Jessica Rhaye & The Ramshackle Parade Offer Comfort from the Cold on Beaming New Single “Sunshine Baby”
A beam of sunlight on a cold, bleak February afternoon inspired Jessica Rhaye & The Ramshackle Parade’s glorious, cascading new single, “Sunshine Baby,” from their forthcoming album of the same name.
Like putting your hands around a cup of tea, “Sunshine Baby” is full of comforting warmth as Rhaye’s voice shimmies, soars, and meanders beautifully around the accompanying guitars, upright bass, drums, and piano. The song takes us through a loved one’s pain – “I can feel a storm is coming/ I can hear the rain falling down/ I can see your eyes are crying/ wishing that your day would turn around” – as the narrator searches her heart for a way to help turn it around. And then, like a stream of light shining through a winter window:
I could be your sunshine baby
I could put the blue back in your sky
we can set the night on fire
you be the spark and we’ll shed some light
You would never know it through the listen, but the piano playing Rhaye contributes something that actually took her out of her own comfort zone. All her previous songwriting had been done on an acoustic guitar, but she had recently bought a book called How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy, so she was in an experimental headspace.
“Coincidently, at the same time, I thought about writing this song. My husband and I purchased a piano/keyboard for our children so they could continue their piano lessons virtually during the height of the pandemic lockdown,” Rhaye recalls. “I would sit with them as their piano teacher so patiently took them through their lessons, and I picked up a thing or two about piano chords. So, I thought, ‘Well, I’ll give it a try.'”
Although this was the first time Rhaye had ever played piano on a recording, it worked out beautifully when it came to “Sunshine Baby.”
“Once we got settled in the studio, this song came together effortlessly. The drums brought a real folk/jazz vibe while the boys and I fell in comfortably like we had been playing it for years,” she said. “It was our goal to have me play along with the band on the piano as a scratch recording, but in the end, we kept the original piano track, as trying to re-record the piano after the fact didn’t have the original spark and feel.”
Sunshine Baby, scheduled for release in early 2023, will be Rhaye’s second album with her backing band, the Ramshackle Parade. Their critically acclaimed 2019 album Just like a Woman – Songs of Bob Dylan is an engaging body of rollicking folk-rock interpretations of some of Dylan’s classics, and it has garnered millions of views on YouTube and showcased the band on a headlining tour in some of the premier venues throughout Canada before the pandemic put a hold on touring.
Watch the video for “Sunshine Baby” below, and learn more about Jessica Rhaye via our mini-interview.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hi – I’m Jessica Rhaye – a singer-songwriter and visual artist. I live in New Brunswick along the beautiful Kennebecasis River with my two children and my husband. I’ve been singing, making music, and art ever since I can remember. When I’m not jamming in my basement studio with my bandmates, “The Ramshackle Parade,” I dig in my flower gardens, cook in the kitchen, or enjoy time with my family.
What’s it like being a musician in Saint John, NB, area?
I love my home and being close to my family and friends. I feel very fortunate to have such talented musicians and artist friends who love to get together often and make music. My bandmates and the music fiends I’ve made over the years all support one another. I’ve only ever made the music I like to make and with the people that inspire me to be a better writer and performer and make me feel comfortable and confident.
What did reading How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy do for your creative spark?
The book contains tips and tricks for all songwriters – first-time and long-term writers. The trick I applied was picking up and trying a new instrument. I have always written songs on either guitar or ukulele, so when my husband and I bought our children a new keyboard piano for Christmas so they could do their piano lessons online during the pandemic, I knew what instrument I was going to try. One day, I sat at the piano and started playing a couple of pulsing chords, and the melody immediately fell out of my voice and into a song. It was such a fun writing experience. I couldn’t believe how different the piano made me want to sing. I have since written two more songs on the piano.
Who was the first artist to knock you out?
Joan Baez and Anne Murray were two female artists that I listened to at an early age and looked up to for their singing and performance approach.
What’s the one album by a Canadian artist that everyone should have in their collection?
In no particular order:
Jann Arden – Living Under June
Tragically Hip – Day for Night
Matt Mays – self-titled debut
Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill
Ron Sexsmith – Cobblestone Runway
Connect with Jessica Rhaye:
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