Maine’s Jud Caswell, a 2006 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Contest winner and first-place recipient in last year’s Boston Folk Festival Songwriting Contest, continues to garner well-deserved recognition for his well-crafted songs, which he delivers in a warm & resonant voice, aided by his solid fingerstyle guitar-playing. 

On the heels of releasing Blackberry Time and winning the Plowshares Songwriting Contest in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania earlier this year, Caswell captured top honors in the Dave Carter Memorial Songwriting Contest at the 2007 Sisters Folk Festival in Sisters, Oregon on Sept. 8.

Besides the title track of his new album, Caswell performed the opening track “For Sale” and the politically-charged “The Men Behind The Bushes.”   All three songs can currently be heard on his MySpace page.

Contest entrants were judged on the basis of originality and uniqueness, song structure, prosody (fit of words and music) and memorability.  The finals competition, described by Sisters Folk Festival organizers as “a showcase for outstanding but under-recognized performing songwriters,” also featured Willie Carmichael of Bend, Oregon; Melody Moore of Shreveport, Louisiana; Michael McGarrah of Maricopa, Arizona; and Datri Bean of Austin, Texas. 

Caswell, who received a cash award and was invited to perform a short set to open the festival’s Saturday night main stage concert, says he had “a fantastic time hanging out with all the great people in Sisters.  It was just a great opportunity for all the contestants: lots of chances to perform, and one of the most respectful and enthusiastic audiences I’ve seen anywhere.” Caswell says he looks forward to returning next year for both the song school and the festival.