Interviews & Quotes

Jump to Quotes

Population 6,000, Smithers is in the Bulkley Valley of northern British Columbia half way between Prince Rupert and Prince George. For those who haven't got a map of northern BC in their heads, it's far, far, away - even from the next town. It never gets too hot but it does get cold. When you're not in town, you're in the wild. Hudson Bay Mountain serves as a backdrop for the town which offers fabulous downhill and cross country skiing, fishing, hiking and snow mobiling. It boasts of the Fair and Rodeo Grounds, Twin Falls and the Kathyln Glacier. Smithers is Jenny Lester's home town. Jenny left home to play bluegrass music, and oh, what a story...

Jenny Lester is twenty-seven years old, and has been playing the fiddle, guitar, singing, writing and performing for nearly twenty years. She started with her family band, The Driftwood Canyon Family Band, then moved along to The Just For Fun Band. Awarded scholarships, Jenny headed south to Levelland, Texas and the acclaimed bluegrass school at South Plains College. Now in Vancouver, Jenny has memories of Colorado, Quam, Taiwan, trekking in New Zealand, travels through America and Canada; small towns and not so small towns.

"Being away for ten years and in so many different cultures and communities I have started to notice the characteristics of where I come from. I am used to being the odd ball, almost don't even notice it anymore. I didn't realize until lately that my family members talk funny and the town of Smithers has many charming quirks. I often feel like a chameleon, which may be an acquired survival tactic. But no matter how much I've tried, a six foot blonde doesn't blend into the background very well in Asian countries."

"During the USO tours my band Dark Horse performed for American soldiers on extended duty over seas. The day Susan Dailey - the mandolin player - was having soup at the Korean military cafeteria and pulled the head of a fish out of the bowl with all the internal organs still attached... was when I knew we weren't in "Kansas" - or Smithers - anymore. Most of our feelings about being alien happened when we were on our own between shows, wondering aimlessly in foreign lands. One grounding experience I will not forget occurred inside a military base. It brought on a sense of helplessness and the realization our performing holiday was indeed no Disney Land. After finishing the guided tour through the DMZ (De Militarized Zone) between North and South Korea we were hanging out in a little information booth back at camp. Quite relaxed and feeling like we were now cruising through a museum, the adrenaline kicked in when alarms started sounding, phones started ringing and military personnel started running everywhere. Hey!!!! What about us!!! Our new best friend Captain Taylor came over to inform us a land mine had gone off somewhere on the field, and if we will be fine if we just stay put in the building for now. He was right, we were fine. Unfortunately the soldier's leg wasn't in as good of condition. That was the second day of a 52 day tour."

In 1999 Jenny released her debut recording Friends Like You, produced by mandolin master John Reischman, and dedicated to the memory of Charles Sawtelle.

"I first met Charles in Levelland, he came to do guitar workshops. After graduating I was living in Colorado, Charles lived in Boulder, and through the circle of music we became friends. We used to sit and listen to Dolly Parton albums, just hang out and play. Sometimes I'd go over and there would be Tim O'Brien or Laurie Lewis...it was really fun. I asked Charles to produce my album - back when I first started thinking about doing one. We went through songs, recorded some together, both played guitar and sat in his studio. I've still got the tapes. I loved it - just us two sitting there and playing and singing. After a bit. Charles started to cancel getting together. Then, one day when I was over, playing, he just had to stop. He said "I don't want to be real flaky on you, I know I've cancelled a few times but I've been feeling sick, I just got diagnosed with leukemia." That was right at the onset of his illness. We put things aside because he was going for treatments and later, his bone marrow transplant. This was over three years. I had dropped the album to go to make some money - I was in Taiwan by then and actually, we talked for a long time the day before his bone marrow transplant. After the transplant we lost touch for a while, I'd hear how he was doing through friends. Once I moved to Vancouver I phoned him up and we got talking again. He was having a hard time with the medication but was going to pick up the project. We had even started to talk about the smaller details of the recording, then he said he just wasn't feeling well and couldn't do it anymore.

