Jude Davison: Reviews

What the critics are saying about Outskirts of Eden . . .

Maverick Magazine (UK) - 5 out of 5 stars "Reminisent of Lyle Lovett in his prime there is not a weak track here, the album is really enjoyable and it holds your attention from beginning to end.

AllGigsUK (England) – “This is a fabulous double-disc package that major-labels could only dream of. A triumph again - here comes another 4 stars....Davison’s ‘Blood on the Tracks’ . . .”

Rootstime (Belgium) – “Outskirts of Eden is another highly recommended musical masterpiece from this talented all-round entertainer”

Altcountry (Netherlands) - "A tour de force"

Musik and Sich (Germany) – “18 out of 20 points, which means absolutely great stuff"

BillyBop (Belgium) - 5 out of 5 stars - "“Once again this album is a must have in your collection”

Rocktimes (Germany) – “an earnest double album full of dramatic and beautiful ballads . . .his music sparkles and is magical”

Moors Magazine (Netherlands) – “Outskirts of Eden is a masterpiece. Davison is an excellent and intelligent lyricist and brings to mind Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited. Magnificent. Highly recommended.”

Countrywood (Sweden) - “Outskirts Of Eden goes either straight to the heart or the right bottom of the dancing boots. Absolutely delicious and just as wonderful as a ball at the castle.”

PopHeavenMagazine (Holland) – “Delicious double album . . .a masterpiece.”

***** (5 out of 5 stars)

Make sure that you listen to this

A double CD, a concept album and how many of those do you get these days? Well this is Jude Davison’s second such enterprise in as many years following on from the now celebrated CIRCO DE TEATRO (built around the characters of a Mexican circus) in 2009. In today’s selective download market Davison is a brave man but hugely talented to go with it and the mixture again proves to be irresistible.

Jude Davison, who although born in England has to be known as a Canadian now, has been around the music business for 25 years and regularly tours with the ten piece band who make a substantial contribution to this album. Davison weighs in with lead vocals and a wide range of instrumentation also produced and mixed the album. His style and a lot of his songs are reminiscent of Lyle Lovett in his prime and that is high praise.

Central to this project are the sometimes decadent happenings in the Garden of Eden and onwards to the more contemporary Outskirts of Eden and what sustains the listener is the variety of musical styles. 27 new songs, all written by the prolific Davison, very good too and there is everything here, kicking off the utopia theme with a bright latin beat opener Paraiso Perdido, Americana, folk, blues, texmex, even a spiritual Dry Bones, calypso Roman Holiday, dixieland Brain Street Boogie, a little cowboy culture Smoking Gun and loads really good country stuff.

Amongst the country material, and we are talking a long way from present day Nashville country here, I loved the rousing singalong Medicine Show, Red Dirt Heart with Davison’s mandolin to the fore and Tattoo Town the tale of two young lovers who subsequently regret their precipitate show of affection for one another. Amongst the supporting cast I have to single out the excellent vocalists Sarah McGlynn and Bessie Wapp who is also on accordion for Bittersweet a tale of a broken relationship, and the banjo playing of Craig Korth.

Closing each disc are beautiful ballads, the dedicated Best if we don’t say goodbye and the wistful Last of The Summer Wine and leaving aside the intentional parody Justin Bieber’s Dad there is not a weak track here, the album is really enjoyable and it holds your attention from beginning to end. Paul Collins

Mr Davison has appeared on our radars before with the acclaimed 2009 album, "Circo De Teatro", which I threw 4 stars at for its individual approach to making a concept album about a Mexican circus.
Obviously buoyed by the thumbs-up from this experience, Davison, an English musician living in Canada, has done what cooks on Masterchef might term as 'a bit of a risk' - but rather than pile strawberries on top of tuna or serve lemon-flavoured mashed potato in a running shoe, the flamboyant songwriter has compiled an engaging double album. Risky? Given the average attention-span in the Western World, it could be compared to.....what was I saying..?....?....see, there you go....double albums - they went out with flares. Actually, it's a risk well taken.....
"Outskirts of Eden" is split across two discs of cabaret-boogie, theatrical-jazz and burlesque-blues, dressed up in nipple-peepers and freak-show thongs and titled as per the album, plus "More Fruit For Eve". Despite the title split, there isn't a huge difference between the styles or, more importantly, the quality. This is an album of fun, fun, fun, fuelled by a love of pop, country, folk, blues and rock and roll, mixed with a hint of Tex-Mex and Americana flavours. This is Davison's 'Blood On The Tracks'.
There are several highlights throughout the dual-disc extravaganza - "Medicine Show", "Paraiso Perdido", "Dandelion" all deliver the goods, while the standout on disc 1, or possibly the entire 27-track assembly, is the sublime strings-laden "Borderline". Disc 2 offers up another cracking pair of songs entitled "Strange Desire" and "Gypsy Wind" - plain sailing all the way for the most part.
I haven't got enough space to list the other plus points, truly this is a labour of love and promises to be an engaging backdrop for Davison's next brace of shows which, even in this economically-challenged world, would prove a success across Northern Europe, Spain and possibly the UK. Anybody who dares to unleash a cheeky song called "Justin Bieber's Dad", inspired by that very man being jibed at one of Davidson's shows, deserves a few boutique-festival slots. Or a residency in the fringes.
I reckon Jude Davison has a healthy future - his music evokes a colourful world of performing artistes and eccentric characters which kind of sets my mind thinking - "Outskirts of Eden" (and its predecessor) deserves to be presented with a full-on theatrical cast, simply because the entire album feels like a story, like a tale from the carefree days of Victoriana and an insight into the mind of true entertainer.
For the moment though, this is a fabulous double-disc package, dressed up with some Eric Vondy photographic imagery and sumptuous handiwork that major-labels could only dream of. A triumph again - here comes another 4 stars....
Paul Pledger

5 out of 5 stars . . .

