Review – Jessee Havey and the Quirks at the West End Cultural Centre, Winnipeg, May 31 2009

– review by Eugene Osudar

she rolls and she rocks
Jessee Havey
with every twist
and turn
and ebbing flow
incoming
(and)
outgoing
wave
of melody

avec jazzing players aussi

The Quirks
are Julian Bradford
on the up,standing bass
Alex Campbell on keys
Ariel Posen on guitar
JD Edwards sweetly
backing his life/love
partner’s vocals
and the bluesy,rock n roll
drumming of
Big Jake Bell
from The Dusty Roads Band

Big Jake was telling me at an
art opening at The Edge Gallery
(Claire Childs and Christian Rosekat
the artists)
he found it tough,

“i’m from the streets,
don’t know how to read music,
those guys are from
the U of M
opening the books
and doing it and i’m
just a pounder.”

What a pounder
tempo thumper
lightning sticks
beater of skins
crackling thunder
all power
all sweat
all rhythm
all in time!

the set list:

“We’re just going to keep on funking,”
promises Jessee after,

Got Myself a Good Man

Mercy Mercy Mercy
by The Buckinghams

“a song that my dad recommended that we do.”

he’s in the audience and after
this song i write

The Truth
The Gospel

“Jessee is the best female vocalist
in the city, bar none!”

Free
by JJ Grey and MoFro
as in,
more funky southern rockin soul
awe,some
and
then,some

“i’ll just grab my outfit
coordinated glistening rag

(toweling down after three hot sweaty
dance grooving tunes)

This is an Annie Sexton song
called You’re Losing Me.”

Jessee and The Quirks
lose me
out of control
(he’s lost control)
into the moving and shaking
of their dance floor quaking
soul blues funk
just a little punk
drumming too

and then
some sweetness,

Ray LaMontagne’s
Three More Days

oh my, Jessee Havey’s
swirling voice
and that so
very hot band
The Quirks
better than
The Ray Man himself
a song built for a woman’s
curving swerving
emotional caress,
singing it
feeling it
expressing it
selling it
out
to the dancers
in the audience
the movers and shakers
boogying
down

“bringing it on home!”

and then we’re treated to a sizzling
original

Can’t Be Bothered

Jessee’s just so free/flowing
musical
as she sings
moving and swaying
shoulders and hips
every note from her
lips
rocks and rolls
dancing to
the melody

as we’re dancing

layering the salt licking sweat

“Group meeting. We have five minutes?”

(checking with WECC’s sound technician,
Grant Johnson)

and they come out
fierce
some
ly,
ferociously
with,

Respect Yourself
by the Staples Singers

oh my deities, as i write this
i’m all a tingles
recalling the dancing
the power
the roaring
scoring=melody
the playing!
what a band!

and ending it

“A Bad Company song
Can’t Get Enough of Your Love”

and no we can’t

can’t enough of your loves

Jessee Havey
and The Quirks
WECC
May 31st