"He casts a sardonic but affectionate eye on the roughhewn lives of Western people. Crossland’s ‘Big Horn Mountain Blues’ is so popular in Wyoming that it is practically the official state song." -Michael Segell, New York Times
Jalan Crossland is an American Bluegrass and Folk musician born in Ten Sleep, Wyoming. He is a banjoist, guitarist, and vocalist. He creates and records for his own label, Boom Chicken Rekkerds.
In 2005 he formed the Jalan Crossland Band with bassist Shaun Kelley and drummer Pat Madsen. The band eventually disassembled due to Shaun Kelley's Parkinson's diagnosis.
Crossland has received the Wyoming Governor's Arts Award and was named a "Wyoming Treasure" by the Wyoming Arts Council.
Albums:
- Poor Boy Shanty (2000)
- Moonshiner (2004)
- Trailer Park Fire & Other Tragedies (2006) - With the Jalan Crossland Band
- Driftwood Souls (2010) - With the Jalan Crossland Band
- Portrait of a Fish (2011)
- No Cause for Despair (2014) - With the Jalan Crossland Band
- Singalongs For the Apocalypse (2017) - With the Jalan Crossland Band, won Wyoming Public Radio’s People’s Choice - Album Of The Year award
- Greatest Efforts (2019) - A Greatest Hits Album
Associated Tropes:
- Anti-Love Song: "Bosler" is a cross between the weird context and subliminal message version. The song appears to be a bare-bones cliche in which the country boy longs to return home from the city and begs his city girl to join him. It's an Anti-Love Song because the singer pulls no punches about the reality of living in a borderline ghost town. Jalan sings soulfully and sweetly about drawing unemployment, having 10-20 'dirty-faced children' (and not being worried about them playing in the street), and sleeping on a hide-away mattress.
- Author Appeal: Americana, small towns, cowboys, and dysfunction junctions. And really complex banjo picking.
- Big, Screwed-Up Family: If his character's family is mentioned at all, it will be one of these. See the above mentioned "Big Horn Mountain Blues".
- Cover Version: He's done a couple, most notably the Louvin Brother's "Great Atomic Power", which made Trailer Park Fire & Other Tragedies (2006).
- Dysfunction Junction: A frequent target for his list songs.
- Even by his standards, "Too Small a Town" is a stand-out example."Well Bill and Mary Jane,
who cheated with my Uncle Blane,
who left her for Sister Sue,
'cause she worked down at the Hooters,
Sue was runnin' round with Nick!,
oh as friends with benefits,
'til everyone found out,
the neighborhood just went to Hell!"
- Even by his standards, "Too Small a Town" is a stand-out example.
- Homesickness Hymn: Jalan's small-town West may be crazy, but his characters usually miss it if they leave.
-
In Memoriam: ''Greatest Efforts'' (2019) as a memorial to bassist Shaun Kelley. - Instrumentals: These are where he really shows off his picking skills. There's usually at least one in every album.
- List Song: A staple of his more comedic offerings.
- Ode to Intoxication: Moonshiner (2004), natch.
- Signature Instrument: The Nebraska Wackadoo for the Jalan Crossland Band. A homemade mishmash percussion instrument consisting of a fence post covered in bottlecaps hanging on nails, with a Nebraska license plate nailed to the top. Played either with sticks on the license plate, or by beating it against the stage.
- Small Towns: A frequent subject of his writing with the associated tropes:
- Quirky Town:
- Small Town, Big Hell: It wouldn't be a Dysfunction Junction without it.
- Small Town Boredom
- Teen Genius: Started playing music professionally at the age of 17.
- Throw It In!: After a 2009 incident
, Don't Taze Me Bro gained a new verse, which made its way into the album version. - Train Song: "Hoboerotica", including the classic percussion imitation of a train, alongside rhythmic banjo.
- Write What You Know: Grew up in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere Wyoming.
- A number of his songs focus on the small time, rural music industry. Such as "Carl the Soundman" and "Jimmy's Band".