The Music of Jude Davison is hard to describe, but despite all that his music is very accessible.
His music often reads like a soundtrack and the sound can be seen as musical film snippets! Sounds that create an imaginary counterpart! Unseen with many artists. This however is not all so weird if you know that Jude Davison has released more then 15 albums already. Mostly writing for TV, theatre and musicals he has always been busy creating an atmosphere that enhanced the images.

However in the Roots music scene this man was totally new! His previous album “Circo De Teatro” immediately hit me straight in the face when I listened to it and with “Outskirts of Eden”, a double album with twenty seven tracks on it I pretty much got the same feeling. Leading track “Paraiso Perdido”, “Red Dirt Heart” or Bittersweet are only three of the many great tunes on these two cd’s.
The sound is again well crafted, often ranging between Country, folk, Hillbilly and Country Rock and often reminds me on bands like Calexico, The Stray Cats or Ron Sexsmith. The second album focuses a bit more on horns and Mariachi sounds, but you can easily catch some Big Band sounds or a country sound.

Once again this Jude Davison album is a must have in your collection! This album combines the best of the man into 27 songs and as usually he does a lot of the instruments himself. Guitar, ukulele, dobro, banjo or mandolin are only a handful of them! But also djembe, doumbek or simple drums are often from his hand. Very much recommended!

The idea was to go to bed. I was tired after a tough and eventful day. The clock had passed midnight. My mistake: I thought only eavesdrop on any song from the double album Outskirts Of Eden with Jude Davison to see what it was. And I got stuck. Absolutely. It was just to forget the plans on the bed, cracking a beer and listen through the two CDs.

Jude Davison offers americana, country, rock, Dixieland, mariachi, folk and blues. I can understand if there is anyone who thinks that the mix seems uneven, but of course I would rather categorize plate as varied. And not only that: it is largely absolutely delicious and just as wonderful as a ball at the castle. Here are songs that curves sharply so that country music song "Tattoo Town" or initial "Paraiso perdido", here is more sedate, almost filmic songs like "Paradise Lost II," and the rockin 'Can not stay ". The album consists of all 27 tracks, a beautiful, thick envelope, and an equally thick CD booklet with all texts. In other words, this is the quality of packaging to contents and a CD edition you can spend countless hours in the company without getting tired. One and another song comes to mind is not fancy, it should be recognized, but most of Outskirts Of Eden goes either straight to the heart or the right bottom of the dancing boots.

This CD can live with and enjoy for many long years to come. That, I think you should do. Of course I am sitting well awake the rest of the night, taking a few more beers and listen on the Jude Davison's flat. Without a thought of what it will bring to the horrors of the alarm clock goes off.

Robert Ryttman

translated from Hungarian . . .
A childhood in England, Australia and Canada
charger, thus calculating a true global citizen multi-instrumental
musician, Jude Davison, recently reported a
impressive new album. The 'outskirts Of Eden' album, entitled
now expanded to 19 disks artist discography. 27
new numbers with the publication of the "preparatory phase"
even the funny 'Fruit For New Eve' title bore, which in some
reason, but later changed. The two lemeztok
disc under a 28-page booklet also holds.
Davison, represented by the style of music is almost impossible to
determined, because we hear the music in the U.S., the
country, rock, dixiland, jazz, blues, pop and folk
a very special blend. The album's mood is very
Davison appeared similar to two years earlier but Circo
Teatro's hanghordozójára.
The cover art is trying to show that Davison
everything is in your hands to keep this project because
Apart from that, he wrote, composed and orchestrated by the spoken
works even in the producer assumes the duties
divided. Although dozens of musicians in the studio beyond
and the singer worked on the recordings, the main role there
also belonged to him. Davis singing along to a host of
instrument (eg guitar, bass, banjos, mandolines, ukulele,
t, piano, percussion etc) is also itself sounds.
The rich repertoire of descriptive song
follow each other, inter alia, for example. the 'Medicine Show',
the 'Red Dirt Heart', the 'Blood In The Aftermath', a 'Halfway
To Heaven ', the' Brain Boogie Street 'and' Last Of The Summer
Wine '. Jude Davison double-disc is for those who
programs or something unusual.
If you stick to the new album whirl of color, it's worth
search for the artist previous productions, the already mentioned
Circo de Teatro has as well.

Dutch to English translation

"Outskirts Of Eden" even after about two years ago, "Circo de Teatro" again following the modest masterpiece of American veelkunner Jude Davison. Well, modest ... In times of crisis in rural surprised the man with a very copious twenty-seven double album containing new songs up. And it is really just about every direction. So much so, that in itself is already very flexible phrase Americana at times not sufficient more apparent for Davison. Of flamboyant exotic rocking as in the richly winds laced "Paraiso Perdido" on "Americana pure" genre "Medicine Show", cavorting country a la "Red Dirt Heart, rootsy rock type" Hateful "and folky pop, as with a cello contribute significantly upgraded "Borderline", it goes towards the actual rete-catching by a banjo quite supercharged country rock of "Smoking Gun". And then we are only talking about the first six numbers! Each one has to stay! And that goes away in our opinion certainly before the bluesy New Orleans on his acting, from marching band tempo set out "Dry Bones", the "very seventies"-style rocker "Blood In The Aftermath," the drawling summers Americana of "Dandelion", with rockabilly romping "Halfway To Heaven", the Latin-earwigs "Magdelina Y Mi Corazon", the jazzy "Baby Doll", the specific radio-friendly roots pop of "Strange Desire", the armpit fresh R & B of "Brain Street Boogie "and still a small handful of others. What emerges repeatedly striking is the way Davison manages to provide the total picture. Despite the incredible stylistic variation, which he "Outskirts Of Eden" showcases, he knows, including by each song again and again the right - absolutely no restrictions to conform! - Instruments to choose from a loose collection of relatively low at first sight with each other tunes still having a single operating unit to forge. Very strong!

