Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield, 'A Fond Farewell'

In just a couple of weeks, Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield will release their powerful tribute to the great Elliott Smith. Seth Avett & Jessica Lea Mayfield Sing Elliott Smith finds the two folksters pouring their emotions into songs written and performed by Smith, successfully putting their personal touches on seemingly untouchable music. Today (March 3), Diffuser is beyond thrilled to debut Avett and Mayfield's rendition of "A Fond Farewell" -- you can listen to it in the audio player below.

"'A Fond Farewell' was among the first few Elliott Smith compositions we learned," Avett tells us. "I was initially struck by how pure the opening lyrics came across with Jessica's voice. For me, her voice and Smith's unparalleled poetry are a natural fit."

Mayfield adds, "The feeling of Elliott's version for me is much different from the one Seth and I recorded. There's a delight in hearing these lyrics that bring about such feelings of loneliness being sung together by friends. It's certainly a different contrast. It's also nice for me to sing these lyrics with a friend instead of alone ... crying ... with a CD player."

She goes on, "One thing I didn't realize about this song before I started learning it, it's really not very long. It's here and over ... while you are hearing it you can't tell, it feels like it's gone yet it goes on forever. He is saying so much, it's all so interesting. You become so enamored by the picture painted in his words and then it spits you out onto the street when it's over."

"Our approach for this song is representative of the record as a whole; to keep it simple, and to present the songs in a way that is uncluttered and in relative keeping with the spirit of the original recordings, wherein the author wrote and presented them with such honesty and unguarded emotion," Avett wraps up.

Seth Avett & Jessica Lea Mayfield Sing Elliott Smith hits record stores on March 17 via Ramseur Records. You can pre-order your copy of the record here, and if you haven't yet, make sure to enter our contest for a very rare test pressing of the vinyl.

Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield will take their passion and respect for Elliott Smith on the road for a series of intimate performances. You can check out their full itinerary below.

Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield 2015 Tour
March 10: McGlohon Theatre -- Charlotte, N.C.
March 11: The Birchmere -- Alexandria, Va.
March 12: Town Hall Theatre -- New York, N.Y.
March 14: Keswick Theatre -- Glenside, Pa.
March 17: James K. Polk Theatre/TPAC -- Nashville, Tenn.
March 18: Southern Theatre -- Columbus, Ohio
March 20: Athenaeum Theatre -- Chicago, Ill.
March 22: Fitzgerald Theatre -- St. Paul, Minn.
March 24: Boulder Theatre -- Boulder, Colo.
March 26: Neptune Theatre -- Seattle, Wash.
March 27: Crystal Ballroom -- Portland, Ore.
March 29: Palace of Fine Arts -- San Francisco, Calif.
March 31: Wilshire Ebell Theatre -- Los Angeles, Calif.

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