By Patricia Measer
St. Louis native Jackson Stokes and his band are returning to the Villaggio for one night only to celebrate the Mardi Gras spirit with Ellicottville, on Thursday, March 9th. With his self-styled sound of “rock and soul from St. Louis Mo,” Jackson Stokes is taking the music industry by storm. This guitarist toured with the Devon Allman Band and the Devon Allman Project, all the while working on his own music. Devon Allman was so impressed by Jackson that when we started his own record label, Jackson was the first artist he signed to it.
Jackson Stokes’ self-titled debut was released in 2019. The breadth and depth of the nine tracks on this album show just how versatile and engaging his music can be. It’s a wild ride from the swinging opening of “Can Get You Out”, to the strong rock anthem of “My Time Now”, and on through the more bluesy sounds of “Whiskey”. His rich vocals and powerful lyrics leave no doubt that here is an amazing artist.
Jackson Stokes has been touring his own music on and off for about a decade but has been working with his band for about four years. They are traveling on their Gemini Tour, promoting their single “Gemini”, as well as some other new music from an up-and-coming album.
Their tour stop in Ellicottville was planned from the start. While on a previous tour, one of Jackson’s friends told him about “a really cool place to play” in New York. It turns out he was a mutual friend of Nick Pitillo, owner of Villaggio. This friend convinced Jackson to perform there. To quote Jackson: “I loved it and just had to come back.” So, when they planned the Gemini Tour, Jackson ensured that Villaggio was included as one of the venues. He adds, “It’s a special event any time we can come up here.”
During a phone interview with Jackson, he said that their new music came out of their experiences during Covid lockdown. They had to spend time alone and really slow down for the first time in years. He did a lot of experimental writing, and some live streaming performances both with the band and solo. Their fans’ overwhelmingly positive response to what they were doing convinced Jackson that they needed to make the next album from a more introspective and authentic process.
“We pride ourselves on original music that is easy to listen to and easy to have fun with. We love making music and doing what we do, and the whole goal is to get lost in it for a little bit.”
Jackson credits the influences of artists such as Bill Withers, the Allman Brothers, AL Green, and JJ Cale as inspiration for his music. Some of you may not be familiar with the name JJ Cale. He was known as an amazing guitarist and prolific song writer whose music was covered by famous artists like Eric Clapton and Lynard Skynard. Remember “After Midnight”? If you like that song, you’ll love Jackson Stokes Band.
The band will be joined that evening by Mattie Schell, better known as a member of the duo River Kittens, who have also performed at Villaggio before. While there are some similarities in music style, the River Kittens have more of a folk-rock sound with brilliant harmonics and bright acoustic guitar jams. Mattie has taken that sound and molded it into something unique on her first solo album, which she is promoting. According to Jackson, “Mattie will show a different side of herself to fans; they’ll get to see the true range of her talent.” He is excited to be sharing the stage with Mattie, who is a long time personal friend. And he promises some musical surprises!
General Admission tickets for the performance are $10 in advance, $15 the night of the show. You can also purchase a VIP Admission for $60, which includes dinner before the show and special VIP seating. See Villaggio website for more information. https://villaggioevl.com/events-2/