Delicious double album

Although the Canadian Jude Davison has 17 CDs seemed to have made was the Teatro Circo last year our first acquaintance with him. A delightful CD, which he covered a wide range, between Calexico-like warmth and fine roots rock. With a sunny, optimistic approach. The inspiration was apparently baked in his genes, because he has already recorded 27 new songs, which he is now an opinion as a double CD, dressed in a stunning uitklaphoesje with an equally beautiful 28 page booklet. So we like it. And so let us know, because he treats us again varied, sunny weather here and there songs in which Mexican influences emerge. "My White Album", he calls the double album, with a nod to the Beatles' masterpiece. A masterpiece is not incidentally, this is just his work distinctive enough, but if you hit a nearly three good songs to get home, which are also perfectly packaged, Jude is your man.


Kees van Wee

Jude Davison's last album was called the Teatro Circo, and I wrote about the English Canadian Jude Davison with this diverse CD the atmosphere of an old Mexican circus tried to intervene. De muziek varieerde van americana tot mariachi, van Tom Waits tot Los Lobos, met af en toe een scheut blues en een vleug soul erdoorgeroerd. The music ranged from mariachi to americana, from Tom Waits to Los Lobos, with an occasional dash of blues and a touch of soul stirred by it. Lekker scherp en fel op het ene moment, heerlijk weemoedig en melancholiek op het andere. Quite sharp and bright one moment, wonderfully sad and melancholy on another. De Canadees wist er een meeslepend werelds plaatje van te maken, dat zelfs voor een circushater als ik onweerstaanbaar was. The Canadian knew there was a compelling picture of the world to make that even a hater like me circus was irresistible.
En nu ligt er de dubbel-cd Outskirts of Eden, dat al net zo veelzijdig en net zo breed uitwaaierend is als de voorganger. And now there is the double CD Outskirts of Eden, that is just as diverse and as wide as the fanning predecessor. We bevinden ons hier opnieuw aan de grens van de States en Mexico. We find ourselves back at the border of the States and Mexico. Davison schrijft hier soms hallucinerende teksten die af en toe doen denken aan Dylan ten tijde van Highway 61 Revisited, Dylan op zijn best dus, tekstueel gezien. Davison writes sometimes hallucinatory lyrics that occasionally bring to mind at the time of Dylan Highway 61 Revisited, Dylan is at his best, lyrically seen. Davison is, naast een uitstekende en intelligente tekstschrijver, een alleskunner, want hij bespeelt hier vrijwel alle instrumenten, heeft alle liedjes geschreven en gearrangeerd, produceerde en mixte het album, tekende voor de prachtige verpakking en heeft daarmee niet minder dan een meesterwerk afgeleverd. Davison, besides an excellent and intelligent lyricist, a rounder, because he plays here almost any instrument, has all the songs written and arranged, produced and mixed the album, signed for the beautiful packaging and therefore has no less than a masterpiece delivered.

Want de muziek, waar het toch vooral om draait, is superieur, van gepassioneerde ballades tot verschroeiende rock, gekruid met vlammende blazers, melancholieke accordeons, meeslepende slidegitaren, maar ook met opgewekte countryklanken (banjo, pedalsteel), alles steeds in dienst van de liedjes. For the music, where it really counts, is superior, from passionate ballads to scorching rock, spiced with flaming horns, melancholy accordion, immersive slide guitars, but also cheerful country sounds (banjo, pedal steel), everything is still employed by the songs . Magnifiek. Magnificent. Een absolute aanrader. Highly recommended.

German to English Translation . . .
First, Jude thought he would write a concept album about the topic Garden of Eden called New Fruit for Eve. But then he thought: Man, it's way more interesting to write about things that actually happen outside. More complex things like "lots of sex, drugs and rock & roll.
And that's how it happened that the album got a different name and didn't turn out to become a 'real' concept album but more a loose one. It's about destinies of people and families, describes longings and hard reality... Davison sings about tired souls in one song and caressed ones in the next sweet song. And again and again the real story surfaces in his songs, the story about beginnings and endings, happiness and devastation: and all because of the chasing us out of the Garden of Eden...
There are so many things that are worth writing lyrics about, things that connect history - and that totally suits Jude's musical way. He plays Country, Bluegrass, Folk, Latin, Dixieland, Blues and lots more... but what it all combines together is the Rock. And when Jude creates Rock he uses a guitar, a mandolin, lap steel, a ukulele, piano and more, adds violinists, harmonica or trumpet - and his music starts to sparkle and gets magical!
It sticks out that Jude loves banjo-stirred Country-Drives and shows in his either fast paced, impassion "Red Dirt Heart" or "Halfway to Heaven" or in the more laid-back and lazy, dirt dry and hot desert sun like "Medicine Show" or "Gypsy Wind". Jude keeps adding singers like Sydney Galbraith, Bessie Wapp or Sarah McGlynn and it seems that the music intuitively decides by itself which of the singer is more in front and which is more in the background. What counts is that it always suits the song either way and it shows within the only song with lead female singer, the incredible "Sad & Sweet", in which Sydney Galbraith sounds just magical and intoxicating.
There are more hard rock songs (...) that Jude considers with hot guitars, buzzy and hopping saxophones and trumpets and it doesn't matter how the sounds seem to miss the tone, in the end the songs always add up and each instrument like E-guitar or harmonica just want to tell their story. And Paraiso Perdido and Magdelina are such Latin Mexican songs with even (some) Spanish words.
Magdelina, the woman in paradise: That's Jude's Eve. Quite a hot chick, apparently... but nothing can safe her, the catastrophe takes its way! Although, as Outskirts of Eden is about... there is a gong-show of a party in the lost paradise! Lots of soul and Rock & Roll - Wow, what a blast!
“The DJ was spinning the groove / Everyone was keeping it loose
Lucifer was singing the blues / In his zoot-suit and gold-lame shoes
Everyone looked strange divine / On the outskirts of Eden”

