Here is a sample of my LED Guitar.  My friend rigged it up with some lights.  I use this song on Friend Or Foe.  I posted a fan pic of it on my photos page during a show.  We recently did a show at the Lafayette Brewing Company and it was the debut of the LED guitar.  It was pretty fun because I didn’t tell the band I had it.  They didn’t see it until I switched on the lights…lol, you should have seen there face!

Ok, so this week has been very crazy, like most weeks I guess.  I’m working on promoting my show next month in Bowling Green, KY at The Spillway Bar and Grill.  I contacted all the media there and landing two TV spots, one is an interview on WNKY and the other is an on air performance on WBKO.  I’m still working some radio spots.  In the middle of that, I’m planning for Open Mic night at the Frankfort Applebee’s.  That is always a good time.  There are a lot of people that come out because there is live music.  Then there is Zionsville Relay for life and Ned’s Corner Pub Friday.  And Saturday, the band will be playing at The Taste Of Tippecanoe at 4pm on the Crossroads Stage, and headlining the Darlington Music Fest that night at 10pm.  Tim Brouk from the Lafayette Journal and Courier contacting me because he is doing a story about guitars to promote the Taste, sent a pic and answered some questions about my guitar.  That is going to be a good read 🙂 !

I’ve been trying to contact Doc’s Music Hall for over a year and finally got a response yesterday about a Sept date, so that is cool!  Persistence pays off!  Speaking of persistence, I’ve been emailing Indy Style, a TV station in Indy, for over a year, and called them today, left another message…

In addition to all that, I’m planning a trip to Nebraska.  I’ll be playing about 3 or 4 shows out that way, thanks to my good friend and awesome musician Shawn Cole, who is helping book those shows for me!  You should check him out!

The Local Thunder is a radio show on the Red Rooster Radio.  This week they kicked off the show with a song off of my new CD, Another Mountain to Climb, which was very cool!  Red Rooster Radio is a pretty cool station, if you like indie artists, you should check it out!

Most of the time when I’m working on all this, I have about 10 tabs open on my browser and about 3-4 windows open going back and forth trying to keep up with myself.  This is all the fun behind the scenes.  It’s a lot of work to go play music for a night, but I wouldn’t trade for anything!

I recently released my brand new CD “Inside” through SoundEdge Records.  It features Austin Shearer on Bass guitar and Jay Large on Drums.  Austin and I have been long time friends and it was an honor to work with him on this project.  He plays bass for blues guitarist W.T. Feaster who you should check out for sure!  Jay Large has been a professional drummer for years and I must say it was like we have been playing together for years.

This CD has ten original songs with a variety of styles.  With “Hot Head Helen” being Robin Trower style, so people have mentioned to me ( I take that as a compliment for sure), to “There’s No Easy Way” which is all piano and bass guitar, played by my daughter and son.  Many of these songs talk about issues and feelings I’ve had and dealt with in the past year.  I went through about two months where I was writing about every day.  I really wasn’t expecting to write a whole album but the words and music came to me so I decided to go ahead and get to the studio.

Hot Head Helen was written about Mount Saint Helen after the dj, Kim Seals, from BobFm mentioned the locals nicknamed Mt St. Helen, Hot Head Helen, I told her that sounded like a good song title, she told to write it and I could come debut it on the air.  So it took me about 2 days and I had the tune.  About 3 weeks later I was on air playing my new tune.

Another Mountain To Climb talks about things in our lives that seem impossible to overcome but somehow we keep pushing on with determination even though we don’t know if we will make it or not.  I constantly battle with overcoming things in the music business and in relationships in my personal life, like I’m sure we all do…

Friend Or Foe is a groovy little tune that I wrote about relationships in my life…sometimes we think people are our friends but then when you really start to notice and hear things you find out that it’s not so.  Maybe you need someone to be there for you and you see that they don’t care as much as you thought, or at all…My ten year old son and I made a music video of this tune and it has became a fan favorite by far.  There is also a live version of this song from my CD release party you can find Here.  X103 out of Indianapolis, has been playing this song which is very awesome!  If you would like to request it you can do so Here.

