Photo by Jodi Lyford
By Kevin Broughton
The San Lorenzo Valley in Santa Cruz, Calif., was once one of the biggest logging communities in the west, particularly after the 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco. The river of the same name meanders past or through a handful of smallish cities on its way to Monterey Bay. One of them, Fenton, produced Jesse Daniel, who’s made four studio albums (and a live banger) since 2020.
His latest, Son of The San Lorenzo, drops today. The title cut, interestingly, is a re-purposing of a single from his 2020 breakout album, Rollin’ On. The first (and, ahem, ONLY FREAKING time) we saw Daniel perform, he opened a solo show with it.
This album is an inflection point in Daniel’s career, and a summing-up of his journey as an artist to this point. His prolific writing over five years is impressive, all the more so when factoring in his youth (he’s 32) and with the realization that he’s been clean and sober from a heroin addiction since just 2017. January 7, to be precise.
But it’s those personal struggles that have kept him grounded, humble and grateful as his artistic career hits another gear. As always, it was a pleasure to visit and talk about writing to the love of his life, collaborating with an impressive peer, making the most of one’s limited time, and what the future might hold.
You know, this album just hits differently. You open with a song in a minor key – one of a couple or three, I think – the title cut is a slowed-down version of a waltz from Rollin’ On; you produced it yourself; heck, your band even has a name now (The Restless Riders.) Is this the record you’ll look back on in several years and say, “That’s the one where I really took charge of my career and destiny?”
Yeah, definitely. This one has been a completely different experience. These are the deepest, most personal songs I’ve ever written; I wanted to get back to my roots, and a lot of the things I grew up on were country rock/classic rock/Southern rock stuff. A lot of country/folk-influenced things, also. I wanted to play tribute to the place I’m from, and a lot of that music came from the San Lorenzo Valley where I grew up; the Monterey Bay area, too.
It's kind of a double-edged sword: Staking a claim as my identity and upbringing, and telling my story to this point. And really diving deep into it, so in the future I’ll move on and write about other things. But this is kind of the final telling of that part of the story that I wanted to get out, and what better song than “Son of The San Lorenzo?” Because a lot of people locally and everywhere else have been calling me that; it’s become my nickname. And I like that a lot because it gives me a sense of pride, so what better title for this album than that song?
Something that’s not a departure from past records are the references to addiction sprinkled over several cuts. The rocking-est song of your entire catalog – as far as I’ve heard is “Crankster…”
Oh, yeah…
Yeah, I’d say that’s pretty accurate. There’s definitely some self-accountability, but also the one big theme of this record is speaking to myself. On the song “He,” I kind of go back in time and talk to my younger self. So, a lot of these songs have that theme. You know, “One Too Many” is a cautionary tale. A lot of the advice I got from older people who were in recovery when I was struggling is the stuff I’m trying to pass down now through songs. It’s a dual thing, where it helps me a lot but I’m trying to help other people through music as well.
Every time we talk, you seem to answer a couple of my questions before I get to ask them; you’ve crossed off two from my list already! There’s also a blue-collar ethos mixed with theme of redemption, and an emphasis on making good use of one’s time. I guess it’s no accident that the album opens with “A Child is Born” and finishes with “The End.” Can you expand on those bookends, and how they relate to the whole record?
Yeah, of course, man. Those were definitely intentional, and I took a lot of time with the song arrangements on this record so I could tell a story front-to-back; this story of the son of the San Lorenzo. So, it starts out with “A Child is Born,” which is written for anybody who’s had a parent or grandparent and experienced generational struggles, whether it’s been mental illness or alcoholism; any kind of pattern that can be passed down. And that song wasn’t speaking personally about me, but more people in my family and folks I’ve known and the things they’ve had to go through.
But it’s essentially about bringing a child into the world and everything it then has to go through. It moves on throughout the record, a story of maturing and growing. And when you get to “The End,” like you said, it’s sort of a bookend. The main theme of “The End” is just to continually create; it’s the sum of everything in the story I learned before. It’s about making the best you have with what you have. It’s the end of this story, but also the beginning of the next.
The only song that’s not a Jesse Daniel original – “Time Well Spent for a Man” -- is credited to Nick Foster. I had to do a little research; there are two songwriting Nick Fosters as far as I can see. I’ll assume this is the NorCal version, not the British?
(Laughs) Yes, this is the Northern California version, definitely.
And you share vocals with another heavy hitter, Charles Wesley Godwin. Tell me about that relationship, and how y’all came to collaborate on this cut.
Charles and I had been following each other for quite a while. I’ve been aware of Charles since probably 2018 or -19, and we kind of came up in the same generation of songwriters. Even though we were thousands of miles about, we had a lot of the same influences. He had reached out to me and said he was a fan, and I’d done the same, and we’d put records out at the same time and worked with some of the same people. His career trajectory was indicative of someone who’s worked very hard and doing the same things that I’m trying to do.
