- The following program was made possible by Bonfils Stanton Foundation and viewers like you.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Would you rather be able to fly or have superstrength?

- Super Strength.

- Really?

- Absolutely.

- What would you do with it?

- I don't know, but I do a lot of things like construction work and oftentimes if I were just a little stronger, I could actually -- I want to be stronger.

- Fantastic.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - I had the honor of interviewing Jess earlier.

Have you ever sat in front of somebody and been kind of in all and intimidated by the brilliance, like you could just tell that their talent radiates off of them humbly like a beautiful waterfall kind of thing?

It's really amazing that this city, this state produces talents as singular as Jess, so please make some noise for Jess Parsons and the band.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Do you hear me calling all the time?

All the time?

♪ (Music playing) ♪ Do you hear me calling all the time?

All the time?

The bells are tolling, all the time.

All the time.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ I know how you want to.

I know how to love you.

To love you.

Do you hear me calling?

All the time, all the time.

Our bells are tolling all on line on the line.

I feel the pull of it.

I feel it.

You have gone away.

I know how you want to.

I know how.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ I know how you want to.

I know how to love you.

[Cheers] - Thank you.

- Can you talk to me a little bit about what did support look like, how did you come into cognizance of being a musician?

What was the support, when was that?

- I mean initially it started when I was very young.

I remember my mom first time she heard me singing.

I got a solo in my first grade play, and she was, I was a very shy kid.

That's still a struggle.

But she was like you would not speak to anyone and you stood up on stage and you just sang and so from that point on my parents were just like push and push and push and push.

And then in young adulthood I ended up here and I just feel like this scene I can't describe it other than like it's my second family, it's like I have not lived anywhere else, but I played a lot of music outside of it, and talked a lot to musicians, and I just feel like the community that we have here it's so supportive, I don't feel like it's competitive at all.

At least not what I have experienced, I mean everybody is just like rooting for everybody else and I think part of it is it's kind of hard to make it out of Denver, and so I feel like there is a lot of camaraderie in like we are doing it.

We are all trying and everyone's working so hard, and sort of you know we all may be recognized there's like no sense in crawling on top of each other.

It's easier to just be supportive.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Don't you know I have waited a long time, watch it all just fall by the wayside.

Don't you know we waited a long time for this, can't you see the proofs in the season?

Not just saying things we want to hear.

Can't you see the proof in the season my dear.

There's no holding on to what they say.

Words don't work that way.

You can grip it tighter as you go but sometimes it's just wasted time.

Don't you know the truth is a landslide?

I've been taken by surprise.

Don't you know the truth is a landslide?

Baby there's no holding on to what they say, words don't work that way.

You can grip it tighter as you go, but sometimes it's just wasted time.

There's no holding on to what they say, words don't work that way.

You can grip it tighter as you climb but sometimes just waste time.

Sometimes just wasting time.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ [cheering] - So in the process of saying that you found a second family here, what kind of venues would have been your second home?

What were the places that you really connected with?

- Yeah I feel like a few of the projects that I played, especially we spent a lot of time at the High Dive.

So much time, and then Syntax is not around anymore, but Jonathan always did such a beautiful job, he had way back in the day would go to open mics there and then years later he had Syntax he would book you whenever you needed a show he took such good care of you and help you promote it, it was always such a great experience.

- Also what place would you go to, did you have any special connections with going to see the shows?

Were there any venues that were special?

- High Dive for years this is going way back but when Ben used to book it there, he brought in some like killer Indy, people you would go it was the kind of place where you would actually check the calendar for like even if you do not know them, local check things out and I feel like it was some amazing shows back when I was a very young musician very malleable.

It was cool.

- Do you think that played a big role in feeling as far as your artistic development being able to have something like that?

- I mean yeah I grew up in a really small town, I did not really see live music consisting of church.

And so as soon as I got here, I couldn't get enough of that, I just felt like I had to take in as much as possible.

- You are a sponge.

- I needed to see it.

- Which town was that?

- It's liberal Kansas, the southwest corner of Kansas.

I grew up there and my family is still there.

- How big is it?

- Oh like 15,000 it's not tiny.

It's in the middle of nowhere, it is the thing.

It's not close to anything else.

It's all out there.

- All my demons have fallen away in a lie.

So I'm picking up the pieces I have left behind.

In running from myself it seems like I have traveled so far.

But running in circles and you seem to forget where you are.

Say what you want, that's what you need.

