On her evocative, self-titled debut, Jenny Whiteley conjures up scenes of old rusted-out cars on front lawns, takes a sobering stop at the bar, and gets tangled up in a train robbery.  The characters along the way pine for lost loves, lost youth, and might just chase you off their property. "As a songwriter," explains Jenny Whiteley, "I think of myself as a storyteller. So I don't feel bound by personal experience. If I come up with an idea that makes me think, 'Yeah, that's a book I'd want to read,' then it's a song worth writing. “

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  Aengus Finnan, an ambitious folk singer from Northern Ontario, paid Jenny the ultimate compliment recently by recording one of her songs, “John Tyrone” for his debut CD.  The song is taken from Jenny’s previous musical project, Heartbreak Hill – a straight-up bluegrass band that enjoyed rave reviews where ever they played.  They started a weekly tradition of “High Lonesome Wednesday’s” at the Silver Dollar, in Toronto, a night of pure bluegrass music, which continues in a slightly different form to this day.  Heartbreak Hill’s only recorded effort was nominated for a Juno in 1998.

As she did with Heartbreak Hill, Jenny now shares the stage with her musical virtuoso brother, Dan Whiteley.  The early years of country music had magical brother pairings, so why not sister/brother?  "Through our teen years”, Jenny explains, “Dan was playing guitar and got into this heavy-metal phase. At the time, I was listening to my parents' singer/songwriter-type records and some folk-psych stuff like the Incredible String Band. So there was a bit of a battle of wills around the house when Dan wanted to hear his Motorhead. 
"The magic moment was discovering we could both enjoy listening to the Band. From then on, our musical tastes started to grow in the same direction, leading us back to the blues, over to Doc Watson and then to bluegrass." Being a prodigy of such a musical family, meant her destiny was determined long ago.

Her peers have recently recognized Jenny’s incredible voice.  Prairie Oyster invited Jenny to sing on their re-released “Man In The Moon” (a song written by Jenny’s father, Chris, by the way), and that is Jenny singing background vocals on Sarah Harmer’s new hit song, “Basement Apartment”.  She has also been awarded showcase opportunities at the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals, and at the exclusive North American Folk Alliance. 

Jenny Whiteley’s new CD, which she did produce herself, is distributed through Festival Distribution, and is available at record stores everywhere.  And did we mention the video? Oh yeah, it’s included on the CD as a Quicktime file. 

“Jenny and band … sing and play a clutch of original songs that sound well-worn and fresh at the same time.”
Robert Everett-Green, Globe and Mail
 

For more information, or interview opportunities with Jenny Whiteley, please contact Travis Bird at spune@inforamp.net or (416) 702-7556.
 

Jenny Whiteley
CD $15.00 ON SALE AGAIN SEPTEMEBER 8, 2003

1. Dance Till Dawn 
2. Lived It Up
3. Gloria
4. Baby, I
5. Lonnie
6. Train Goin' West
7. Someone On My Mind 
8. Breaking Down
9. Soda Machine
10.  '75
 

Visit Jenny's website