And so, when that song was sent to me by my buddy Nick, I immediately thought of Charles because the subject matter is very sentimental; it’s about being present, and appreciating the time we have on this Earth. Time well spent is about doing the things that you love and being with the people you love; things worthwhile as opposed to the superficial. And Charles stood out in my mind because we’ve talked about those themes. I just realized that he was the guy for that song. I pitched it to him and he enjoyed it and said, “Man I’d really love to sing on this.” And to backtrack a little bit, we had done some touring together; he had me with him on the road last year for a bunch of dates, and that’s what sparked our musical connection. I got to see his show every night and how he operates, so he was just the obvious choice for someone to collaborate with.
You penned an ode to Ms. Lyford, who’s pretty much your everything, called “Jodi.” It begins, “To write a love song for you was not an easy thing to do,” yet reading the lyrics while listening, there’s a sense that it flowed out of you pretty easily. Or, is that just a civilian’s misimpression? Professionals are supposed to make it look easy, I guess?
You know, a lot of these were difficult to write. It’s weird: Difficult, but they did kind of flow out of me. The songs needed to be written, but I was ready. I’d done a lot of soul-searching, through the process of healing and working on myself over the years, to be able to articulate what I was trying to say. So, “Jodi” was one of those…you know, I started out with those words because it was a difficult mental task to tell the story about how much I love this person. We’ve been through a lot together: Near death, hospitalization, drug addiction, recovery, people in our families dying. So many things that are extreme, make-or-break life experiences, but we’ve made it through those them. I wanted to tell that story properly, and the best way to do that was with a simple country love song. I wanted to boil it down where it wasn’t too complicated. I hope it comes across.
Oh, yeah. Just curious on the whole “process” thing: Did you have to tell her, “I need you to get out of the house for a couple hours because I’m writing a song about you?”
(Laughs) I can’t remember exactly, but I think I would just pick times when she was out and about doing things. A lot of the times I’m just working quietly by myself, writing in my notebook or writing on my phone, then I pick up a guitar and work out a melody. It just came pretty naturally.
Last time we talked, I half-jokingly wondered if a tour bus might be a perk just over the horizon. Now I’m getting emails about a Jesse Daniel “World Tour” and you’ve signed with Wasserman Talent Agency. Five years ago, you were following Jason Boland’s tour bus for a string of dates, and Jodi was your de facto publicist and booker. Do you have some general thoughts to share on how your career has progressed in the interim?
Definitely! You know, my career has been one of slow and steady growth. There’ve been times where we’ve had leaps where things moved pretty quickly, and we’ve also had instances where we’ve had to take a couple steps back, when we’ve been humbled by the music realm. Even though it’s been a steady, incremental growth, I’ve noticed things really starting to connect, even since putting out some of these recent singles. My goal with this record – and with all of my records, really – is to write songs from my heart; lived experiences that I’ve been through. And they’ve connected in the past, but I feel like there’s a level of connection now that I haven’t really seen before.
You know, when people move to Nashville they’re told, “This is a ten-year town.” It takes ten years to break through and establish a level of success. I was talking to someone the other day and said, “Even though I didn’t go to Nashville, I went out on the road, toured everywhere, wrote songs and opened for people.” And that, essentially, is my ten years. I feel like – since I’ve been doing this since 2015 – I’m just now starting to deserve it. To make a career of music or art, it usually takes a long time, and I’m starting to feel like I’ve earned it. Some people are an overnight success, but that wasn’t my case and I’m glad it wasn’t. I had to work a lot harder, and I’m the happiest I’ve ever been right now. I’m truly grateful that things are starting to pick up, and it just gives me more fire to keep it going. I want to take things to the next level…and get on that tour bus! (Laughs)
Speaking of “world tours,” you realize the American Southeast is part of the planet, right?
(Laughs) Oh, man, I know! We need to come see you…
…I mean, you’re in freaking Nashville a couple days before you jet to Brazil. With all these people working for you, how is an Atlanta date so hard? (And no, I’m not going to let this go.)
(Laughs) Yeah, it’s okay, and I don’t blame you. That’s something we’ve missed out on. This year, signing with Wasserman – and I’ve got new management now and Jodi’s really stepped back -- we’re doing a “less is more” strategy. We’re going to the places that we’re immediately wanted and called for. I know there’s folks out there in the Southeast, but I want to go when it makes sense; when we can get a good room and play a great show. Mark my words, it will happen, I just don’t know exactly when yet. But that’s why this year looks a little sparse on U.S. tour dates; we’re waiting on some support stuff. It’s weird, but for the first time in my career, I’m trying to just let go of that part. Jodi and I have literally controlled every single aspect of this thing till now, so it’s nice to let the folks with real business savvy take over some of it.
Well, you can only keep the folks in San Paulo Brazil waiting so long, Jess.
(Laughs) Yeah, when they say, “Come to Brazil,” you gotta go.
-----
Son of The San Lorenzo is available today, wherever you purchase fine music.
