JPR Live Sessions

In this special JPR Live Session, we asked some local musicians to record JPR Live Sessions for what we're calling Open Mic Night.

Hear conversations and live performances with:

The Balladir - https://balladir.bandcamp.com/

Sophia Phoenix - https://sophiaphoenix.com/

The Miller Twins - https://themillertwinsmusic.com/

Charlee Prayers - https://unitedmasters.com/a/charlee-prayers

Mountaintop Sound - https://www.mountaintopsoundband.com/

Hosts: Danielle Kelly and Dave Jackson
Engineers: Jon Griffin, Dave Young, Steven Swift

John Dough Boys have decorated the Southern Oregon musical landscape for the last few decades playing boot-stompin’, barn-shaking, PBR-slamming original music that occupies the sweet spot between bluegrass and punk rock. They feature a blistering lineup filled with gang vocals, upright bass, fiddle, acoustic and electric guitar and drums.

This JPR Live session is made possible with support from the Talent Club, serving cold drinks and live music in a casual atmosphere in downtown Talent. Find their event schedule at their website.

While working in separate punk bands from Portland, Jenny Don't and Kelly Haliburton decided to join forces. First as a duo, and later with some of their friends from the Portland punk scene, they formed Jenny Don't and the Spurs.

Jenny was already playing classic country and western tunes reminiscent of of Patsy Cline and Nancy Sinatra. The couple decided to embrace that aspect of their music. Twelve years later, they've toured the globe, gone through band changes, recovered from vocal chord surgery and are about to release their 7th album, Broken Hearted Blue.

Joined by guitarist Christopher March and drummer Buddy Weeks, hear them talk about their career and play some songs from Broken Hearted Blue in this JPR Live Session.

JPR Live Sessions are engineered by Jon Griffin of Luna Zen studios. This JPR Live Session is made possible with support from The Talent Club, with cold beverages and live music in casual atmosphere in downtown Talent, Oregon.

Find more information about Jenny Don't and the Spurs at their website.

While growing up in Michigan, Lindsay Lou was taught to sing harmony by her Aunt Melody along with her cousin Harmony - Yes, that is a true story.

Her early vocal work has paid off in the gorgeous harmonies found on her latest record, Queen of Time. In college, she started attending open mics and teamed up with Joshua Rilko to form Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys. The pair eventually married. Their band played clubs and stages in Michigan crossing paths with other Midwest bluegrass pickers like Greensky Bluegrass and Billy Strings. Later she was part of the trio Sweet Water Warblers with May Erlewine and Rachael Davis.

Growing up, Lindsay was inspired by her grandmother who raised a large family and worked tirelessly to provide for the less fortunate. Before her grandmother passed away, Lou recorded several phone calls. You can hear some of their conversation on the track Love Calls on Queen of Time. The song Queen of Time itself is a reference to her grandmother.

In addition to her grandmother dying, Lou and Rilko divorced, all while dealing with the backdrop of the pandemic. These events lead her to do some soul searching where she discovered the concept of the divine feminine. This idea plays out on the new album in a co-written track with Billy Strings - Nothing's Working, a Maya DeVitry/Phoebe Hunt song - Nothing Else Matters, and By Your Side (Starman), that Nick Forster (E-Town host) asked her to play at a tribute to Jeff Austin of Yonder Mountain String Band.

Hear Lindsay Lou and her band perform songs from Queen of Time, give some insights into her writing, and talk about the events that lead up to Queen of Time.

Find more about Lindsay Lou at her website.

This JPR Live Session was engineered by Jon Griffin of Luna Zen studios, and made possible with support from the Talent Club, with cold drinks and great music in a relaxed atmosphere in downtown Talent, Oregon. Find their live music schedule here.

Jolie Holland was born in Texas and moved west and north to San Francisco and eventually Vancouver pursuing music. She is an artist in the truest form, from visual arts to her unique approach to singing and songwriting.

In addition to the first Be Good Tanyas album, Jolie Holland has several solo records, a collaborative album with Samantha Parton (of Be Good Tanyas) and numerous other collaborations including working with Buck Meek of Big Thief. The pair worked on each others' albums last year both of which were titled Haunted Mountain. They were both released in October of last year at an unfortunate time, just as the world turned its focus toward the war between Israel and Gaza.