Loving so much there's no guarantee.

Say what you want to, that's what you need.

Loving so much, it's no guarantee.

Found myself searching for answers I already knew.

Retracing steps is much easier to make in your arms.

Acknowledging my scars are the ones you can deny.

Before all the battle wounds you were creating my spark.

Say what you want.

If that's what you need.

Loving so much is no guarantee.

Say what you want.

That's what you need.

Loving so much is no guarantee.

Say what you want.

If that's what you need.

Loving so much there's no guarantee.

Say what you want, that's what you need.

Loving so much, there's no guarantee.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Let's say that you and a few friends have shared a bill at a High Dive afterwards.

Where are you all hanging out?

What would be some of those places to go to?

Bars, restaurants, what would have been the hots for you?

- Yeah, I mean if we are down at the High Dive you always end up at Sputnik.

Always.

This is a throwback but I don't know if you ever had the Unit E. - Oh yes.

- We would always work with those guys.

We all taught lessons together and we would often like you know any night of the week you could show up there and hang out there, but that's way back.

- Can you describe Unit E?

- Yes it was a DIY unit that the guys ran and they lived there and would clear out all their stuff and they would put on music like most every night of the week.

Just all DIY, invite people in town, out of town, kind of I mean it just got to be you could show up pretty much any time and hang out and you know make music or listen to music.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ Go on turn the water into why, another trip around the sun and some miracle this time they found all the room for the stage.

But show me to the door and that's for reciprocity.

Lucky I got you.

Lucky I got you, when you see the truth, somehow.

You stick around.

We live so fast just like you said.

The night is spinning deep inside my head.

I drown.

Stoned and stumbling through the storm.

They all raised their voices but didn't dare to sing along.

Lucky I got you.

Lucky I got you when you see the truth.

you stick around.

Say that I'm safe, say that it's true, forever young and always good.

Good.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ Lucky I got you.

Lucky I got you.

When you see the truth out loud.

You stick around.

[Cheering] Let's give it up for Sarah and Suzie.

- Can you give me a quick sense of the other bands like who's in that circle?

Who are some of these other groups?

- Yeah yeah, I mean I play with Patrick Douglas, amazing singer-songwriter, I play with Still Tied and Morsette, also she's amazing.

I play King Cardinal, I play with Joe Sampson, it's definitely like folk music that sort of like the circle I run, but yeah.

All those guys are great fantastic music, underappreciated every single one.

- Absolutely for sure without a doubt.

Some of the best songwriters I've ever encountered are on that list.

And then just as you have been here in the scene for 15 years, this might not be an easy question but really important.

Who do you think are some of the folks you may have influenced in this time?

- Oh, see I hope I mean I would like to think that those people that I would like to think that we all spent so much time together and work on things together, that that's the be like a no-brainer.

I don't know, it caught me off guard the other day Bluebook played a show at [indiscernible] and they were a bunch of younger people and some young woman came up to me afterwards and was saying that like it's so good to meet you and that was just such a strange feeling for me it was like oh I've been around she's just like you play with some new people and that's really nice but sort of a strange feeling to be like oh yeah people are watching and you can just forget, you can get so caught up in like doing the thing and that takes so much energy that you forget sometimes that yeah you were younger, just like I had the story before I played with Julie, remember at that time I was going I saw her open for Gregory Alan Isakov at the Fox I just remember looking up at her and being like if I can ever make music with that human I would die, I just thought she was just magical and so inspiring, and you know five years later, we started playing this together, so I had to remember that that exists.

- I bet some ways it still feels like that every single time you get to play with Julie.

- Yes absolutely, it has not lost its magic with any of these folks.

I love and adore and it brings me so much joy and fulfillment it does not get old for me at all.

- Well that's good.

Jess thank you so much for your time.

Thank you for everything you do in this scene.

- It's just a choice.

Keep the limb you lost, feel the lift each time you lose.

Made up my mind, not a second time it wasn't right.

Not getting any younger.

Close your eyes.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ Tears will subside as it slips away.

What we lose in time, is not a sense of pride.

It's knowing that it's worth the wait.

Yes you've got plans touch beyond the hands, not getting any younger.

Close your eyes.

Tears will subside as it slips away.

As it slips away.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ Don't keep the child, the timing isn't right.

Don't keep the child.

The timing isn't right.

Not ashamed, not getting any younger.

Thank you.

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Visit PBS12.org/programsupport and donate today.