John Shipe

"...his greatest recording ever."--Vanessa Salvia, Eugene Weekly
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I alternate between acoustic and electric albums. The latest, "Yellow House," is the scaled-down sort. And it's being called my best. In 2005 I made my last electric album (for the time being). John Shipe & The Blue Rebekahs, with a cadre of Oregon Indie scenesters from Dan Jones & The Squids (indie punk rock), Eleven Eyes (acid jazz), and Salt Lick (alt country). The Rebekahs enhanced my eerie tension between the unusual and the familiar--a synthesis of seasoned songwriting and sonic intrigue.
Back in the late 80's, no one said out loud that I sucked, when 40 ounces of Pabst whispered in my ear that I had a future in this Biz. And boy did I suck, with great sucking enthusiasm. (I got tapes to prove it.) Thought I was vintage Eric Clapton re-incarnate. Tried to sing like him, tried to play like him. (But Eric Clapton wasn't dead yet. So how could he re-incarnate anywho?)
After a while, I got my own style--rich composition/hack delivery. Good enough to be in a nationally touring band called The Renegade Saints. (Almost made it big with a blend of Northwest heavy rock & Southern Americana.) Then I went solo in the late 90's to pursue more idiosyncratic sounds, releasing "Sudden & Merciless Joy," which performed well on the Oregon charts.
On my own, I improved just enough to get some love from Performing Songwriter Magazine. (See above)
This hype promo crap and genre-dropping is a dirty business, but it has to be done: Over 200 original songs, 15 years of touring and 10 recording projects. (No help from major record labels.) 30-plus Shipe tunes have played on 100 indie and commercial radio stations. I cross paths with every genre and scene possible--pop, punk, indie, jam, alt country, folk, grunge, acid...splunge.
My motto: "Orthodoxy is the enemy." My other motto: "Context is everything."
Regional airplay continues. (I am not passing the torch yet, you bastards!) In 2003, I released a 31-song double CD called "Pollyanna Loves Cassandra." (An equivalent of a modern White Album--using every style of music known to us in our lifetime, plus a nod to the future.)
Acoustic releases: "The John Shipe Song Clearance" (2004); "A Stealthy Portion" (2000), which continued to chart in the Oregonian two years after its release.
If you've read this far, thank you for your interest, and here's some aspirin. There's only little bit more name-dropping--acts I've shared the stage with. Famous: Bob Dylan, Taj Mahal, Blind Melon, Cherry Poppin' Daddies, Los Lobos, Cake, Tower of Power, Keb Mo, Jerry Joseph, Jimmy Cliff, Derek Trucks, Better than Ezra, John Fahey, Zero, Calobo (who sent some players to the Decembrists) and ...gulp... Hootie & The Blowfish. Should be famous: Dan Jones, Tractor Operator, Salt Lick, Lea Krueger. Soon to be famous: Dirty Martini, Justin King Band. Lastly, I give guitar/songwriter lessons, and some of my ex-students are making me proud in the Biz: Jessica Plotkin (Stalking Jane) and Jason Bell (Stars of Track & Field), and watch out for River D. from The Tunnel Kings.
Currently, I am committed to the acoustic act for a while. And I don't sound nothing like Eric Clapton no more! He don't need no stinking help from me.
Oh, and that other band I was in, The Renegade Saints... Well, we're playing again. We even put out a live album recently called Mercy Saints Alive!