Perhaps best known for his role as one-fifth of “Old School Freight Train” (now defunct), Jesse Harper, a local singer/songwriter and virtuoso guitar player, has successfully struck out on his own. At times a solo performer, at others part of a small band (for example, the local 80’s cover band “Love Canon”), Jesse plays in venues all over the state and has recorded a solo album called Jesse Harper and His Best Intentions.

Jesse draws his inspiration from other singer/songwriters and musicians he admires. He has “spent countless hours learning Randy Newman piano (vocals) on the guitar. Likewise [he has] learned a ton of James Taylor, Rufus Wainwright, Stevie Wonder.” He also enjoys collaborating with other artists. When he was in “Old School Freight Train,” the band wrote many songs together. Their final album, Six Years, is available online and includes many of the tunes Jesse wrote and co-wrote. When asked about the songwriting process, Jesse said that, for him, the music usually comes before the lyrics. He said, “I’ve tried to do it the other way but haven’t gotten much from it. I’m always practicing, so I’ll usually stumble across some musical idea and then at some point I’ll have to put the guitar down and write some lyrics.” As far as lyric inspiration, he commented,

“I usually draw on internal struggles/observations for material; sometimes I’ll write a song from a prompt, like ‘write a song with a number in the title’ – hence ‘Six Years’.”

Although he started out as a guitarist, Jesse has evolved into a vocalist as well. At one point, Jesse suffered from stage fright when it came to singing. “In the beginning I wasn’t comfortable singing and I really just wanted to be a guitarist. Over time I came to realize that if I could get over the stage fright, singing offered me the best connection with myself and the audience,” he explained.

“So the focus has gradually gotten away from making the guitar the focus to making the guitar the support for the voice.”

Over time he has grown into a dynamic singer/songwriter. His shows are fun and, as he says, often involve laughter.

Jesse’s favorite venues to play are the ones where the audience is there to listen, “a place where the audience can hear the details we work to hard to create, and someplace that’s relaxing.” Ashland Coffee and Tea, located in Ashland, VA just north of Richmond, and the Mockingbird, located in Staunton, VA, both feature listening rooms, and are two of Jesse’s favorite places to play.

A challenge that Jesse is still grappling with is “how to grow a performing career in the digital age.” In that vain, he has a new website with tour dates, pictures, video footage, songs, and ways to order his recordings. Check it out at http://jesseharper.ning.com. He also has a Myspace site at http://www.myspace.com/jesseharpermusic.