickets for her shows here.

You can buy the album here or stream it here.

You can find Elles Bailey on Facebook, Instagram and her website.

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All words by Ian Corbridge. You can find more of his writing at his author profile here.