The crazy about rocking and rolling "Brain Boogie Street" is such a thing as totally unbiblical counter-event. Evolution in three minutes 48 ...
“A longtime ago / From the sea and the sand
A fish crawled out / And said I got me a plan
He bought a sharp silk suit / And some alligator shoes
He said I'll take me a wife / To keep away those blues
He looked all around / And said just call me the man
The brain street boogie / All over the land ...”
No, Jude doesn't take it too serious all the time. Otherwise there wouldn't be pieces like Baby Doll, a soft swinging parody about the rubber doll. Or the crooked, danceable one and a half minute song "Justin Bieber's Dad", which is based on a true encounter with Bieber's Dad. Canada is small. Bieber's dad was apparently in the audience once and wasn't too happy about a comment Mr. Jude Davison made about his son. Not everybody can take it with humor, but some people can.
Jude also flees the daily stress with humor and cynicism and sends himself on vacation in his mind in "Roman Holiday", and that with Caribbean Calypso music. And even when they lower him in his coffin down to his grave he just imagines to actually sail away instead of dying... He plays with the same idea in "Tattoo town" where he describes that the tattoos made after a hot love night are more real than most would like and last longer than the love of the woman itself whos name is written everlasting on his back.
But in the end it's still an earnest double album about nothing lasts forever and will be remembered like that in the listener's ears. "Last of the Summer Wine"... a melancholic but realistic look back to a whole live - is a good example for a hand full of dramatic and beautiful ballads with banjo, mandolin, a little percussion and a harmonica which sounds somewhat sad but at the same time like a celebration. Fragile and not everlasting but always beautiful. Often serious but not always. That's how life is outside, around this long lost parodies that Jude Davison sings about.

Dutch to English translation
In September 2009 I wrote for this magazine a very favorable review of the CD "The Teatro Circo" by the then noble for me totally unknown singer-songwriter Jude Davison. That was already his 18th album in his long musical career with albums that ranged from musical music, soundtracks for plays and acoustic material.

"The Teatro Circo" was a concept album around the circus theme and offered the listener an excellent introduction to the roots and Americana music that British-born artist living in Canada but had written. That's because he apparently really enjoyed his latest album "Outskirts Of Eden" He immediately launched a double album with 14 tracks on the first disc "Outskirts Of Eden" and another 13 songs on the second CD which is subtitled "New Fruit For Eve "meekreeg.




The whole is in a very nice looking package which also is a 28 page long booklet attached, and your a listener the opportunity given to the poetic lyrics of the songs quietly read along while listening to the songs is to listen. The songs are all new and original compositions by Jude Davison and as widely expected once again there are some gems between.




On "Outskirts Of Eden" that the opening song "Paraiso Perdido", a "Calexico'-like mariachi song, softly rocking" Red Dirt Heart ", the intimate and just by ukulele and cello accompanied" Borderline ", the banjo-folk song" Smoking Gun "and the accordion by Bessie Wappen duet singing" Bittersweet ".




More of that tasty we offered through the lovely and laid back singing a love song "Dandelion" on something "Stray Cats'-like rock song" Halfway To Heaven "and the intimate final farewell ballad" Best If We Do not Say Goodbye "Where in Sydney Galbraith singing duet.




The second CD "New Fruit For Eve" takes us straight away to Mexico with mariachi sounds of the song "Mi Corazon Y Magdelina. On this CD we get more songs trumpet solos can be heard from the brass ensemble "The Burlesco Bros.. Horns' consisting of Tim Bullen (trumpet), Keith Todd (trombone) and Rick Lingard (saxophone and flute).

Other fun stuff on this CD are the jazzy sixties-inspired big band song "Baby Doll" by Jude and Sydney singing duet "Sad & Sweet" country rock song "Tattoo Town", the "spoken word" spaghetti western soundtrack "Paradise Lost II, remaining in the same atmosphere hoempapa song "Roman Holiday" and the closing track "Last Of The Summer Wine", a Ron Sexsmith-ish folk ballad.




On many of the songs on this CD plays the multi-instrumentalist Jude Davison just all instruments himself, from all kinds of string instruments like guitar, ukulele, lap steel, dobro, mandolin and banjo on piano and keyboards to various percussion instruments like drums, djembe and doumbek.




The versatility of Jude Davison really knows no borders, neither playing all the instruments, nor with regard to the various styles and genres that he easily double this to his area of expertise seems to add. "Outskirts Of Eden" is also another highly recommended musical masterpiece from this talented all-round entertainer

18 out of 20 . . .

