Wall Dogs from Tim Stafford & Thomm Jutz

Good friends and fellow songwriters Tim Stafford and Thomm Jutz have a new album, Wall Dogs, set for release this Friday, October 18. Like their previous duo effort, Lost Voices, from 2023, it includes songs the two have written together with one or the other, or both, taking the lead and harmony vocals.

A video for the title track is available, a song they wrote about the sign painters who used to be seen in every city and town, using their artistic and lettering skills to promote all sorts of products, or simply identify buildings or businesses.

Both Thomm and Tim are students of history, and the many images these men left dotting the landscapes across the US captured their imagination. Wall Dogs is the name these artists gave themselves, often working on scaffolds to complete a sign or mural on the side of a building.

Speaking jointly, they had this to say about the song.

“Sign painters from the golden age of advertising often worked on scaffolds, hanging off the sides of buildings, and painting by hand before the days of vinyl lettering and computers. Their work is slowly fading over time, and now ‘ghost signs’ are integral parts of the small-town American landscape.

During the Depression, the mural division of the WPA Federal Art project surely employed many ‘Wall Dogs’ to help create over 2500 murals, many of which still adorn post offices and other public buildings across the US.

This song is a tribute to them all as is the artwork that survives them.”

A music video has been produced for Wall Dogs, with photos and images of these artists at work, and the completed paintings, set against the audio of the track.

Wall Dogs, the single, is available now from popular download and streaming services online, and to radio programmers at AirPlay Direct.

The full album will release October 18, and will likewise will be offered to stream or download, or directly from either Tim or Thomm’s web site.

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About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2004 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.