It’s Love is a tune that talks about love being true and honest.  I don’t like songs that talk about love causing pain and heart ache, although I understand the point behind it, but that is not love, that is hurt and heart ache..Love never fails

Man On The Moon is a bluesy tune that talks how sometimes we have good friends that need help and won’t let their friends close enough to help.

Who Do I Call is an acoustic soul stirring song about losing someone.  I lost my father to cancer and he was one of my closest friends.  There was a big hole to fill when he was gone…

There’s No Easy Way features my daughter on piano and my son on bass guitar.  Again talks about losing someone and all the things that go through someone’s mind when they are trying to cope and carry on..

Inside is a song about feeling alone and struggling while trying to live a normal life when your life is not really normal and smooth at the time.  Sometimes we are afraid to show our true feelings and emotions because it’s not the time or place, so we have to try and hold it in.  Sometimes it seems impossible to hold it in.

Magic Man was written after my good friend Daniel Lusk the Magician asked me to write a song about a magician…I wasn’t really sure how that was going to go until he said “You know, you never want to gamble with the magic man”  and then it was all clear…So the Magic Man turned out to be a mysterious character that goes around seeking those who are willing to gamble with him and play his game, because when you play his game he never loses and you never win.

Leave You Behind is a song about a terrible habit I’ve had since I was in sixth grade.  There are hints in the song for people to figure out what it is…

I hope all enjoy the CD and I hope you enjoy reading this.  I look forward to seeing you all in the near future at some of my shows!

You can order a Physical CD Here and Download MP3s

You can find it on iTunes

Please follow me on Facebook and Twitter

And check out my Youtube Channel

I would first like to thank everyone that came out to the Animal House!  You all made it an awesome night!  I love what I do and I’m so thankful I have such great fans!!

My father passed away from cancer one year ago on Feb 18 2011.  This was the anniversary date of him passing.  I knew myself, my family, and his close friends would be really thinking about him on this day, as we do every day!  I wanted to throw a great party so we could all be surrounded with great folks.  You all made that possible!

This last week I played and sang five days in a row…when Saturday finally came I was pretty wiped out and my voice was pretty shot.  All day Saturday I was trying to get a nap but I was to excited about the show.  I gargled hot salt water with lemon juice, yeah it tastes good, lol.  I was drinking hot tea, orange juice and eating cough drops all day.  Then when you all started rolling in and I got to visit with everyone, I became very energized again!
The band my Dad started up, Free Noise, start off the night and did a great job!  My cousin Jared Wells got up with them and played “Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd as a tribute to my Dad.  I noticed my Grandma was standing right upfront, then joined by my Aunt Sandy.  I went up there and, then my Mom, and Sister Jess all joined in by the end of the song.  It was hard to listen but at the same time it was very touching.  At the end of their set I went up and played “The Sugar Creek Song” which is a song that my dad wrote.  The Sugar Creek Song has become an anthem to the hard core Free Noise fans!  Click Here and hear my Dad singing “The Sugar Creek Song”.  I recorded them before dad became to sick to play.  It was recorded in “The Shed” where they would practice.

I started right about 9:30, I really wasn’t sure what I was going to start with until about 2 minutes before I started playing…I quit making set lists because I never follow them anyway..lol.  I decided to start with Jethro Tull’s Locomotive Breathe.  My Dad was a huge Jethro Tull fan!  I think I did some Johnny Cash after that…The crowd was very into the music and I was having the time of my life.  I tend to move around a lot when I’m playing and really getting into it.  I don’t really notice it when I’m playing, but when I see video that people post or pictures, I’m like, “I was doing that”..LOL!   I ended up playing for about an hour and a half straight, I didn’t want to stop but I really had to pee…lol.  I came back up and started jammin some more, but then I promised my grandma I would play a slow song so she could dance.  And one of my bestest fans wanted to hear “Wanted Dead Or Alive” so I made sure to do that, it’s always a hit because everyone sings the back up part “waaanted”.  Then I kinda got a little carried away and started doing a medley of some great classic rock guitar riffs!  That was fun, everyone got into that I think!  I played my song “Cancer”, I was getting some shout outs from the crowd for me to play it.  I can’t help but feel good when people want to hear my original music!  I finished about 1 am and had a great time the whole night!