As with his previous album, Circo de Teatro of 1975 living in Canada, singer / songwriter and producer Jew Davison also has on his current work Outskirts Of Eden a mix of different influences and styles such as pop, Americana, mariachi, R & B, Dixieland and folk. Maybe the mix of styles have been even wider, it is still a double CD with all 27 new songs - all written by Jew Davison itself to the creativity it seems absolutely no shortage of musicians.

The beauty of Outskirts Of Eden in mind that the level is consistently high. There are more than the total time of the two CDs no sagging and the variety is always provided. That may deter some people perhaps a slightly because the style of jumps can be quite large to contain titles. Leaving aside, however, often a fact, then you realize that Jew Davison really clever way everything has merged into a larger whole and all this really makes sense.
Even if a Jew is Davison great experts on a variety of instruments, he has invited back some great guests in the studio, the songs can still be some nice accents.

Outskirts Of Eden will please any fan of Jew Davison, and lovers of good Americana sounds with a variety of stylistic byways here should necessarily lend an ear. But you should take time to do something, so you can really enjoy the music. Recommended!


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"Circo de Teatro is a very brave and very successful foray into the world of freaks and sideshows, performed with passion and warmth that only an 18th album could be . . .what say Tom Waits does a cover of 'Amphetamine Sam' for his next album, it would work a treat"
- AllgigsUK (UK)

"Circo de Teatro is a spectacle of sound . . .Think Fellini meets Estrella de Jalisco de Ernnesto Molina after they had coffee at the Country Music Hall of Fame"
- All Access Magazine (LA)

"One critic described Sara Gruen’s bestselling novel as having a "pathetic grandeur" and this is also a pretty good description to this bold and highly original album."
- Wisperin' & Hollerin' (Ireland)

* * * * * (5 stars)
"The sounds and tunes on this album are truly wonderful . . .I simply can't get enough"
- Billybop Magazine (Belgium)

* * * * (4 stars)
"Jude sings superbly . . .he has an amazing country voice"
- Maverick Magazine (UK)

* * * (4 Stars)
“Jude gets a thumbs up on all accounts . . .a brilliant CD”
- AltCountry (Netherlands)

“A bold musical statement by an honest, progressive musician not afraid to venture off the beaten path in search of a creative muse”
- AmericanaUK

“Circo de Teatro is certainly adventurous in it’s scale . . . the storytelling is right up there”
- The Beat Surrender (UK)

"Those who enjoy the atmospheric Americana of Tom Waits or the twangy Mexicana of Calexico would do well to check out Circo de Teatro"
- Metropolis (Japan)

"A sonically ambitious CD . . .peopled with colourful characters . . .sounds like a swordfishtrombones-era B side, but Tom Waits would probably appreciate the hommage"
- The Georgia Straight (Vancouver, Canada)

"Circo de Teatro is an exceptionally good album . . .the various musical styles are cohesively united and seemlessly played"
- Musik an Sich (Germany)

"It’s fair to say that much of the material here is infinitely more accessible than anything Tom Waits has produced for some years"
- Leister Bangs (UK)

“Jude has an excellent singing voice, the lyrics are very compelling, and he possesses a musicality far above average”
- Rootsy.nu (Netherlands)

“The listener whose heart will be racing from hearing these beautiful
Mexican sounding songs should run on home and buy this superb CD!
- Rootstime.be (Belgium)

“ Absolutely stunning. I really love your mixture of sounds and influences.”
- Massimo Ferro (Italy)

“The music is very good and sounds like a soundtrack to a play or movie.”
- Folkword (Germany)

“Circo De Teatro is an exceptionally good album . . . Everything here fits together perfectly. Musically one is reminded of the great Tom Waits during his Swodfishtrombones period. The vocal performances are also on the money.
- Musik and Sich (Germany)

Darkness, madness and beauty


There's nothing strange about this at all. Just a concept album about a traveling Mexican circus crew, inspired by the writer Sara Gruen's novel "Water for Elephants". With a mild baritone Davison tells comical and/or sad tales of lipstick and razors, striptease dancers and elephants, guns, mandolins and cocaine kisses. The scenes are populated by characters such as the tattooed Madeleine, the lizard man, the Siamese twins Lee and Kwan, the lesbian lovers Belle & Ophelia, one-eyed Pete and Black-Jack Mary.

The sound is as though Calexico, Tom Waits, Los Lobos and The Bearded Lady collided in the Haunted Mansion; it's alternating between bluegrass, vaudeville, mariachi, R&B, funk, glam rock, desert ballads and burlesque circus chansons. Darkness, madness and beauty in a combination that makes me think of the musician Andi Almquist from Malmö.

Jude Davison was born in England but has lived in Canada since 1975. As a matter of fact, this is his 18th album (!) and I have to admit that I'm curious about the seventeen others, considering the limitless melting-pot they've led to.

What's remarkable is that it's actually solid. All the way through. The harmonies are powerful enough and the eclectic is kept together - I imagine - by a vision of a journey, a unity. A well thought-out and worked through album, quite simply. Therefore, there's nothing strange about it.

This is Jude Davison's 18th album and it's about a traveling Mexican circus. So what's not to like? It's unerringly theatrical and eclectic in style and Davison really should get some more fans with it.

