The Place: East of Main. Vancity. Note the presence of the motorhome. We are not in Kits anymore. It’s a good thing I brought my lulu “peace and tranquility” yoga mat… cuz being even four blocks from Capers makes me edgy. Without my ginseng infused wheatgrass shots, I’m unable to focus my eyes.

Loading in at sunset on May 10th.

The Venue: La Casa del Artista = Mexican kitsch meets band portable. Strange, but oddly festive. Watch out for that cactus. It’s a mean one. Ouch.

The Main Man: Samuel Davidson. Clarinet. He’s that kinda good that is almost so ridiculously good in its awesomeness that you’re like “whoa, are you serious?” But he is serious. A seriously skilled player. And, I’m pretty sure that his likeness to John Mayer hits a serious sweet spot with the ladies.

Parker on Keys.

My Jazzy Guy, Ryland on Bass.

Brendan (somewhat engulfed by a gigantic Mexican flag) on drums.

Now let’s hear some original jazz…

A hot hot night of fiery fantabulous jazz! And to top it off the Samuel Davidson Quartet received a rave review on kezine.com by Matt O. you should check out.

Here’s a short excerpt from Matt O.’s review

Show stealing moments were in abundance, with three of note. Following Sam’s heartfelt dedication of the fourth number to his friend, Will, he began with a minute-long clarinet solo of wrenching beauty. It wasn’t clear whether any one took a breath the whole time, it was that good. A pin drop could be heard.

The second show stealer belonged to Ryland for his bass soloing during the first song of the second set, “Two Ways Out”. The element of surprise was involved as Ryland had been relatively unassuming with his playing up to that point. He let loose though, playing a dizzying array of string and note patterns resulting in raucous applause from the audience.

The third moment worthy of mention goes to Brendan for his superior roles and break downs on drums during “Cambie Bridge”. Working off of Parker’s held notes on the keyboard, Brendan built a precise storm of climbing and crashing fury, carefully setting up pauses throughout that drew anticipation from the listener without being predictable. Again, the audience, as they were all set, was hugely appreciative of Brendan’s skill.

I’m sold! When is their next gig? Saturday June 2nd at Rime (1130 Commercial Drive). Should be a great show! I am looking forward to hearing some more raucous applause from the audience.

There are many albums, artists, genres, voices and styles of music that inspire and influence my songwriting. I’m continually writing and playing my lovely acoustic Larrivee daily. And as my songs start to grow and change, I find myself discovering new and inspiring artists.

Here is a list of my current musical inspirations:

1. Imogen Heap — “Speak for Yourself”
2. Regina Spektor — “Begin to Hope”
3. Feist — “The Reminder”
4. Inara George — “All Rise”
5. John Mayer — “Continuum”
6. JT — “Futuresex/Lovesounds”

Hopefully, I will find a couple of weeks this summer to spend time in our little studio recording some of my music this summer. Can’t wait.

Jessie’s single is number 9! Hot stuff. The band is heading off to Creston tonight at 2am… should be a fun ride. All 12 hours of it. Yikes. Safe travels.

Jessie Farrell will be opening for Aaron Pritchett tomorrow night, May 19th. Also, be sure to secure your ticket for the Langley show on May 26th where Jessie will be opening for George Canyon at the Cascades Casino.

I took this photo of Jessie suckin’ on a cherry red lollipop at her Music Video shoot for “Let’s Talk About Love” due out this week on CMT. (For fellow photo nerds: I used my trusty Canon Rebel Xti with my 50mm prime lens wide open — f1.4)

Say love, say love, or love’s gonna get you down…

It is 1:30am and Ry has yet to pack. Seriously. I am going to bed now. I have put out a ziplock bag of assorted nuts, some sweet and salty almond bars, a huge bar of dark chocolate, a Powerade, his iPod, some leather bracelets, and his captain sweatpants. I’m hoping that he can figure out the rest before 7am when he leaves.

Take us out J-Go.

Hip-hop… Country… Trance… Emo… Urban Jungle Mix…
Justin Timberlake… Soul… Funk… R&B…
Reggae… Industrial House…

A sneak peek of the behind the scenes of Jessie Farrell’s “Let’s Talk About Love” music video. Well, me at least. Sorry! I can’t post the Jessie pictures yet… But don’t fear, I captured the full 15 hour day (long, but great day!) with my camera and my new camcorder, so stay tuned for all the magical, behind the scenes moments with Jessie and her band.

I can say that the video is amazing and Jessie was rockin’ some pretty hot shoes.

Look out! I can’t wait to see it all come together. I’m so excited for Jessie. She is such a beautiful person, it is truly breathtaking to see her perform.

Speaking of exciting… Jessie’s single is Number 12 on the charts this week!! Keep requesting and hopefully she will take it all the way to the top! You can download Jessie’s sweet song, “Let’s Talk About Love” on iTunes.

