As a local singer/songwriter playing weekend gigs in the Hudson Valley, Julie Corbalis is no stranger to playing cover songs. From Otis Redding's "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" to John Prine's "Angel from Montgomery" she maintains a solid arsenal of proven crowd sing-a-longs.

But she is no juke-box. With three albums of original music under her belt (both as a soloist and with a band), as well as performances in Europe and South America, Corbalis is not solely reliant on other people's music.

Her most recent project, Backwoods Jupiter, is a band comprised of 12 Hudson Valley musicians. Corbalis assembled the group to recreate Bob Dylan's album Desire.

While she handled all of the scheduling and vocalists requests, the product was a truly collaborative effort. The album was cut over three recording sessions– each lasting about six hours – during August and September of 2010. Even with near 100-degree heat, Corbalis said she recalls no disputes.

 "There was no fighting, it was a beautiful thing," she said. "People picked their songs to sing and there was no cattiness, just lots of positive energy."

Growing up a Beatles fan, she heard Bob Dylan for the first time as a senior in high school. A friend's sister gave her a mixtape full of classic rock. One of the songs was "Hurricane" – the opening song on Desire. The song chronicles the conviction of boxer Ruben "Hurricane" Carter for a triple murder offense in 1966.

 "It was deep and meaningful," Corbalis told me over a beer at Q restaurant in Port Chester.

"The lyrics were amazing. You think you know a lot at 18 years old, and then you get exposed to Dylan. He had a lot of bravery in writing it," she said. "Just the fact that you can tell a story like that to mass audience in the '70s is remarkable."  

After hearing "Hurricane," she bought the album for a dollar in a used book store. It remained on her dresser until, after repeated listens, she decided to put her own twist on it.

"Whenever I say I'm covering a Dylan album, everyone asks are you doing Blonde on Blonde or Blood on the Tracks?" Corbalis said of Dylan's more well-known albums.

The reason for doing Desire, she says, is simple: "It was the only Dylan album I owned for a long time."

Covering a Bob Dylan song, let alone an entire album, is no easy task. Musicians often fall into the trap of trying to sound like Dylan, and Corbalis said she was wary of that pitfall as she crafted her own versions of the folk legend's songs.

"How do you cover 'Like a Rolling Stone' and not sound like a poser?" she wondered aloud. "People who try to sound nasal sound ridiculous. He makes it so much his own and that is what you need to do."

To take ownership of the songs, Corbalis and her musician collective spent time finding their own sound and experimenting with different arrangements. While the original version of the song "Isis" features a piano, Backwoods Jupiter's version renders those piano riffs with electric guitars.

"Some voices are more reminiscent of Dylan, others are very different," Corbalis said.

Much has been written of Dylan's music and cultural significance, but Corbalis said her main objective was to showcase local talent.

"I wanted to get these musicians some kind of notoriety," she said.

While creative energy is vibrant in the local music scene, small bars and restaurants are less likely to pay money for live music due to the economy. But these people are still hard at work. Between the band members there are 25 independent albums, and two of the band members are full-time musicians. Corbalis is a part-time musician, admitting she is too practical to make it a full-time endeavor.

Her other passion is teaching.  Being a middle school social studies teacher in East Harlem fills out her weeks. Her appetite for history is evident in the band's name. Backwoods Jupiter is a nickname an aide gave to Abraham Lincoln, she discovered, while reading a biography on the 16th president.

When asked to give a favorite line from the album, Corbalis pondered for a bit before deciding.

"Time is an ocean, but it ends with the shore."

"The vastness floors me," she said with a smile, "but I'm still not sure I know what it means."

Backwoods Jupiter is holding a CD release party in light of the albums 35^th Anniversary on Saturday, January 29th in Peekskill. The show will take place at The Cove (formerly Crystal Bay) from 8pm -11pm. A $15 dollar cover charge includes live music and a copy of the CD. 

For more on Backwoods Jupiter including pictures and band member bios visit: http://backwoodsjupiter.com

For more on Julie Corbalis including upcoming tour dates, original music, and contact info visit:  http://www.juliecorbalis.com 

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