Bartlett writes “heart worn” songs: some fact, some fiction, some shards of poetry that make a mosaic. Sometimes the sound of a saddle, sometimes the slam of the door, a lover’s moan, sometimes an empty hallway, with a melody and an acoustic guitar. There’s a mixture of country, post punk, blues, rock and roll, folk, and other random bits coming from the same well.

Bartlett considers himself a lucky guy who was in the right place at the right time. He started playing bass in bands in Seattle way back in the late 80’s, with such bands as Dead Flowers; The Cheap Ones; England’s Newest Hitmakers; Gerald Collier, The Supersuckers (as their sometime touring bassist for their country set), and Port Townsend’s own Solvents. Bartlett has also opened for artists as diverse as Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam, X, Jerry Lee Lewis, and many more.

As a solo artist, he has released two albums; Fixin’ To Break Down available on cd and download, and Born Bored available as a download from https://claybartlett.bandcamp.com/album/.

With his ragged voice and sad songs, he’s opened for both Grammy winner Dave Alvin and nominee Iris Dement. Like any good songwriter, he doesn’t mind stealing bits from here and there to make his own patchwork quilt. The key, he says, is to not tell anyone.

Bartlett is also an entrepreneur who co-owns Seal Dog Coffee in Up-town Port Townsend with his fiancée Jeanette. They have managed to safely serve incredible cups of coffee drinks in their small cozy shop in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. He is a doting and giving parent to his two “almost grown up” daughters as well a fabulous stepparent. Bartlett claims that he’s “kind of boring these days but happy that he can still write beautiful music.”