"Big Top Parade" is kind of like a more refined Tom Waits, down to the subject matter and vocal delivery. "Amphetamine Sam" lives up to its odd title by being about a man who 'can conjure the Lord/wake the dead from their sleep'. It's set to a jazzy, seductive backdrop that really underlies the danger inherent in the lyrics. "The Greatest Show on Earth" is a self-explanatory song with a nice deal of oompah-pah added and an expressive vocal. "Veil of Tears" is a bit of folksy splendor with a sorrowful tune that he uses well. He�s certainly created a widescreen adventure with this album. It's worth checking ou

I got your CD from Hemifran and it's absolutely stunning. I really love your mixture of sounds and influences and in fact I'm playing "circo De Teatro" in my radio show of folk & roots music here.
All the best from Italy

According to his official website, “Circo de Teatro is the latest CD release by Jude Davison – the 18th CD of his diverse career. After pursuing many different creative musical directions over the past several years – most notably, a Broadway-style soul musical called Cybersoul, a trilogy of poetry/music CDs (the Terminal City Trilogy), three acoustic albums (Uncertain Heaven, Ordinary Dream, & Bread and Bones), and two screenplay/musical projects (Drop Dead Scene, & Slow Resurrection – the life & times of Leland Frank), Circo de Teatro sees Jude return, once again, to a full-blown artist album”.

And full blown it is… and it is definitely an “artist” album.

Think Fellini meets Estrella de Jalisco de Ernnesto Molina after they had coffee at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Davison’s creativity is explored as he taps into more musical genres than one can imagine… 15 tracks later, you aren’t quite sure what it is you just listened to. Perhaps that is part of the mystery that Davison is trying to build? Maybe it’s the result of a self indulgent pseudo-intellectual musician extraordinaire? Or is there a possibility Davison is ahead of the curve?

Whatever the course - if the goal was to avoid any pigeon holes, kudos to Davison for showing us how it is done as “Circo de Teatro” is a spectacle of sound. The question remains… why?

Even though the circus is a common theme in the entertainment media, it rarely makes an appearance in rock music. There are individual songs ("When The Circus Comes To Town" by Bert Jansch, "Burlesque" by Family, "Death Of A Clown" by Dave Davies, "The Show Must Go On" by Leo Sawyer), but to my knowledge there is only one album the grapples with that theme – the great ‘Clowns & Clouds” by Hölderlin. Now there is another one available: “Circo de Teatro’ from Jude Davison, who was born in England, but now lives in Canada.

He is a very prolific musician, arranger, producer and songwriter, who can already look back at a catalogue of 18 CDs covering various musical directions. The fact that we have just discovered him is not necessarily due to a gap in our musical education – his body of work has so far only been available to true insiders through specialty imports. Thanks to the Norwegian distributor Hemifrån, which has repeatedly uncovered some of Canada’s lesser-known musical treasures, us Europeans are now able to get to know Mr. Davison. And that will be well worthwhile, if the rest of his creations are as interesting as this album

‘Circo de Teatro’ is inspired by the best-selling book “Water for Elephants” by Sara Gruen, which takes place in the world of the big top. Davison has fashioned a very artistic web-appearance, which by itself will whet your appetite for the music.

And how exactly does that sound? Like a mixture of Calexico, “Caberet”, Tom Waits with some Los Lobos and Elliot Brood sprinkled in. It all starts with twangy ‘borderline’ sounds, mariachi trumpet and half-spoken, half-sung vocals, then a short carnival interlude and when “Big Top Parade” plays, I’m imagining the shrill Sally in the person of Liza Minelli.
Killer banjo and spooky vocal make an appearance in “Madame O”. There’s barroom atmosphere à la Waits with crooked singing and wobbly sax (“Amphetamine Sam”), then some latin flavour with “Sideshow Souvenirs”. “Belle & Ophelia” (in Portuguese) is a romantically flavoured song, provides a bit of a breather.
“The Greatest Show on Earth” brings us back to the burlesque sound. There are hints of melancholy Latin-American folk music, then with “Devil’s Road” a 70s rocker with a “CCR” guitar riff and a fat horn-section groove. “Rag & Bone” also rumbles along nicely, then there is another example of ‘Texarcana’ with the slightly sappy “Veil of Tears”. With “Monkey See” Davison keeps rocking and adds great Western twang in “Nowhere Bound”; to finish is with the dreamy “Further On”.
These 15 songs with their interludes are a colourful and very accomplished journey through the world of the traveling circus, with it’s fascinating characters (The inspiration of the classic horror film “Freaks” is obvious.), but also a journey through a wide variety of musical genres.

Jude Davison accomplished the realization of his concept perfectly, even if he borrowed from well-known themes, sounds and fellow musicians. But that does not lessen the enjoyment of this album. I highly recommend it any music lover that has been waiting for a new “Hot Rails” album from Calexico, that have given up on the revered Tom Waits or that only vaguely remember the great albums of Los Lobos (as well as those that sent me whiskey-perfumed letters of thanks for introducing them to “Mountain Meadows” by Elliot Brood).
Fans in British Columbia are lucky to be able to attend live shows of “Circe de Teatro”. Three shows with a full 10-piece band were announced by Davison in Nelson, including all artists that took part in the recording. The music is of course pre-destined to be performed with circus performers, though it is not clear from the release if that is indeed the plan. On this side of the Atlantic we have to make due with the consolation of a unique rock concept-album; one that I can recommend without reservations.

* * * * * * * (7 stars)
Roll up, roll up....

Whatever you think of the record, you have to hand it to Jude Davison for sheer perseverance. Eighteen albums into a career that has even had a tune placed on Baywatch of all places and he decides to do a concept record about a travelling Mexican circus. It’s the sort of move that would have any self-respecting A&R man heading for the nearest shots bar. But, hey, I guess with eighteen albums under your belt what need would you have for A&R, right?

