For me, being a father has been a profound experience wherein I have been given the opportunity to somewhat relive my own youth and share all the things I remember with my own son.  I am also simultaneously experiencing and considering what it might have been like for my own parents when they raised me.  Being a father is beyond words.  It is so wonderful, yet so sad realizing that while having fun and teaching this new human about life, those times shared pass by so quickly and will too soon be a memory in the past.

MY SON © 2007, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

Some of my earliest memories are of me asking my mom to drive down "crunchy roads;" those unpaved dirt roads surrounded by trees.  I was deeply fascinated with where they would lead and now the chance to happen down such a thoroughfare in rural north central Florida is becoming a rarity.  The canopy of trees that exist over such roads give it a surreal and serene vibe.  There is just something so beautiful and hauntingly calling back to me each time I drive down an oak-covered dirt road.

I asked my friend, David, to add the harmonica part in the song, but he took it a step further and threw in the entire banjo track, which totally gives the song that feel of moving down the road.

OAK-COVERED DIRT ROAD © 2007, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

The first couple of years of being a father caused a dramatic shift in my life.  Much of my time was relegated to the couch, where I could keep an eye on a little boy, while keeping entertained with television; a forgotten luxury for those with nothing else to do.  There were also walks to a nearby park, where my son could play on the playground for a spell.  In the years of my life before this, both of these activities would have been considered a waste of time, rather than a simple enjoyment of life.  Needless to say, I like my life a whole lot more now than what it was back then.

SLOW © 2007, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

Since I was young, I always felt particularly drawn to love songs.  Love inspires so many things, and a great love song always makes me conjure various scenarios of couples feeling that initial attraction and being drawn together, whether real or something I had seen on TV or the movies.  In so many of the latter and in song there is oftentimes some predicament preventing the lovers from realizing there togetherness and this was my attempt at bringing that ultimate togetherness to fruition; marriage.  The alternate title to this is, "The Wedding Song."

TOGETHER AT LAST © 2005, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

The converse side to being in love is heartbreak, and it too is a great inspiration to songwriting.  The blues certainly lend themselves to this type of situation, as well.

DON'T WANT ME NO MORE © 2005, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

SEE EMILY PLAY © 2007, Judson Philpot, Undefinable Music (A.S.C.A.P.)

I was inspired to write this song from the perspective of the character, Freddy, in one of my all-time favorite movies, "The Return Of The Living Dead."  I would love to see a video made with some of the cast members reunited in Ernie Kaltenbrunner's embalming room; Thom Mathews and James Karen sitting there all lethargic and dead-looking on the couch.

Judson Philpot - The B-52's' Love Shack

Judson Philpot - Matthew Wilder's Break My Stride

I began writing this song in 1999 and finally finished it six years later when life was getting a lot better.  I always enjoyed great love songs and thought it would be nice to create one that some couple somewhere would hear and be able to really identify with and make it "their song."  I was privileged to be able to perform it at my best friend's wedding reception, but I know it's not their song.

Judson Philpot

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