An exploration of themes like nature, social justice, and personal reflections, Jude's latest album 'Rambling Rose' continues his mission to connect listeners with emotionally resonant and thought-provoking music.
Jude Edwin-Scott © 2023
Today We Have The Pleasure To Have Jude Here On Goathead!
GH: Hi Jude, great to have you here! What Inspired you to start writing music?
Jude: I was born into a musical family and started playing the guitar when I was 6. My Dad and older brother, both musicians, loved listening to music. Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Tom Waits, Fairport Convention, Dire Straits and Kate Bush were played often in the house. The walls were filled with lots of different instruments too, like guitars, dulcimers and mandolins. My parents were both folk musicians, playing in a band called 'White Raven', writing original songs. Surrounded by all this, songwriting felt very natural to me. The three albums which were a big inspiration to me and influenced my songwriting were James Taylor's 'Sweet Baby James', Neil Young's 'Harvest Moon' and Nick Drake's 'Five Leaves Left'. I loved the intricate guitar finger-picking style and the thoughtful, sensitive lyrics. I started playing at local folk clubs in my 20s, and being in this singer-songwriter environment inevitably inspired me musically. I recorded my first album 'When The Bubble Burst' in 1997. I recorded my first studio album 'Elephant Feet' in London at Tin Pan Alley Studios and Gravity Shack Studios in 2005. It was recorded and produced by Pat Collier. Pat's engineered and produced bands like The House Of Love, The Jesus And Mary Chain, The Wonder Stuff and Primal Scream. I've continued working with Pat since then and I've just released my seventh album 'Rambling Rose', featuring 10 original songs.
GH: What Inspired your new album 'Rambling Rose'?
Jude: My own walks in the Cheshire countryside and the writings
of Robert Macfarlane inspired the title track of the album 'Rambling Rose'. This theme of returning back to nature is prevalent throughout the songs on this album. But some songs also reflect the turbulent times we've experienced in the last few years. 'Inequality Blues' was inspired by the Grenfell Tower fire in London, a call to stop governments putting profit first and people last. The song 'Little Princes' is reflecting on the incredible journeys refugees make to find a safe haven. Some songs, like 'Green Man', reflect on my personal experience of the pandemic.
GH: Could you tell us more about your unique guitar playing style?
Jude: I love exploring the guitar using different finger-picking techniques. I've been using alternate tunings with the songs on my last two albums 'Mackerel Sky' and 'Rambling Rose'. For me the guitar almost becomes a new instrument inspiring different chords and melodies. The English/Scottish guitarists that have influenced me are Nic Jones, John Martyn, Nick Drake, Newton Falkner, Kris Drever and Bert Jansch.
GH: Can you tell us more about your experience performing live at gigs and what was the most memorable experience you had?
Jude: As a solo artist I started out playing in local folk clubs before I moved to London. There I played regularly at lots of venues around the city and Dublin too. Since moving up to Cheshire I've started playing more festivals, most recently the Chester Folk Festival. Music is something to be shared and my best experiences playing live is when people start singing with you. It's not an ego thing, it's making that connection, a lovely thing.
GH: What motivates you to create music and bring awareness to different situations through your songs?
Jude: Lots of things motivate me. Love, new relationships, nature, the political environment, current affairs and people's individual experiences living through unique times. My last two albums 'Mackerel Sky' and 'Rambling Rose' are about journeys. The title track of my 'Mackerel Sky' album is about my Grandad's wartime experience, fighting as a Royal Marine in the Battle Of Crete. Also on that album there's a song called 'The Roving Miner' which was inspired by the plight of coal miners after the pit closures in the UK in the 1980s. My song 'Little Princes' from 'Rambling Rose' looks at the refugee crisis, encouraging us to walk in someone else's shoes, see the world through their eyes. I write about these things because I care about people and also to shed light on sometimes forgotten episodes in our history.
GH: Could you share some insights into your next projects?
Jude: I'm currently promoting my new album 'Rambling Rose' which was released at the end of June. I'm really excited about the new songs I'm writing too. I really enjoy the creative process, but songs reveal themselves in their own time. There is an accidental process too where you can be singing a line and you're not sure where it came from. I was singing the line 'We fell in love in New Orleans', 'There were roses', it led me on an unexpected path, researching New Orleans history. The new song is called 'The Rose Of New Orleans' following the journey of two people living through the Second World War and Hurricane Katrina. I don't have any rules for songwriting, the only guidance I give to myself is to be truthful. True things resonate with people and sharing your own experiences can be helpful to others.
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