Music is the Soul of the Biscuit
Soul threads, kitchen magic, home as temple, laboratory of sound
Maybe it’s this unique combination of voice – the musical, the mystic, the sacred – that inspired Janet to explore living in a land known for all three, Glastonbury in Great Britain, and to weave that thread back into the ancient heart of the Appalachian mountains.
Janet was born to Martin David and Marizona Robinson, their home an amalgam of religious fervor and troubadour outbursts.
On their Tennessee farm, Pentecostal hymns competed with top 40 radio. The piano was routinely plunked by an aspiring young Janet, and on Saturday nights, the voice on the radio was her father’s, known as the legendary Marty Robbins.
Playing and composing in bands while living in California, she relished the possibilities of self-producing and recording so teamed up with a band-mate to record All the Worlds in the early 90’s; sonic textures of layered vocals, west coast guitars, and heavy atmosphere.
She soon discovered a different compositional voice in the creation of atmospheric soundscapes that incorporated her vocal and instrumental talents as well as the diverse infusions of her spiritual sojourns.
Since then she’s released five albums, The three CD series, Carrying the Bag of Hearts Interpreting the Birth of Stars, was followed by Song of the Gypsy Tree.
Her latest release, I Hear Crow, a collection of improvised compositions, recalls the soulful solitude of winter, and points the way to a set of string and voice improvisations in preparation to be recorded.
With an infectious laugh and the secret of the will o’ the wisp, she takes the next step on a unique journey, weaving old world threads into her new world voice.
But as always, it remains Janet’s voice.
