Jesse Allen Harris takes on Country Sunday at The Roxy

“Local” boy Jesse Allen Harris took to the stage at The Roxy in Vancouver as part of their #CountrySunday lineup.

While technically, he IS from the USA, he couldn’t live any closer to Canada without actually living in Canada.  There’s “0” (zero) Avenue, then a ditch (which happens to be the “border”, then there’s Jesse’s property in Lynden Washington.  As he was introducing the band, he realized this is the FIRST time he’s performed with an All-Canadian band … which happened to all be from the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley area of BC.

 

Opening the night was a friend of Jesse’s, Emily Taylor Adams. BCCMA Female Vocalist Of The Year Recipient and CCMA Discovery Showcase Winner, Emily seems to write from the heart and shares that heart with the audience.  As much as performers strive to give their audience a perfect show, sometimes things happen … they don’t have to be catastrophic show stoppers, but Emily’s ability to engage with the crowd makes everything that happens – planned or not – part of the show and gives everyone a fun night. was an issue with her guitar she first tried sorting while talking to fill in space … then just decided to not have us wait … “Well its not working so I guess we’re not going to play that song” … and promptly onto the next without skipping a beat!  Emily did tell me before her set that she’s ready to play longer than her allotted time if needbe – but that also means that she’s got contingency plans (and songs) for situations like this.  I’ve seen people just stop, turn their backs to the crowd and try to resolve the issue at the expense of the audience standing by.  

 

Jesse called Emily back up on stage to perform a song with him during his set – “Live Forever”.  While the single is a solo performance, it wasn’t hard to tell these two have a habit of performing it together on stage.  Their vocals complimented each other wonderfully.  Hopefully they’ll take to “officially” recording a duet together soon.

 

Overall, Jesse has an amazing stage presence.  “You can feel that in that moment there’s no place he would rather be” is how one member of the audience described it … “He has a great voice and his music makes you want to move.”  That doesn’t change if it’s for soundcheck or the actual show!  He may have been a little more limited in his movements on stage at The Roxy compared to an open air music festival stage, but that didn’t stop him from moving around and feeding the crowd with his energy.

 

Ever since the mass shooting in Las Vegas at the Route 91 Country Music Festival in September 2017, when Jesse performs his single, “Vegas Baby”, it’s now dedicated to those impacted by that tragic event.

His single “Too Hot for the Hottub” isn’t too hot for airplay … in fact, even if you’re not local and can get “old school” radio stations like Country 107.1 in Abbotsford and JR FM 93.7 in Vancouver, you can hear it on Sirius XM (Highway 171) … but instead of just waiting for it to pop up there to hear it, check out Jesse’s music online on platforms like Spotify or iTunes.

When I’m covering a concert, most of the time I don’t even realize what songs are being played … I’m so focused on capturing the images that I judge a show and performer by the energy that comes from the crowd and the engagement with the audience from those on stage.  If I’m left cursing the fact the set is over and I still want to take more pictures, especially if I’ve been in the photo pit the entire time, that’s my queue to plug in and give that artist’s music a proper listen … because, for me, it’s not about a specific genre, it’s about the music and the artist and what they have to share with their fans.

My appreciation for country music has grown watching and covering shows for performers like Meghan Patrick and Brett Kissel for that very reason … and now I can add Jesse Alan Harris to that list.  He made quite the impression on the Rockin River attendees too, including Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger last weekend in Merritt BC … but if you’ve missed him there, and at The Roxy, you have one more chance to catch his set in the Vancouver BC area … Cloverdale Amphitheatre Saturday August 18th.

For more on Jesse or Emily, check out www.jesseallenharris.com and www.emilytayloradams.com