Jolie Goodnight, lead singer of Jolie and The Jackalopes is no stranger to the world of great music. Not only does she front one of the coolest bands in all of Texas, she is also daughter of legendary producer Joe Gracey and singer songwriter Kimmie Rhodes. If you aren’t familiar with who they are, take a quick moment to do a google search. That type of musical background is one of the reasons I chose her to curate our latest Spotify playlist. I also had the opportunity to catch Jolie and her Jackolopes as they rolled into Sam’s Burger Joint last Monday, one of the coolest venues in San Antonio TX.
The show began with a short instrumental number by the band before Jolie took the stage, once she did the crowd quickly moved to fill the dance floor. Rockabilly or as they like to call themselves “Cosmic-Billy” is basically upbeat, dance-able Rock and Roll that is crossed with elements of old school country. It resembles something you might have heard in 1954 and in my opinion is one of the purest and most fun forms of music in existence. Jolie and her band are masters of this genre.
The music was fast and fun and Jolie certainly knew how to work the crowd into a frenzy. They performed many of their best songs as well as a few new, yet to be released songs. I personally fell in love with them when they covered “Lucky Lips” by the late, great Ruth Brown, who happens to be one of my all time favorite singers. The best part of the night for me was the fact that so many people of all ages were dancing together. It didn’t seem to matter if a person was 25 or 55, there were no awkward moments and switching dance partners each song seemed commonplace to these fine folks. In between sets I had the opportunity to chat with the band and they are some of the kindest and most gracious people you could meet. Jolie has an extensive knowledge of music and its one of the reason I asked her to create a new playlist for us. So, If you love music that just screams “Old School Cool” be sure to give a listen to Jolie and the Jackalopes. Now without further ado, here is what Jolie had to say about her playlist.
“A ten song playlist is a giant challenge for a me, being a crazy creative with a vast array of influences. So, I’ve attempted to glue together pivotal songs based on the idea of self-growth. These are all songs that changed me after I heard them for the first time and they span from the past to the present. Some are influential to me in tone, in message, and in aesthetic while others are influential in their epic producing and engineering. Some songs changed me simply because they arrived to me at the right place at the right time, pure synchronicity. Whatever the emotional or mental strings tugged in my soul by these songs, they helped me to understand my niche as a rockabilly artist and how to expand past it, develop around it, and lastly, to make love to it.”
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