Chessa Rich: Jesus Was a Crossmaker

Animation by Sarah Yu

Chessa Rich’s interpretation of the Judee Sill's classic Jesus was a Cross Maker is featured on the Sleepy Cat Winter Mixtape.

We discuss the passion behind Chessa’s latest rendition.

Why were you drawn to this particular song?

I was intrigued by Judee Sill's work after learning of her through Case/Lang/Viers' Song for Judee. It is an absolutely gorgeous song that talks about Judee's short and troubled life in a really compassionate and reverent way. I'd heard some of Judee's songs before, but my partner played me Jesus Was a Cross Maker a couple of years ago and the thing I remember most, besides the incredible chorus hook, is how perplexed I was by the lyrics. It seemed almost nonsensical to me. Jesus made crosses? What does that have to do with a heartbreaker? And is Jesus the one doing all this shady stuff in the song?

Thus began the process of spending some time with it and figuring out what Judee was getting at and what it means to me. During that process the genius of this tune really sank in and I had a lot of great conversations with people about the idea of Jesus's humanity and if the most evil among us can be redeemed. You know, your light quarantine small talk.

This cover ended up being a fun challenge because Judee's arrangement (produced by Graham Nash) is pretty fleshed out. There's a lot going on already. Alex Bingham, who plays bass on the track, had this great idea to try a sort of funny 80's electric piano sound, and that really shaped the direction of the arrangement and informed our version of it on the Sleepy Cat Winter Mixtape.

Also, it's a song people can listen to all year! The great Winter Mixtape loophole!

Who would you love to sing duet with?

So many people. Singing with other people is up there on the list of peak moments of human connection for me. My first-instinct response is Amelia Meath because I have sung along to her recordings so many times in the past years…so I guess I should just call her up and see if she wants to sing one day. Real answer is Shara Nova---she can do so many wild things with her voice and I also think we would have a great old kooky time together.

What's your game plan for Western collapse?

This has definitely been a topic of much discussion around my neighborhood quarantine bonfire hangs.

I will spare you the logistic details we’ve worked out amongst ourselves, including the debate around whether or not to arm ourselves. I'm not opposed to having a rifle for hunting, assuming the food system will have entirely broken down.

I've also been watching a lot of Alone, which is this show where they send people out in the wilderness totally alone with minimal gear and see how long they can last. It's got me thinking I could totally set a squirrel trap or two.

The survival plan basically includes having a real, working relationship with my neighbors; growing a garden; and knowing how to fix a car (and trap a squirrel). And in the interim, investing time and money in native and community food & health systems that sustain us so when all the big corporations melt down we can rely on what we've been growing for ourselves. Native people lived very happily in this landscape way before our modern idea of "the West" ever existed, so I'll be taking my cues from them.

What if god was one of us?

God is definitely all of us!