Safe travels to Jessie, Jesse, Jesse, Kylee, and Ryland, who head off on tour… again… tomorrow. They will be traveling to McBride, Grande Prairie, Banff, and Spruce Grove.

PS. I will be posting some fun photos from the Whistler show soon… Stay tuned! While your waiting, go listen to Jessie’s second single, “Fell Right Into You” on her myspace site.

***This Just In*** Jessie Farrell will play at the Calgary Stampede on the MAIN STAGE!!! Yee Haw***

Check out Jessie Farrell’s new tour bus!

Booyakasha! That’s pretty pimpin’.

We are heading up to Whistler tomorrow for a deluxe show at the GLC. Should be wicked awesome!

Don’t forget your aviators.

NB. Jack Bauer not included. But you will find a nice colour 8×10 of Edgar Stiles in the glove box for “sentimental” reasons.

6pm. The Jessie boyz set up … I mean, sit on, the merch table.

(photo credit: Ryland Haggis)

7pm. Canucks.

The greenroom at Richards on Richard IS as glamorous as the say.

Jessie in her purple cowboy boots and her new crackberry.

(photo credit: Ryland Haggis)

J-Go is low tech and outta control.

(photo credit: Ryland Haggis)

Finally, Official Press. Sweet, I get a press pass? A pass that is a sticker. Neat.

I have to stick the sticker on my shirt?
My Jessie Farrell shirt*???
Can’t I get a laminated something?

*Do you have a Jessie Farrell shirt??? Cuz you should get one from the 604 Records store: Girls. And Boys.

(photo credit: Ryland Haggis)

Smirk.

(photo credit: Ryland Haggis)

Laugh.

7:59pm. Godin receives last minute instructions from CTU.
He’s so black ops.

8:03pm. Check one two… This Bass is Ace.

9:20pm. The moment before.

Tucker.

Rocks.

Jessie and Ry bring it home.

1am(ish) Loading out.

1:40am. Loading out! OMG. Is that Adam Woodall?

**Jessie’s single just broke the top 20!

Jessie’s single is now available for download on the iTunes Store.

Y’all know the beautiful Jessie Farrell.

Meet lead guitarist (+ vocals), Jesse Tucker.

Drummer, Jesse Godin.

Bassist (+ vocals), Ryland Haggis.

Vocals & acoustic guitar (+ tamborine!), Kylee Epp.

Photos taken by Lisa Bettany (that’s me) at the April 19th gig at Richards on Richards in Vancouver.

Update: Jessie’s single “Let’s talk about love” is still climbing the Canadian Country Music Charts and is currently at Number 20!

The Jessie Farrell Band rocked their gigs in Calgary, Mission, Vancouver and Kelowna with Johnny Reid. The band is still touring Western Canada and has many more dates. So come out and see Jessie live. The Whistler show is sure to be a rollicking good time!

April 23 Duncan, BC (The Cowachin Theatre)
April 25 Campbell River, BC (The Tidemark Theatre)
April 28 Whistler, BC (The GLC)
May 2 McBride, BC (The Roundhouse Theatre)
May 3 Grande Prairie, AB (Great North Casino)
May 5 Banff, AB (Sunshine Village Ski Hill)
May 6 Banff, AB (Sunshine Village Ski Hill)
May 7 Spruce Grove, AB (The Horizon Stage Theatre)

There are 4 things I always bring with me wherever I go:

1. my laptop,
2. my Canon SLR with at least 2GB in memory, small tripod, extra battery, flash,
3. my pink ipod,
4. my headphones (see picture below).

These items are locked into my memory with a priority stamp that reads: Level one (High Priority). I rarely, if ever, forget to bring these items on trips with durations over 3 hours long.

4 Things I often forget to bring with me wherever I go:

1. water,
2. snacks,
3. money,
4. personal identification i.e., driver’s license.

Got your priorities in order? Yes. Definitely. Good.

I’m glad we worked that out.

Jessie Farrell and her hunk-a-hunk of burnin’ love band are going back to the Deerfoot Inn & Casino in Calgary for another awesome show — opening for Johnny Reid on April 12th. Get your tickets fast because this is the first tour date for Mr. Reid and it is sure to be a sold-out show.

The Calgary show will kick start Jessie Farrell’s Western Canadian tour opening for Johnny Reid. Jessie will be playing in Mission, Vancouver, Kelowna, Duncan, Port Alberni, Campbell River, Whistler, McBride, Grande Prairie, Banff, and Spruce Grove. Click here to see more details about where Jessie is playing.

In other Jessie Farrell news: “Let’s Talk about Love” is rocketing up the Canadian Country charts. After only 3 weeks, Jessie Farrell’s single “Let’s Talk About Love” has climbed to 26th. Also, this week Jessie’s song was added to the most radio stations in Canada of any new song!

Here’s a toast to Jessie XOX.

Here’s a non-toast to Tucker upstaging me in every photo!

Photo credit: Tom “Runt” Williams.