Thank you all again!  I can’t do this without you!

Jason Wells

ps I will be releasing my music video “Friend Or Foe” through my newsletter in about 1-2 weeks.  You can sign up on my homepage if you would like.

Hello, thank you for your support!
I know I won’t be able to remember or mention everything in the past year but I wanted to try and recap a little.
I started out 2011 working a factory job for a few months, hating every minute because I spent a year and a half playing music…In Febuarary my father passed away from cancer. I decided then that music was my passion and not just a dream. I gave my notice and started back at my music career.

I started in first thing trying to gain students, calling nursing homes and booking gigs. It really seemed that in no time I was filling up my schedule with all three. The next few months I was finishing up my CD. I signed on with JMD Distribution for worldwide digital distribution. My CD was officially released in June. I had a great CD release party with many fans, a threat of a tornado, and a room full of wet music fans singing in unison and having a great unforgetable night!

I came across a company in Indy, 27 Storms Entertainment, that made my “Cancer” video for free. That was fun and hard…I had to “act”…The video got 800 views in the first 3-4 months, which is not viral, but in my book, I considered that a huge success. The views still continue to climb!

I played my first Taste of Tippecanoe which was a blast! I met the dj at BobFm which turned into some opportunities later on…The same night as the Taste, I played at The Darlington Music Fest which was in honor of my Dad. My Dad had started it a couple years back and it had turned into something very cool. Anyway, I had a 8-10pm time slot. I felt like I rocked to place, I was very confortable and the people were into it! But, I did a few songs in the middle of my set with Free Noise, my dad’s band that he started, and I was absolutley blown away….we played my Dad’s song “The Sugar Creek Song”…So many people were embracing each other, singing all the lyrics, dancing and crying…I about lost it, it was a true blessing to see the impact my Dad and his music had! Thank you Darlington!

Mulberry Telecomunications filmed a pilot TV show, Songbook. I played my music and did an interview.

I played at a Mosey Down Main Street, you know the one that got rained out…! I was in the middle of a song and the sound guy walked up and said, “cut it short”…I said, “like a couple more songs?”… he said “NO, like Now!” The was the storm that blew in during the catastrophy at the Indiana State Fairgrounds stage collapse…

The TGIF gave me a call to do a photo shoot of me for the Jazz and Blues Festival that was coming up. I met them downtown Lafayette to stand in the middle of the road with my guitar over my shoulder for some pictures. I then found out I would be on the cover of the next week’s issue!
Also as part of the Jazz and Blues Festival promotion, I got to perform live on BobFm. Not to mention, The Jazz and Blues Festival was a great time, and I had a very good audience!

I had many days in the summer months when I was playing 2 or 3 gigs per day. That was a lot of fun, but it was very tiring…pack up, unpack, play, pack up, unpack……etc. O yeah eat..lol!

The Local Thunder on 103.9fm was playing my tune all year long and my song “Right Back Where I’ve Been” (co wrote by Jim Miller) started to receive regular airplay on X103 out of Indy. I was not expecting that at all.

Now towards the end of the year I have started writing some new tunes for my next CD. I had a chance to go back on Bobfm to debut my new song called “Hot Head Helen” which is strictly about the volcano Mt St. Helen… 🙂 The same day I was on the radio, I had a chance to go film a Christmas song for Homegrownbiker TV show.

There are many more things that happened throughout the year. Most importantly, I got a chance to meet and talk with my fans and make new fans! It’s your support that allows me to do what I do! I would like to thank you, and I hope that we can have a great future in music together in the coming year!

