Judson Claiborne

Before Midnight Scholar LP available now.
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Judson Claiborne is the reclamation of a name given to me by my father. On a personal level, it means rebirth into a greater consciousness. This record was made during a period of personal and artistic transformation and was coaxing for the return of dormant creative energies. The writing of "Before Midnight Scholar" began on a bicycle ride through Southeast Asia, continued on through a four month stay at a spiritual community in the woods of the Hudson River Valley, and ended in the beautiful city of Chicago, Illinois.
Just before moving to Chicago from Saint Louis in 2000, I tried songwriting as an experiment in a new art form. I found great inspiration in the process and started a band called Low Skies. Over the couse of seven years, Low Skies released four records, (three with the Flameshovel label) and toured like crazy, sometimes with acts like Neko Case, Giant Sand, The Handsome Family, Band of Horses, Okkervill River, Explosions in the Sky, and Mucca Pazza.
The songs herein are mostly narratives about my strange and beautiful travels, encounters, adventures, family, lovers, and dreams. I've retold the story of my Great Grandmother, Vida's tragic relationship with her third husband Crow. I wrote a love song to Elegua, the mythological spirit or orisha who stands at the crossroads in our lives. There are a few covers, songs by James, Tim Buckley, Ross Cashiola, and Paul Seibel.
I've collaborated here with Ryan Boyles, a great engineer, multi instrumentalist, and maker of baba ganoush. We met a few years ago when I was barbacking at The Hideout in Chicago. After introducing himself, he invited me to see his band, High Hawk open up for the radical North African refugee band, Tinawiren. I was floored by the whole experience and we began playing together shortly thereafter. Darrell Greiwe plays many instruments on the record. We grew up in the same town and have been working together on creative projects for ten years, my favorites being this album and bamboo sticky rice. The beautiful female voice on these songs belongs to Jamie Topper. She also plays and makes her own drums, a living goddess from the Paleolithic era.
I'm happy to be sharing my music with you, take care.
Christopher C. Salveter
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