SPILL FEATURE: FOR THE FIRST TIME I FEEL…FINE – A CONVERSATION WITH JESSICA RHAYE

FOR THE FIRST TIME I FEEL…FINE

A CONVERSATION WITH JESSICA RHAYE

Within 30 seconds of speaking with Jessica Rhaye over a Zoom call, I had the distinct feeling I was talking to a friend and catching up on everything, rather than conducting an interview. Rhaye has an amazing talent of turning an interview into a friendly conversation. It was an absolute pleasure speaking with her about her new album Sunshine Baby and her relatively new band The Ramshackle Parade.

Rhaye has been performing and recording for over 20 years. Her self-titled debut was released in 2000. She went on to record four more solo albums. She then teamed up with a few friends and The Ramshackle Parade was born. “We have a lot of fun together. I am having the most fun and I have never been so creative in all my musical career, and I think it has a lot to do with the people I am working with.”

And make no mistake, this is a band.

“A lot of it just comes from the band, everybody that I work with. We all have different musical tastes, and I think as a collaboration, everyone’s taste creates that unique sound. That’s how I word The Ramshackle Parade as well because everyone’s unique style creates that sound.”

The first album with The Ramshackle Parade was Just Like A Woman – Songs of Bob Dylan, an album of covers, which takes a great deal of nerve to record with people comparing with the original versions. “People are loving our “Blowin’ In The Wind” version on You Tube. We did a video, and it just blew up. We had 12 million views. When we put the album out, I wasn’t nervous at all, a lot of people were like ‘oh my gosh, that is quite a thing to put out, a Bob Dylan record’. But it was just such a fun process and the whole recording I felt really excited about it. After our tour he is playing Montreal when we are heading home from our Ontario dates, so we are going to try and get tickets.

The band is very musical and very supportive of each other. For Rhaye, it is a chance for her to try new things and experiment with her own distinct sound.

SUNSHINE BABY ALBUM REVIEW

For this new album, Rhaye has been trying out new techniques with her voice and it is quite noticeable. She has always been a brilliant singer, but one can hear the growth of her writing and performing on Sunshine Baby. “For this project I went into, and I knew what I wanted. I knew how I wanted to execute the vocals, because I have had the experience and again, I love working with Dale Murray, our producer, just the environment was cool and chill and I felt confident with your environment, I just went for it. I didn’t want to be safe at all and try some new things. You know, we went outside in the yard and walked in the leaves and recorded and captured that and there happened to be a dog barking at the time, which was amazing. So, we used that.”

Sunshine Baby is not an extension of Just Like A Woman – Songs Of Bob Dylan, but that album was the starting point for what would become Sunshine Baby.

“We started with The Dylan Project, and we had so much fun with that album. I just loved the sounds we were getting together. We toured that album, and it became even bigger on stage, because we knew the songs.  I thought I would like to take what we did on this record, and I said ‘guys, I want to do an album of originals using this sound that we created’. That is how Sunshine Baby came about. I had some songs written but a lot of the songs are co-written with the guys in the band and a friend of mine, Brent Mason, who is from St. John, a singer-songwriter. I call him ‘the word guy’, because he is so full of words. We were supposed to start recording in December 2020. We didn’t start recording until the fall of 2021. It was a good thing, because I didn’t have “Sunshine Baby”, which was written in February 2021. It became the title track and set the mood for the album.

Rhaye also got to spread her wings and play instruments she does not usually play. “I played piano, and I don’t play the piano. That was something I learned during the world shutting down. My two children were taking piano lessons online, so I would sit with my children on my iPhone and use Messenger with their piano teacher. So, I was sitting there taking the piano lesson by myself. And at the same time, I was reading a book by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, How To Write One Song. What I got out of it was ‘pick up a new instrument’, ‘try a new instrument that you have never tried before’. So, I sat at the piano, and I started playing chords and “Sunshine Baby” just fell out.” Along with the piano, Rhaye also got to stretch out her guitar skills, and she grabbed an electric.

Rhaye grew up in New Brunswick, a province rich in culture, music, and beauty. Her surroundings find their way into her music and art.

“I never really thought that my environment impacted how I write and how I feel, but as I get older, I am really stopping and pausing, it is 100%. I think it is very important to me. You know I live along the Kennebecasis River, and we have a beautiful view, and it is constantly changing. It is so beautiful, and I get so inspired by the views and what is around me. I grew up here, and I do feel my environment impacts me. Even my positivity and just myself as a mother. I feel the people I have grown up with, my family, impacted my writing.”

Her family continues to be a huge support to her. Her father, who “loves music”, tries to get to as many shows as he can. One could say he is her biggest fan. But, with Sunshine Baby, it seems that she will be gaining more fans. “I’m really proud of it and excited for people to hear it. I just want people to hear and love it because I love it. I am nervous to say that because you don’t want to be seen as conceited. I just want people to love it as much as I do, and to hear the energy we put into it.”

Artist Links

Photo Credits: Naomi Peters