Hear her talk about her career, the new album, and play some tunes accompanied by singer/guitarist Max Knouse in this JPR Live Session hosted by Danielle Kelly.

This JPR Live Session is made possible with support from The Talent Club - presenting live music and cold drinks in a casual atmosphere in downtown Talent, Oregon. Find their event schedule at talentclublive.com

Jeff "Plank" Plankenhorn got his start singing in church in the Midwest. His natural talent, lead to some early commercial work and even singing the national anthem at a few MLB games. After learning guitar from his brother, he moved to Austin and played in multiple bands. Eventually he became an in-demand side man who played and recorded with Ray Wylie Hubbard among others. While juggling several different bands, he also began writing. His first album was produced by Gurf Morlix who also works with Ray Wylie Hubbard.

Plank plays guitar, piano and is well known as a lap steel player. He eventually helped design an electric lap steel guitar so he could hear himself on stage.

He now lives on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. His latest release is Alone at Sea, inspired by the transition from inland regions to the coast, and produced by fellow Canadian, Colin Linden.

Hear him talk about his career and play songs from Alone at Sea in this JPR Live session hosted by Dave Jackson and engineered by Jon Griffin of Luna Zen Studios.

Dylan LeBlanc had an early passion for music. His father James (bassist in The Steel Vaqueros) was a songwriter at Fame studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. As a kid, Dylan would spend his time after school at the studio rubbing elbows with the musicians and songwriters there. That's where he began writing songs with guidance from Fame founder Rick Hall.

When he's not touring, LeBlanc shares his time now between Alabama and Norway where he's started a family. He's now several albums into a career. His music has drawn comparisons to Neil Young among other respected singer/songwriters.

In this JPR Live Session he and the band play songs from the new record and Dylan talks about growing up, his approach to music and his appreciation for the free-spirited, wandering nature of the coyote, which became the theme for his latest record, appropriately titled, Coyote.

• Hosted by Danielle Kelly
• Engineered by Jon Griffin
• Photos by Rich Zellman
  

Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real released their eighth album, Sticks and Stones, last year. They recorded it thinking of their live sound and playing more upbeat shows. The result has more of a country feel than some of their earlier releases, full of foot stomping and danceable tunes.

While touring and recording as Neil Young's back-up band, Lukas was approached by Bradley Cooper to help as a consultant and music/acting coach for the 2018 version of A Star is Born. He went on to write songs for the film with Lady Gaga.

In this JPR Live Session, Lukas Nelson talks about his career, his influences, his writing (including the inspiration for the intro to Shallow), as well as songs from his catalog, a Roger Miller classic, and a few other surprises.

• Hosted by Dave Jackson
• Engineered by Jon Griffin
• Photo by Noah Bran-Linsday

Jonathan Linaberry was made to take piano lessons as a kid. From there, he taught himself guitar and banjo. With influences like RL Burnside, Son House, Tom Waits and the Carter family, it's no wonder his own music is a rootsy mix of blues, Americana and rock with a bit of indie rock and folk for good measure. His latest release is Slow Lightning, the deluxe edition just came out with a cover of the Bruce Springsteen classic My Home Town, a song JR fell in love with as a kid.

In his fourth JPR Live Session he plays songs on his banjo and 1938 Kalamazoo guitar, and talks with Danielle Kelly about making his new record, his tour, and growing up in New York.

• Hosted by Danielle Kelly
• Engineered by Jon Griffin
• Photos by Rich Zellman and Noah Bran-Linsday
  

In addition to her award winning role in a Broadway production of Three Penny Opera, several albums of original work (the latest - the 2023 release Hey Guys, Watch This), a tribute to Doris Day and an album of '60s rock covers, My Weekly Reader, Nellie McKay has written and performed musical biographies of figures like Joan Rivers, Barbara Graham and Billy Tipton. The New York Times called the latter, "one of the best concerts of 2014."

She is a gifted pianist with a gorgeous voice who takes on big subjects with a sly wit. Her songs pull the listener in only to jolt them awake with big plot twists by the end.

In this JPR Live Session, Nellie McKay talks about her inspirations, her music and the causes she champions and sings a few songs accompanying herself on piano and ukulele.

• Engineered by Jon Griffin of Luna Zen Studios
• Photos by Noah Bran-Linsday