Photo provided by James Calemine
James Calemine - Local Stranger
Poetry. Photography. Art. Music. History. Travel. Religion. Culture. James Calemine’s body of work encompasses it all. It defies categorization. Writing that is gritty, yet uplifting; soul-searching, yet grounded. He balances stories steeped in fiction (maybe) with factually detailed and accurate portraits of writers and musicians. Stirring and nostalgic pictures of home are transposed against the traveling tales of a wanderlust. His works of prose drip with poetry and his poetry pulses with music.
A modern day beat poet, perhaps? Although James wasn’t born until 1968, it’s not hard to imagine him in his fedora and Converse cross-legged on the floor in a room with Kerouac, Ginsberg, McClure, Burroughs and Snyder. There’s no question that these figures influenced James’ writing. Burroughs once famously said about Kerouac: “Well, Kerouac was a writer. That is he wrote. And many people who call themselves writers and have their names down on book jackets are not writers and they can’t write.” James’ former roommate and frequent collaborator on spoken word pieces, Daniel Hutchens of Bloodkin, calls his friend “one of this generation’s great writers,” referencing Burroughs' quote: “And James lived up to that definition of a writer…‘That is he wrote.’… James was always back home, working and working. He also kept a camera with him at all times, and was as determined about keeping a photographic record as he was about his writing.”
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James Calemine
Sonny's Used Tire Service
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Darien Fog
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Jerome's Old School Diner
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Mirror Lake
To understand James’ work ethic and influences, it’s important that you’re also introduced to another character that was significant in his development: writer Stanley Booth. In 1986, at the age of 17, James met the music journalist who penned The True Adventures of the Rolling Stones and Rhythm Oil: A Journey Through the Music of the American South.
In the essay “Stanley Booth: Can I Get a Witness” that he later wrote for Swampland, James explains, “I'd read The True Adventures of the Rolling Stones two years earlier as a sophomore in high school in Brunswick, Georgia. I was amazed, having always loved language and music, how the book fused all the aspects of art intertwining with culture, politics, music, literature, and the lives of artists struggling in pursuit of their craft or folly. I was astonished to discover Booth lived thirteen miles from where I grew up on St. Simons Island, Georgia. It would be like meeting a legend--perhaps it would be possible to even obtain advice for a young aspiring writer. Any mythical notions concerning the craft of writing would soon evaporate.”
Fortunately, James passion for writing didn’t also evaporate. He says of that time, “Through the years of keeping time with Booth, I began to understand the cause and curse of an uncompromising artist blessed with talent but dogged by obscurity, demanding revisions concerning terms of success and accomplishment.”
James graduated from the University of Georgia and spent those early days in Athens sharing an apartment on Grady Avenue with Bloodkin band members Daniel Hutchens and Eric Carter, kindred souls and brother artists. It is there that Daniel describes James always pounding away at his typewriter at the kitchen table, writing for various publications over the years. It was where stories were spun and songs were given birth, so it’s not surprising that the words and music at some point came together as spoken word sessions accompanied by the sounds of sitar, fuzz bass, and train. Bloodkin fans are familiar with seeing these sessions on stage.
James Calemine
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens & Eric Carter with James
With a healthy dose of realism instilled by Booth, and a passion for the music scene, James made a name for himself writing for publications like The Georgia Music Magazine, Hittin’ the Note, HARP, and Paste. He has been the editor/writer for swampland.com for almost a decade now and has interviewed and chronicled the tales of both storied and lesser-known figures in the music, literary, art, and film worlds. Some highlights of his career include writing the induction into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame for Widespread Panic in 2008 and the inclusion of his article about the Sea Island Singers in The Smithsonian’s 2012 “New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music” tour.
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Sun Studios
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Hunters Cafe
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Junkyard Angel
In 2014, James published The Local Stranger, his first work of fiction. It too defies categorization. It is a compilation of characters and stories that are written with such detail, heart, and raw authenticity that you’ll wonder if anything other than the names is fictitious. Stunning photographs by James capture the mood, tone and moment perfectly. What’s unique is the inclusion of mesmerizing spoken word pieces that harken back to those early days in Athens.
Recorded by Grammy-winning producer for the Black Keys, Mark Neill, The Local Stranger Sessions, which were all recorded in one take, garnered his praise. Neill described The Local Stranger like this: “Imagine walking down a dirt road in rural south Georgia. A chorus of cicadas, crickets, banjos and frogs permeate the air. It’s dusk and your mind is soaring on poetic thermals! A southern gothic daydream! Snake nation! Spanish moss! James Calemine! Bloodkin! It all makes perfect sense now…”
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Highway 17
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East Is East
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Dusk
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Dark Eyed Sun
This rare multi-media approach to storytelling that James uses in The Local Stranger calls to mind those smoky evenings of the Beat poets and creates a compelling, comprehensive work that resonates with soul…and in the soul.
James Calemine
Schwabs Drugstore
The Local Stranger book/photography/spoken word package is available for purchase on iTunes. The Local Stranger Book & Photography Revue Exhibition is on display through June 28 at Foxy Loxy Cafe in Savannah. Follow The Local Stranger on Facebook and on Instagram to see more fabulous photography and news of any upcoming readings, book signings, or exhibits. James’ meanderings and musings can also be found on swampland.com and in Paste.