So to the album, 'Circo de Teatro', is a fifteen track opus that charts the comings and goings of a travelling circus giving insights into all the weird and wonderful characters that call it their home. I suppose reference points aim towards Tom Waits in design – dark, vaudevillian and at times deeply atmospherical.

There are all manner of styles – burlesque, R&B, mariachi, doses of parched Americana – that make up what is a complex listening experience. Whereas ‘Rag and Bone’ introduces the tattooed Madeleine (“tattooed in every inch of skin/she was lost but not alone”) and the Siamese twins Lee and Kwan (“shared the skin of one/it was just the way god made them”), ‘Belle and Ophelia’ charts the friendship of lesbian lovers “plucking stars out of the leaden sky/bulletproof and scarred.” What’s clever about the record, and given it’s about a travelling circus it’s probably essential, is there is a transient quality to these songs that does make you feel that for a few hours you are in the company of some truly interesting characters, all lovingly illuminated by Davison on all manner of instrumentation, yet they will inevitably move onwards to pastures new leaving behind their tales of friendship, courage, and belonging. The closing ‘Further On’ sums it up perfectly – “Through sunset eyes/life passes by/leave it behind as we roam/further on down the old open road.”

All in all then a bold musical statement that, if not essential nonetheless marks out Davison as a honest, progressive musician not afraid to venture off the beaten track in search of a creative muse. The sort of record that has label heads reaching for the blood pressure tablets.

Singer/songwriter and producer, Jude Davison was born in Northern England but has livied in Canada since 1975. Remarkably, this is 18th release, a concept album inspired by Sara Gruen’s novel 'Water for Elephants' set against the backdrop of depression era circus life.

Davison is not concerned with following any particular narrative structure, his goal being to create a musical statement which conjures up the bizarre and often freakish entertainment of a Mexican traveling circus.

It provides a convenient excuse to indulge in an eclectic mix of styles including Americana , Mariachi, R&B, Dixieland jazz and Carnivalesque music - there's even a short snippet of the theme tune to 'Steptoe & Son'!.

Davison has been quoted as saying: "I guess I'm aiming for this to be my Sergeant Peppers album" and a line from 'Sideshow Souvenirs' also hints at his ambitions : "Let your senses be engorged, something here for everyone".

He sings and plays an impressive range of instruments including mandolin, dobro, pedal steel, ukulele as well as guitars, drums and keyboards. Normally, his albums do not feature outside musicians but the range and scope of this record means that he calls upon others to provide trumpet, trombone, banjo, sax and accordion. Sydney Galbraith also provides additional (female) vocals, notably on 'Con Volai Amore' which is written entirely in an invented language inspired by the sound of Spanish and Italian.

The eccentric one hour musical journey is such that you might be on Calexico's Crystal Frontier one minute, in a glitzy stage show the next or else listening to virtuouso banjoist on 'Madame O' where Davison is a dead ringer for Townes Van Zandt. Amazingly, it all hangs together pretty well .

'Carnival Burlesque' provides the scene setter to establish the album's themes, a track which was originally conceived as an instrumental but now has spoken word lines to tell us that the show is in town. It leads us into the strike up the band flourish of 'Big Top Parade' - a double whammy of mariachi.

Those opening tunes may lead you to expect a Mexican flavour will dominate but, wisely, Davison steers a more varied musical course to introduce the diverse range of characters in his imaginary show.

In the bluesy-rock of 'Rag And Bone' we meet a tattooed lady, a lizard man and Siamese twins and ,on one of the best tracks, a loveable rogue by the name of Amphetamine Sam is vividly described as having "switchblade eyes" and "a "bruised point of view".

To prove that it's not all gratuitous weirdness, "Belle and Ophelia" is a tender and touching song of love between two women from diverse and difficult backgrounds. This displays a subtlety which more rocky and razzamatazz numbers like 'The Greatest Show on Earth and 'Devil's Road' lack.

It's like a soundtrack in search of a show and when it's over the players drift away rather sadly into the sunset to the strains of 'Nowhere Bound' and 'Further On', a far cry from the brash opening tunes.

One critic described Sara Gruen’s bestselling novel as having a "pathetic grandeur" and this is also a pretty good description to this bold and highly original album.

The route unsure, a vagabond with merit steers into the wind, his destination dependent upon his imagination. At a crossroads a choice must be made. A glance left, a glance right, neither looks much different from the other. A coin toss is a 50/50 guess, and rock, paper, scissors unlikely with only one. What does the heart say? What does the soul feel? How painful the feet, matters only on how far the destination. The years filled with experiences far and wide, reflection grand, his smile deep and true. For the artist of this musical arrangement, 18 recordings to his credit means a lot of ground has been covered over the years. For the listener wishing to explore, a diverse element of construction awaits.

Chi è Jude Davison? Ce lo siamo chiesti anche noi, rigirandoci tra le mani questo cd con lo scorcio in bianco e nero di un tendone da circo sulla cover. E' un signore anglo-canadese di mezz'età che nella vita è stato ben poco fermo. Ai tempi della high school sputava punk nelle cantine di Toronto (era il 1977 anche da quelle parti), poi negli anni '80 ha cercato fortuna a Londra, prima di tornare in Canada a coltivare ostinato la sua vocazione. La cosa più vicina al successo che l'abbia sfiorato pare sia stata la vendita dei diritti di due sue canzoni al serial Baywatch nei primi anni '90. Qualche band, tanti progetti (un musical, colonne sonore, cassette autoprodotte...) e si fa presto ad arrivare a Circo de teatro, che le note di stampa ci informano essere il 18° album (!!!) della sua carriera. Allora, mister Davison, non conosciamo quello che hai combinato prima, ma questo è davvero un prodotto di qualità, un concept-album suonato per buona parte in totale autarchia (giusto qualche aiuto per i cori, i fiati e l'apporto di Craig Korth al banjo), che ignorare sarebbe un crimine.

