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  • Full Digital Discography

    18
    releases

    Get all 18 J. P. Whipple (Barefoot John Whipple) releases available on Bandcamp and save 50%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Fifteen Dollar Cocktails, an evil wind, when the storm, Old Gods, rhythm in blue, Weirdo Boy, FAKE WORLD, Moab, and 10 more. , and , .

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1.
Corn Rows 03:30
lyrics
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corn rows keep the fire low try to stay out of sight desert night so cold above the city light wanna lay down my load on the earth of my soul out in the corn row ma don’t let your child go endlessly wandering home she was soft like sky so sweet was her sin i was passing by but i never understand wanna lay down my load on the earth of my soul out in the corn row ma don’t let your child go endlessly wandering home my roof is rain my bed as rough as road empty all i bring but i can’t let her go wanna lay down my load on the earth of my soul out in the corn row ma don’t let your child go endlessly wandering home
2.
Drought (The Wind) 04:07
lyrics
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drought before the dawn he is gone there’s work to be done the land needs water there’s a window open in the kitchen where she is clearing a plate off the counter on the wall there is a cross the sky is not up to us it’s only the wind he mends the fence off in the distance he sees the glare off a car from the city there is no time to wait on the sky he knows that the man is going to have no pity our machines fade to rust the sky has betrayed our trust and left us to the wind he sits at the table says he is unable he must insist on the bottom line the boy reaches for his watch warned not to touch but he can’t resist he’s lured by the shine our fields they turn to dust the sky calls to us to be taken by the wind
3.
Gone 03:07
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gone gone – gone away the one i once loved i put out the fire holding on too tight until she grew cold far – far away home where i once lay turned me out into the night where still i roam gone – gone away truth i once held left without warning a world without reason blind and alone far – far away life i once known nothing to be saved dust in the grave where i lay low
4.
Clothesline 04:00
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clothesline hanging from the clothesline hanging from the clothesline waiting for the sun to decide as the wind tears out my insides hanging from the clothesline hanging from the clothesline wondering if she’ll come back this time or leave me naked to the night hanging from the clothesline hanging from the clothesline the birds stopped singing they must know something i can feel the wind of a storm coming feel the storm coming…
5.
This Door 03:26
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this door the trees give no shelter from the sky the fields are fallow the well dry the villagers gather for the feast with their empty bowls this door once been opened can’t be closed the businessman offers you a deal a fistful of dollars for your last meal his servants are throwing rocks at your windows this door once been opened can’t be closed the idiot is leading the band singing jingles to the company brand it’s the same old song we used to know we heard this long ago the preacher lies naked in the road no one comes to claim his soul his ghost sits powerless to stop the crows this door once been opened can’t be closed the old witch will tell you no lies you can see the spell behind her green eyes she shows her secret behind a curtain of bone this door once been opened can’t be closed the plane falls from the sky the pilot has no will left to fly he tells the passengers the same old joke we heard this long ago
6.
When the Storm 04:44
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when the storm kick up the dirt in the morning the air is so light feel the dust settle all around you make you a blanket for night when the comes to nothing not even a drop of rain these things you said were true were only made of pain where have you been, my love where did you run off to this time? these trees stand tall but without a spine when the storm comes to nothing not even a bolt of light no hill left to die on no enemies to fight 99 flavors all that money can buy a room full of traitors won’t look you in the eyes when the storm comes to nothing only the air to hold the empty inside you has never been so cold
7.
Weirdo the Boy 03:03
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weirdo the boy weirdo the boy with his heart in his hand tried to teach him jesus but he don’t understand weirdo the boy always plays the clown it only makes sense to him when it’s upside down wild are the broken fragile is the wind sacred is the heart that burns again weirdo the boy weighs a mountain on his cloak he was always the quiet one when he spoke weirdo the boy horse won’t get under the saddle he places the shotgun over the mantle wild is the ocean fragile is the sin sacred are the wounded who walk again weirdo the boy with a banjo in his hand tried to follow jesus down a river of sand
8.
Evil Wind 03:10
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evil wind nothing’s the same ever since she rolled into town i think she’s to blame for all the bad going ‘round she dressed queer there’s something about her i don’t trust her ways are weird she acts as if she is better than us an evil wind chills my bones tonight it’s a sin i think i saw her crossing the sky she’s an intellectual i saw her reading a book at the bar she’s a liberal a sanders sticker on the back of her car i’ll admit she’s pretty but who knows the places she’s been she’s so skinny people tell me she’s a vegan an evil wind chills my bones tonight it’s a sin i think i saw her crossing the sky she’s hosting parties she likes to keep the lights dim she’s so arty i heard she’s into s&m she won’t look at me she’s always hanging with that weirdo boy she won’t smile for me i can’t imagine the things they enjoy an evil wind chills my bones tonight it’s a sin i think i saw her crossing the sky i think i saw her crossing the sky
9.
Mother Road 04:56
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mother road you cursed – you spat on the ground the night we burned your daddy’s farmhouse down my car loaded – your bags all packed we both know there’s no turning back when we had half a chance we pulled into the fields so you could dance in the headlights you spin so fast your bare feet kicking at the past like the wind we are gone and chasing the sun down this mother road in the morning we were delivered we tossed the gun into the muddy river this dust will cover all the blood this is between us and god like the wind we are gone and chasing the sun down this mother road we’ll get lost – we’ll be out of touch in california if it’s not too much keep running until the money’s gone this is the time for our song like the wind we are gone.. and chasing the sun… down this mother road
10.
To Be Free 02:35
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to be free if you could sell your soul for one lump sum would you cash in? would you take the money and run and start over again? would you settle for an installment plan that lets you live comfortably? can you tell me the price you’d pay to be free? would you pull out the plug and sleep in the dirt? would you gather all that you love kick her to the curb? would you shut off every light so you could finally see? can you tell me the price you’d pay to be free? would you stray from the path and make a wrong turn? would you walk into the fire and watch yourself burn? would you lay naked with your fear and let her be? can you tell me the price you’d pay to be free?

