Jason Morphew

Arkansas singer/songwriter Jason Morphew debuted his folky style of lo-fi rock in 1993 on the Danger/Incredible Hulk EP on Little Rock, AK, label the Parent Trap. In 1994, his song "Losing Stars Against the Moon" was featured on a Brassland Records compilation. Brassland released the Holding Merle Haggard cassette in 1995. "Riddled With Regret" was featured on the As Seen on TV: Spare Me Records Comp in 1996. The Lonely and Weird LP also appeared in 1996, again on Brassland. At the time, Morphew was collaborating with Geoff Boyd of the band the Reachers. In 1997, Morphew recorded "Bring Your Sorrow Over Here" for the soundtrack to the film Niagara, Niagara on V2 Records. 1997 also saw the release of Morphew's first official full-length CD, Transparent, which was released on New Jersey's Ba Da Bing Records. Members of Holiday, the Magnetic Fields, and Ida appeared on Transparent. In 1998, Morphew's "Christmas on the Moon" appeared on the Drive-Thru Records compilation Christmas Gone Wrong. In 1999, his song "Badass With a Heart of Gold" was featured on The Oxford American 1999 Southern Music Sampler CD, along with the likes of Jerry Lee Lewis, Bob Dylan, Leadbelly, Nina Simone, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. In 2000, England's Shifty Disco Records released "Badass With a Heart of Gold" as a CD single. The CD also features "Far Beyond Love." After relocating to California, Morphew released Not for the Faint of Heart! on Ba Da Bing in 2001. A year later, The Duke of Arkansas appeared. ~ Stephen Cramer, All Music Guide