After two years of writing, recording and planning, Clothe Yourself in Righteousness is out! The album is Jon’s most mature, well-thought out work to date.

Pre-orders have been shipped. Donors have been rewarded. Now all we have to do is go and play the tour!

Download the album
Preview the songs
Read a review
Learn about Quakers and Nakedness

Jon Watts and Maggie Harrison discuss their joint multi-media project, “Clothe Yourself in Righteousness”… an exploration of “going naked as a sign” amongst Early Friends and the implications for Quakers today.

Jon and Maggie met at Guilford College and first heard about going naked as a sign from Quakerism professor Max Carter, who told them the story of Solomon Eccles, a Friend who went naked through Smithfield Market with a basket of burning coals on his head.

Maggie and Jon subsequently explored the themes of nakedness in their own lives and in Quaker and Christian theology, resulting in a full album from Jon and a pamphlet from Maggie.

This video is an excerpt of an interview for the podcast “Friend Speaks My Mind”, by Madeline Schaffer.

.: Full Interview :.

After months and months of praying, not knowing, wrestling, the moment has arrived. If you’re the type to pray, great… all of us involved with the project would be very appreciative.

…and if you’re the type to get excited about new music, check this out:

Download the song for free.

Also, tour dates:

• 9/23 – Richmond, VA – 4500 Kensington Avenue – 7 PM
• 9/24 – Philadelphia, PA – Time and place TBA
• 10/1 – Greensboro, NC – Guilford College – Time and place TBA
• other times and locations TBA

…And I’m spent. If you love to read, you’re out of luck. I just spent my last waking clarity on that video. Hit play. Just sayin’.

Find out more about Jon’s new project about nakedness, pre-order the album, buy t-shirts and keep up with his progress!

www.ClotheYourselfinRighteousness.com

The website will be connected to a facebook fan page, so if you are on “the book” often, please be sure to “like” the page and keep up!

THANK YOU SO MUCH for your enthusiastic support. I am in your debt. (That’s why I’m sending out T-shirts!)

More importantly, you’ve helped to fund a ministry. That is to say, something deeper than my own gratitude is at play here. Just wait until you hear these songs and I think you’ll know what I mean.

If you were keeping track of the fundraiser, you might be wondering why it’s taken me two weeks to put up this post. The project successfully went through on December 1st, right?

Two reasons:
1) Amazon just put the money in my account. Didn’t want to count the chickens before they hatched.
2) I’ve been hard at work! Recording this project is new and ambitious, which, on top of the 3 year break that I’ve taken from recording and producing projects such as this one has meant that I have a lot of catching up to do!

I have taken to the task quickly and excitedly, but also with the patience necessary to listen for the deeper inspiration of the Spirit. It would be easy for me to sit in my recording studio 24/7 and come out with a CD more quickly, but that’s also an easy way to assure that the inspiration for the project came from myself and not something deeper.

I promise you, I’ll take the time and do the work. I owe it to you, to myself and to the world.

Merry Christmas
Jon

It has been a very productive and amazing month! When I first launched my Kickstarter campaign, I had no idea when and if we would make it to the $4,000 goal.

I have been stunned and excited to see the momentum of donations rising so steadily and quickly. And I can’t believe we’re here… ONE MORE DONATION PUTS US OVER THE GOAL!!!

You can be the one to get us there.

Donate.

It’s Not Too Late !

If you’ve watched my video about the project, you know that the total budget is $10,000 and the Kickstarter campaign just covers a part of that cost.

If you were intending to donate but haven’t gotten around to it yet, don’t worry! Kickstarter does not limit the amount that we overshoot the campaign goal.

And if you’ve already donated or put energy into spreading the word about the project… thank you so much! It is with your help and support that I am now about to enter the studio to record a full-length album for the first time in 3 (!) years.

I am so excited that I have been laying awake at night, like a kid on Christmas Eve…

in peace
Jon

Last Spring, Jon Watts rode his bike from Virginia to Boston and then continued on to Buffalo, NY. In two months, Jon played 18 shows and covered 1,000 miles carrying 120 pounds of gear on the back of his bicycle in what ended up being a successful attempt at finding an alternative way to do a musical tour.

Click on the audio player below to hear an interview with Jon by Elise Gidding of BikeTouringBliss.com about his epic “2010 Two Wheel Tour”.

Jon Watts Interview with BikeTouringBliss.com – Jon biked 1,000 miles with 120 lbs of gear on his bike.

BikeTouringBliss.com is a series of free participatory interviews that you can log into and stream live.

Find out more:

• BikeTouringBliss.com
• Cycle9.com
• Jon’s tour Vlog (Weekly Videos from his Trip)

Equally various were the reasons that this made some Friends uncomfortable. Besides the challenging theology of the song, since when do Quakers get up and dance in a sacred Meetinghouse? There is a lot of serious work to be done in the world, and what gives the folks in the video a right to seem so downright carefree? How can we hear the will of the Spirit through all of that noise?

Well Friends, as I look over my notes for the new album that I am to begin recording at the end of this month, I feel that a yoke has been laid upon me. These are not easy songs to play OR to think about. My responsibility to them is a heavy burden.

However, there is a playfulness in the way that the songs have been laid upon my shoulders. And there is a joyfulness even in the serious, sometimes painful lyrics. There is much reason to dance.

My current source of joy is the progress that I’ve made in raising funds for the album. So far I have been awarded two grants, and been accepted by Kickstarter.com to raise the rest of the money. Kickstarter is a direct-to-fan fundraising platform, meaning that their website is set up specifically to take in large quantities of small donations from folks like you. And we’re halfway to the goal!!!

But it’s not real money. Not yet. Kickstarter doesn’t charge any credit cards unless the goal is fully met by December 1st.

So we need more help! Please spread the word! And put in a little pledge yourself! Every little bit counts.

Visit www.ClotheYourselfinRighteousness.com to find out how to donate and to spread the word.

The next “Dance Party Erupts During Quaker Meeting for Worship” depends on your good will!!!

Let’s Dance.

Jon

Jon’s new album, Clothe Yourself in Righteousness is an exploration of spiritual and physical nakedness and is based upon a research paper into the Early Quakers’ practice of “going naked as a sign”, written by Maggie Harrison for the Earlham School of Religion.

It was intense. It was challenging. It was fun. It was an adventure, to be sure.

The website www.biketouringbliss.com, a branch of Cycle 9 is offering a free series on bike touring and will be interviewing Jon live. The interview is free for anyone to stream live. You can even ask questions, chatroom style!

Sign up to stream the interview!

Live interview with Jon Watts
Monday, Nov 15th at 9pm
Click here to participate and listen live!

for more info, visit the Cycle 9 website!

Seeing the funds for “Clothe Yourself in Righteousness” climb from $0 to $1500 in three days, I was overwhelmed with excitement and gratefulness. I know that it is because folks are excited about this project and are already sharing it on facebook and via email that so many donations have already come in.

Now we’re on day 5, and though we are well on our way, it’s going to be a climb for the rest of the month to meet our goal. Remember that Kickstarter doesn’t fund the project unless we raise $4,000 by December 1st… meaning that no credit cards get charged unless we raise the full amount.

So let’s keep pushing! The most helpful thing you can do is to share this project on facebook, or via email.

The link for “Get Naked or Bust!” is http://kck.st/dx0SnK or www.ClotheYourselfinRighteousness.com.

And there is a new Facebook fan page gaining steam, devoted entirely to this project! Check it out and become a fan.

Many thanks, Friends! I know that we can do this!
in peace
Jon