about

I am not one to walk into a Guitar Center with a plan to buy a new Fender or Gibson. The uptight corporate folks there told me my bare feet were not welcome anyway. Instead, I prowl the used shops looking for an instrument with a story to tell.

Like any musician I want an instrument that functions but I do not necessarily look for something that meets every metric of high quality. For instance, they build new resonator guitars that are better crafted than the ones National build in the 1930’s but somehow they don’t sing like the old ones do. Years ago, I played a new one and old one to compare. The new one was clean and precise. I walked out with the one from 1935. Perfect doesn’t always sound better. Just like there are any number of singers with tremendous range and abilities but none of them can break your heart like Billie Holiday.

The banjo on this record is unique in that it was made specifically for me. The four string (plectrum) neck was pulled out of a barrel in the back of an antique guitar shop. The metal body is etched with my name and portrait. I traded two paintings for it. My friend Wallace had been making banjos for some time by then and they were always beautiful with ornate engraved bodies and necks.

This banjo is far from perfect. The action is too high for any bluegrass player but we settled on it because that would make for cleaner slide tones. I had been performing with a slide that I cut from an old bike handlebar for years by then. Bottleneck style playing allows me to lay down a rhythm foundation in the frets while the slide is free to explore harmonies outside of those boundaries. Real music only exists when it is liberated beyond the textbook definitions provided by Western theories. Life is an ever-present exploration of the Now. Each moment a tension between a predictable order and a frontier that challenges and sometimes defies the rules of the previous order.

Music that does not explore those tensions is of no interest to me.

I left Boise with this banjo in the summer of 2013. From there, I passed Salt Lake City because I couldn’t find a gig there and moved on to Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minneapolis, and Chicago. I slept in the back of my Toyota pickup truck at rest stops and dispersed camping areas in the Rocky Mountains. I catalogued banjo riffs with and ideas beside the campfire with a mini-recorder.

Every instrument I have has its manner of singing and this weird banjo is no different. It speaks of the old ways when living was not mediated by technology. It speaks of storms and drought, of rivers of water and rivers of blood, of love and lust and greed. Its truth is not told to you like some snake oil pundit. Its truth is revealed in Song. I, myself, do not always know what to make of them. I do my best to never write a song. I let the song sing through me.

Some of these songs have been given full arrangements on other records. I may take that approach with others in the future. With this recording, however, I wanted to capture their emotional essence. I have always been struck by folk recordings made in the early 20th Century. You cannot dismiss the emotion of an old recording by the likes of Son House or Charlie Patton because there is nothing to get in the way. I hoped to achieve something similar. There was no click to keep time, no punch ins, and no cut and pastes. It’s just a weirdo boy and his banjo doing his best to show you his Song.

credits

released August 20, 2023

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J. P. Whipple (Barefoot John Whipple) image

J. P. Whipple (Barefoot John Whipple) Salt Lake City, Utah

J. P. Whipple is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has spent a life drifting across the country singing old time roots, blues, and country.

He is a founding member of the psychedelic band Tycoon Machete: tycoonmachete.bandcamp.com ... more

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