Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet
Nearly two years ago, in early 2022, an art bookbinder, Luigi Castiglioni, contacted me to discuss an editorial project centered around a very particular object: the musical score. Through his publishing house, Luigi Castiglioni Editore, Luigi aims to transform the use of this musical text—usually a material for work and study serving as a support for musical performance—into an art and collector's item intended for bibliophiles.
Luigi Castiglioni > publisher / bookbinder
The first published score is that of the 1971' iconic piece by English composer Gavin Bryars, 'Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet.' In regards to this composition, the starting point is an a cappella Christmas song by a homeless man in London, indirectly captured by reporters' cameras. Touched by its simple beauty and sincerity, Gavin Bryars built an orchestration around the looped singing of this singer, adding repetition after repetition, new layers of instruments.
Gavin Bryars > Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet
The appearance of the score published by Luigi Castiglioni visually displays this progression, with staves and instruments fading in along the pages before slowly disappearing.
My task was to illustrate one of the 120 copies of this book/score. It involves not the printing or reproduction of illustrations but original drawings directly within the book.
I began working on the illustrations in late summer 2022. The preceding months were dedicated to reading interviews with Gavin Bryars in Jean-Louis Tallon's book, picking up inspirations for drawing and, of course, spending a lot of time listening to his music. I listened to the piece 'Jesus' Blood' a hundred times, captivated like so many others by that haunting, warm voice.
I created eleven illustrations for copy number 7 out of 120, exploring different ideas: rhythmic abstraction, places in the lives of Gavin Bryars and the unknown beggar who lived in the Elephant and Castle neighborhood in London, evoking traces disappearing in the rain, distant echoes of anonymous human existence. Always with my particular technique of scratching on transparent paper.
I awaited the publication on Luigi's website to, in turn, share about this project and I invite you to discover it here.
CREATION
The book consists of 17 separate booklets, and the first challenge was adapting my usual scratching drawing technique on transparent sheets. Luigi Castiglioni had initially envisioned that my technique could be used directly on the pages of the book before I explained to him that this method of drawing only works on smooth surfaces.
After discussion, we decided to use my drawings as they were, and Luigi would bind them into the book, giving me complete freedom in choosing my medium.
On this occasion, I chose to use high-quality sheets, very thin, not transparent but translucent, with a very soft touch. The adaptation was not easy, as these sheets are extremely fragile and sensitive to the slightest twist. Several times I had to start over, discovering after varnishing a drawing that there was an impact on it. There was a lot of frustration at this level. Some drawings were redone five times in a row.
My approach to the illustrations was initially very theoretical; I wanted to create images that matched the stakes and the nature of a contemporary music book. I quickly got lost in artificial complexity before changing direction and approaching this work in a way similar to the singing of this unknown man. Sincerity and spontaneity. I set aside the usual technical complexity of my drawing method to focus on my feelings and on images reflecting those emotions.
Booklet 1 "Graffitis". 35x50cm
Booklet 2 "Elephant Castle". 35x50cm. The homeless man lived in the Elephant and Castle neighborhood in London.
Booklet 4 "Erosion". 70x50cm Evocation of written traces erased by the rain.
Booklet 6 "Subway". 35x50cm Waterloo station during WW2. the Elephant and Castle neighborhood was one of the most affected by bombings.
Booklet 8 "Graffitis II". 70x50cm
Booklet 8 "Graffitis II". 70x50cm
Booklet 10 "Homeless". 35x50cm
Booklet 10 "Rythm Pattern". 70x50cm.
Booklet 14 "Goole Map". 35x50cm. Goole is the hometown of Gavin Bryars
Booklet 15 "St Mary's Church" 70x50cm
Booklet 15 "St Mary's Church" 70x50cm. The stained glass window of Goole church
Inside the booklet 16 "Goole" 35x50cm. Landscape of Goole.
Booklet 17 "It's Gonna Rain" 70x50cm
Booklet 17 "It's Gonna Rain" 70x50cm
Each copy includes a vinyl long playing record with the fragment of the religious song played as a loop for fifty times.
Close-up and creative explanation.
The stained glass window of Saint Mary's Church in Gavin Bryars' childhood neighborhood, Hook.
On the left, a view of Goole featuring the Goole Docks and the spire of St. John's Church parish church. On the right, a textured sky view map of the city.
An evocation of a graffiti reflecting the fervor and repetition of a prayer, along with a reference to the sonic loop serving as the framework for the musical composition.
On the left, the symbol of the Elephant and Castle neighborhood in London marking the entrance to the Waterloo subway station. On the right, a view of the subway inspired by a historical photo serving as a refuge during wartime bombings. The singing beggar lived in this neighborhood, and it's likely that if he was already living here before, he experienced the trauma of the war. The endurance of this ordeal can symbolically be included in the song and his faith in 'Jesus Never Failed Me Yet.'
This drawing is similar to the others where the song lyrics are written; the difference is that I erased the characters using water droplets to evoke life stories gradually fading away, leaving abstract shapes carrying memories within them.
Pattern drawn inspired by the repetitive nature of the song
On the left, silhouette of this unknown homeless ; on the right, a variation of urban graffiti.
Drawing created using a printing technique, the paper is left outside in the rain to capture its imprint. The title is a reference to a composition by Steve Reich, musically associated with Gavin Bryars in their work on loops.
Gavin Bryars Notes
“In 1971, when I lived in London, I was working with a friend, Alan Power, on a film about people living rough in the area around Elephant and Castle and Waterloo Station. In the course of being filmed, some people broke into drunken song – sometimes bits of opera, sometimes sentimental ballads – and one, who in fact did not drink, sang a religious song “Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet”. This was not ultimately used in the film and I was given all the unused sections of tape, including this one.
When I played it at home, I found that his singing was in tune with my piano, and I improvised a simple accompaniment. I noticed, too, that the first section of the song – 13 bars in length – formed an effective loop which repeated in a slightly unpredictable way. I took the tape loop to Leicester, where I was working in the Fine Art Department, and copied the loop onto a continuous reel of tape, thinking about perhaps adding an orchestrated accompaniment to this. The door of the recording room opened on to one of the large painting studios and I left the tape copying, with the door open, while I went to have a cup of coffee. When I came back I found the normally lively room unnaturally subdued. People were moving about much more slowly than usual and a few were sitting alone, quietly weeping.
I was puzzled until I realised that the tape was still playing and that they had been overcome by the old man’s singing. This convinced me of the emotional power of the music and of the possibilities offered by adding a simple, though gradually evolving, orchestral accompaniment that respected the tramp’s nobility and simple faith. Although he died before he could hear what I had done with his singing, the piece remains as an eloquent, but understated testimony to his spirit and optimism”
Gavin Bryars
Thanks for watching, I'd like to express my gratitude to Luigi for proposing this project. feel free to visit my website