I Wish You A Happy New Year,
Jason Wells
www.jasonwellsmusic.com

So, Friday night I played at The Knickerbocker in Lafayette.  It’s the oldest bar in Indaina.  I tried to figure out what my set was going to be like all week, but I could never really come up with anyting…finally about 5 minutes before I started I felt pretty good about what I was going to play.  Most of the time I don’t use a set list, because when I do I don’t ever follow it, or I forget to bring it with me…

I started out with my own little version of Purple Haze, then went into “Right Back Where I’ve Been”.  I did the whole playing guitar behind my head which was a big hit!  I rocked out a few more then laid back a little and played some straight “acoustic” songs.  One of those was “Wanted Dead Or Alive” (thanks to Amanda), Love that song because everyone, most of the time, does the echo.   I Also played a bluesy version of Folsom Prison, which was the first time that I played it live, I think it went over very well…

At the end of my set I got a little carried away and ripped off four of my strings.  It was fun!

I consider Friday night a great success!  Because so many of you, my fans, came out and rocked it with me!  Thank you, without you I could not do this!

Saturday night I played at a benefit for a yong man, Josh Turner.  I played a lot of the same set that I did Friday…again I had some of my fans come out to that!  Thank you!  This young man is battling many things, mostly cancer.  It was great to be a part of that.  When they had the benefit for my Dad so many people where there and it really does speak volumes!

Thank you all again!  See you soon!

Jason Wells

www.jasonwellsmusic.com

So I was driving down the road yesterday and I received a text from my cousin saying, “you’re on the x now”.  By the time I got to it tuned in it was already over…So I pulled over in a parking lot in Lafayette trying to see if I could hear them mention the string of artists that were just played, but I was in Lafayette and the station is out of Indy, so it barely came in and I didn’t hear it.  I went to the website to look for the playlist and found it!  There was my name next to Pearl Jam, Foo Fights and Bush…Wow!  Last Friday I received a comment on my youtube channel from someone saying they heard my song on X103 that night, and liked what they heard and looked me up!  I thought then, wow it’s Friday, did they play my song on a Friday?  I had submitted my song for their show Indy X Files that airs on Sunday nights at 7 ( I believe)…but they have been playing my song “Right Back Where I’ve Been” (co wrote by Jim Miller) on the regular rotation.  I’m pretty excited about it and I hope they get a good response from spinning it!

In the past four months I have been very busy playing gigs and promoting my CD.  I haven’t had much time to practice, most of the time when I played guitar it was at a gig…Over the last week or so, I have forced myself to stop and slow down so I can just play, and enjoy playing.  Not that I don’t enjoy playing at gigs or it’s not good practice still, it’s just when I take the time to just play at home I’m not “on the clock” and I can relax, and play around, experiment and be creative for future shows…

I have also been very tormented almost, I have had some songs bouncing around in my head…I’ve been writing down all that comes out and sometimes it’s just a few lines.  I think that is why ,so many times, I have a hard time writing, it’s hard for me to put things into words…I have always put my thoughts into music.  Over the last few days I did come up with a new song about my experience and decision to pursue my music career.  I have two other songs that I have written, and they are just going to need a little tweaking.  I posted one song to my You Tube Channel and shared it on Facebook, and I got a very good response from it.  It’s called “Another Mountain To Climb”

My “new” CD Stepping Out is only 3 months old now and I’m writing songs for my next CD.  I almost get the feeling that the newness has wore off, but I guess that happens…I have to keep looking forward and I won’t find myself three years from now still saying I have a “new” CD.

Well, I’ve been very busy the past few weeks.  I’ve had many gigs, but this Labor Day weekend I didn’t have any.  It was nice to be home but I don’t have any paid holidays…I’ve been talking with an entertainment company and signed a two month probationary contract with them.  This is something I’ve been working on for quit some time now, trying to get a company to sign me on.  I want people that believe in me and have the same work ethic as I do.  The plan now is to get me traveling to other states and playing concerts for more people and in front of the rights crowds.  They told me I had all my things together I just needed to get out and get booked.  The next step to keep moving forward is to spread out farther and reach more people.  The longer I stay local the faster I will burn my fans out, and I do not want to do that.

Now I have to get my gear ready to fly.  I’m a little nervous…a lot nervous about flying with my guitar.  I’ve been doing a lot of research and asking my fellow guitar flying friends…it seems it’s never easy and it stinks…I will try and drive as much as possible I guess…