Sì, è vero, gira intorno a temi - la magia del circo, la vita on the road, lo sguardo sulle miserie dei freak dietro lo sfavillare delle luci della ribalta - che basterebbe un soffio di retorica in più a rendere indigeribili (ritrovandosi dalle parti di Cecil B. DeMille, invece che di Fellini). E sì, lo ammettiamo, ricicla musiche e atmosfere senza troppo curarsi di nasconderlo: una buona dose di Calexico (Big Top Parade, Belle and Ophelia), un po' di Tom Waits (periodo Heartattack & Vine, ascoltate Amphetamine Sam), spezie bluegrass (Madame O potreste scambiarla per una sortita elettrica dei Soggy Bottom Boys), per arrivare ai vecchi amori Ray Davies e Bowie, quando è il momento di dare la scossa al pubblico con dei pop-rock dal refrain ad effetto (Devil's Road, Rag and Bone, Monkey See, tre numeri con l'appeal da potenziali hit single). Quand'è il momento sa anche scivolare (pericolosamente) su un sentimentalismo da maracas, tromba e guitarrón (Veil of Tears), arrischiando persino un gramelot italo-spagnolo che potrebbe farlo cadere col culo per terra (Con Volai Amore).

Ma ne esce comunque a testa alta, confezionando un'opera che nella sua sfrontata pretenziosità rivela un autore che in carriera non ha intascato credito pari al talento. La cura degli arrangiamenti lascia di stucco (ecco, forse un po' di sporcizia in più avrebbe aumentato la capacità seduttiva di alcuni brani): siamo ad anni luce di distanza dalla trascurata povertà della maggior parte delle autoproduzioni contemporanee. E' uno spettacolo che punta su una studiata varietà, tenuta insieme da un filo di latinità raffinata, filtrata da un occhio decadente ed europeo. Manipola rock veloci e di facile presa con l'abilità di un giocoliere e vola tra numeri da vaudeville e ritmi da balera messicana come un trapezista sicuro della presa. Forse nell'insieme è solo gioco di prestigio, ma non vediamo motivi per non lasciarsi ipnotizzare, tornando a casa contenti come bambini.
(Yuri Susanna)

Born in England and living in Canada since 1975, the singer/songwriter and producer Jude Davison offers up his 18th album with Circo De Teatro. It is a concept album that, inspired by Sara Gruen’s book “Water for Eleaphants”, revolves around a Mexican traveling circus. Consequently the musical direction is colourful: Appearing next to typical Americana are Mariachi, R&B, Dixiland and Carnival music.

These days concept albums have unfortunately been deemed elitist, but it really just shows that the artist has explored a theme extensively in order to create poignant lyrics and music. Jude Davison has been exceptionally successful at doing this. The various musical styles are cohesively united and seamlessly played. Multi-instrumentalist Jude Davison performed most of the music himself; only the horn section, accordion, banjo and some spoken words were added by guest musicians. Now it often happens that an artist who plays all the instruments loses sight of the big picture, but not Jude Davison. Everything here fits together perfectly. Musically one is reminded of the great Tom Waits during his Swodfishtrombones period. The vocal performances are also on the money.

Circo De Teatro is an exceptionally good album. Every fan of the above-mentioned musical styles should definitely give it a listen. Jude Davison is pure fun. Recommended!

Calexico-klanken en meer

Al zeventien cd’s schijnt deze Canadees hiervoor te hebben gemaakt, in uiteenlopende stijlen. Dat waren vaak soloprojecten en ook op deze nieuwe bespeelt hij veel instrumenten zelf. Maar daarnaast maakt hij ook gebruik van de diensten van veel anderen, en Circo de Teatro klinkt daardoor rijp en vol. Vijftien puike rootssongs – waaronder een paar prima instrumentaaltjes – met als centraal thema een rondreizend circus, die voldoende eigens hebben maar tegelijkertijd ook heel vertrouwd klinken. De mariachi-klanken van het openingsnummer doen onmiddellijk aan Calexico denken, en dat geldt voor meer songs. Daarnaast is hij ongetwijfeld een fan van Tom Waits ten tijde van Swordfishtrombones. Luister bijvoorbeeld naar Amphetamine Sam. In vocaal opzicht staat hij overigens veel dichter bij Calexico dan bij Waits, met zijn aangename maar niet echt opmerkelijke stem. Een voordeel daarvan is wel dat deze cd een hoge draaibaarheidsfactor heeft. Davison is weliswaar geen ‘original’ maar hij heeft wel een heerlijke cd afgeleverd, die fans van Jim Bianco en Los Lobos vast ook graag aan hun collectie toevoegen

At a time when the LP format is being ditched for the digital single, Canadian singer-songwriter Jude Davison comes up with nothing less than a 15-song concept album about a traveling Mexican circus. Among its cast are characters like “Amphetamine Sam,” who possesses “switchblade eyes,” and lesbian lovers “Belle and Ophelia,” who find freedom under the big top. Such tales are told via Davison’s scratchy baritone and a panoply of instruments ranging from the guitar to the mandolin, dobro, tuba and banjo. Those who enjoy the atmospheric Americana of Tom Waits or the twangy Mexicana of Calexico would do well to check out Circo de Teatro, the 18th album from a performer whose most unusual claim to fame is having a song used on the hit TV show Baywatch