I went ahead here, with John Reischman producing, and I was going to have Charles play on it. The album was two years in the making, spring in Vancouver, winter in Surrey. Not doing the album all in a rush allowed for a lot of thought as to what we wanted. The last day of recording, John and I were up in Whitehorse (Yukon) and I got the call Charles has passed away. He was a spirit, that's sure; a sweet, caring, giving person, with so much talent and he offered it so freely. Every time I sing "Don't Neglect The Rose" I can't help but think of him; it was the last song Charles and I recorded together. He taught me a lot. He was really relaxed and offered very subtle things about musicality and singing. There was a time when I was going to be playing with him and he would say "Don't play that lick" or "Stay away from that filler - that's Bond-o-ing the car there, dear". He'd say it in a kind and wise way. I feel I gained a lot of maturity about playing from him...and I feel the same way about John Reischman too. They wouldn't say anything unless they really meant it - John and Charles share many similarities, very real people. "

With a desire to be as genuine as her mentors, Jenny has actively sought to balance her artistic passion with other pursuits. "If I only did music and didn't have reality checks and experiences from outside music - things I can really put myself into, I don't think I could put anything fresh into the music. The fishing camp is a part of that, I can't let it go."

Every fall for the last six years Jenny has been the cook at The Silver Hilton Steelhead Lodge, a steel head "catch and release" for fly fishermen. It's rugged and beautiful, fifty four miles north of Smithers on the Babine River. "I worked my way up to head cook after three years. I was the "Kraft Dinner Queen" until I went up there and had to make all the bread, everything."

"In the city there is rushing around and getting things done - spreading yourself out. At the fishing lodge you fly in, you're in the same place for nine weeks. There's no where to "go"...you can make a trail along the river but that's all; you could talk to people by radio, mail comes once a week by helicopter. You can't spread yourself out, you just are, and there's time to be yourself without trying to keep up. The power goes out sometimes, you have to fetch water, fight off bears, do different things. It provides balance. The one thing I look for in this world is balance. Even when that means I have to get crazy sometimes, to live life to the fullest, it's how I get grounded."

The balance and reality checks infuse Jenny's work. Deeply attached to traditional bluegrass and mindful of encouragements to "stay away from that lick", Jenny's music is as refreshing as the great northern wildernesses which inspire her; her voice and her melodies clear and persuasive. Friends Like You features four of Jenny's originals including the title track as well as "The River, Mother Nature and Me" - a number which first percolated into being as Jenny opted to use her voice to ward off bears by the Babine River.

The album was long in the making and it comes across like a well designed set. Jenny notes: "John Reischman spent a lot of time on the production. I'd keep bringing in the material and we'd look for tempos. That's how "Heart Turned To Stone" got on, it fit the tempo. It's a fun song to do live too because I can up it or down it, whatever suits the mood."

While often profiled as a fiddler, Jenny played rhythm guitar on the recording, only twinning with lead fiddler Byron Myhre on a couple of cuts. Jenny explains: "I didn't play much fiddle on the CD because I was following a direction to lead the band, providing the material and singing it. I wanted to concentrate on getting a sound. I love attitude so I focus on phrasing. I wanted to, and still want to develop and pay attention to how the words come across...that's what I enjoy. Anyone can tell in three or four lines whether they're going to like a singer. The singer might have a great voice, but when it becomes an instrument it's about what licks you do, what emphasis you put into it...you could have great tone but where do you go with it, where does it come from? People can hear that. When I sing "One Way Track" there's room to push the lyrics and tempo, give it an edge and make it a little desperate.

There are some female singers I'm starting to really like and they're all gutsy; like Hazel Dickens, Kim Fox, and Lynn Morris has always been a favourite. Outside of bluegrass a real inspiration for me is Jennifer Warnes' - "Famous Blue Raincoat" Leonard Cohen's songs."

"I feel really good about the album when I listen back or sell a copy. I love the musicianship on it, the songs, the memories that went into recording it. There have been other things in the past where it seemed rushed, some area that made me hesitant...whereas this album I feel, is a very good representation of the time and I don't think it's going to get too dated for me. I feel it's important to feel comfortable with an album."

And now what?

"I book dates as Jenny Lester and Friends; right now the "friends" depend on the gig. I'm trying to form a band with local people, to stick together. I love to play with people, be with people. I would rather play with a metronome than by myself! I find inspiration in the way musicians play together; pulse, inspire and breathe off each other. It's amazing the way rhythm and harmonic overtones play off each other when there is more than one creator. "

"I like to take the music somewhat seriously. I love to have fun with it but there's a certain traditional format I want, a growing format, the harmonies to be laid out in a certain way. I want time to write more material and then do another album. I want to get recharged to play the scene but also to focus on personal growth. This has been an interesting time, the past year. I now think I may have been taking music for granted. It's given me a lot, I've dedicated my life to it, but it wasn't really thought out. It was, has been, more of a continuation. I feel a whole new respect has to be given to the music, a new direction to be explored. Now I'm the one who needs to perpetuate it, keep it going, and that way, it gives back. It's about making sure my life happens the way I want it to."

Discover more about Jenny Lester - horse training, the early years, upcoming gigs at www.jennylester.com