Blues can be a difficult act to pull off. Stick too close to the guidelines and you risk monotony, divert too much from the script, and it may not still be blues. It hasn’t deterred Jesse Jones from bringing his own take on the genre to the Free Fringe. Plainly dressed in jeans and t-shirt with a hat adding a touch of flair, he played to an outdoor courtyard at the Pear Tree full of afternoon drinkers and contributed in no small way to their relaxation.
Jones played both his own songs and covers with equal enthusiasm. He began with ‘Everything that Comes’. While it started with slight stutters, by the time it rolled round to the chorus his deep voice, accompanied by rough chords, had many tapping to the rhythm. His covers were also impressive; his version of Ray Charles’ ‘Hit the Road Jack’ was a languid take on the classic. At his best Jones combined blues music with a dash of folk that hinted at a stripped-down Josh Ritter. His determination to play well past his allotted time was a refreshing change from other bands playing with an eye on the deadline.
However the setlist was chequered; Jones weakened on the slower songs. ‘Your Drifting Tides’ should have enthralled but it bored, even when it picked up towards the end in an all too familiar pattern. The song was not alone in its excessive repetition. In addition, the guitar’s volume was too high: many was the time a vocal line was swallowed up or thrown away. Jones’ voice was limited to an earnest baritone and outside of this range it tended to fall away.
These niggles were frustrating, because they detracted from a mixed performance that could have been seriously impressive. As an interlude between exhausting theatre stops, he should provide a diverting audio background to a well-deserved pint, but if Jones starts to play outside his comfort zone, he could well have a very bright future.
