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finally saw this guy last night after buying the tickets months ago, and WOW. genuinely the show of a lifetime. if he is not this generationās woody guthrie/john prine, then i donāt know who is. dude can go from singing a song about the corruptness of american health insurance to a little tune about turtles, and it all flows together perfectly. he sings all the things that i think the majority of us want to say about the world today, and he does it insanely well with such a simple set up. also one of the best harmonica players iāve ever witnessed. ok iām just fangirling nowā¦please go see this man if you get the opportunity.
Mar 9, 2025
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iāve already followed the guy for quite some time and am always amazed by his talent, but i just witnessed him covering āhave you ever seen the rainā live with mt. joy and it felt like i was witnessing something historical. holy cow. i love you jesse welles.
Sep 25, 2024
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I found Jesse Welles via Instagram a few months ago, and fell in love with his rocky vocals, JJ Cale sounding guitar & Bob Dylan-esque lyrics. The videos on his instagram are filmed in locations that make me feel as though Iām the only one watching for miles around. His words are intelligent, and draw attention to things we forget; both politically and day-to-day. Start with: Whistle Boeing/Payola/Bugs.
Dec 29, 2024
New Jersey may have Bruce, but Massachusetts has Jonathan- a guy who has always been unapologetically himself whether it was being totally sober in the 70s, writing pleas for tenderness in a genre known for bravado, dancing in lesbian bars, or driving down to NYC every weekend to be Velvet Underground's biggest fan before anyone else was. a guy who despite being a rock legend, spends his days installing pizza ovens around the san fransisco area.
I've seen him live a few times now, and watching him play his sweet silly songs in an unapologetically sincere + sort of autistic way is somehow just as transgressive as the proto-punk he invented with The Modern Lovers over 50 years ago. I can't help but smile ear to ear for his entire set. effortless humor and charm.
Something that's also stood out to me after seeing him live a few times now, is the way he recontextualizes the classics. When he played "Old World" in 2022 he changed the lyrics to recognize how some things should be left in the past rather than simply romanticizing it. And last night he played with the iconic "Pablo Picasso" to focus less on the swagger of Pablo, and more on how that type of guy is actually kind of an arrogant creep. Angel Prost (of Frost Children) wrote a great essay on Jonathan's reinvention for her email-only newsletter a few years ago, if you'd like to read it I'm sure I can dig it up for you.
From last night-
When I was a kid, I wanted to be an oil painter. I was obsessed with colors.
Then I heard Velvet Underground and saw you can paint with a guitar
Anyways...if more people were a bit more like Jonathan the world would be a better place. A huge inspiration to me!
Mar 8, 2024
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Gulp gulp gulp gulp gulp
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