James Wesley puts those core values into his music with a whiskey-smooth voice and a timelessly winning way with a great country song. Wesley sings directly to real people about real things that profoundly affect real lives—and from his small-town upbringing to his blue-collar work ethic, he has a deep understanding of what those folks are longing to hear.
"I know there's more people out there than just me who want to hear something that grabs you and makes you go, 'Wow, that's me—that's how I feel, that's my day, that's my family,'" he says. "When you swing a hammer every day, when you're out there doing what you have to do, you learn a lot of compassion for the people that do it day in and day out."
Wesley grew up in tiny Mound Valley, a community of about 200 people in Southeastern Kansas. He first discovered country music via his grandmother's record collection, which included heaping helpings of classic crooners like Marty Robbins, George Jones and Ray Price. "We'd go over there on the weekends," he recalls. "She'd have the console set up and the records stacked up and we'd listen to them as they dropped. Those guys back then, they could sing. I thought, 'That's what I want to do.'"
His mother was the first to notice Wesley's own talent for singing when she overheard him belting out his favorite songs behind his bedroom door. "I thought if I shut my door I blocked everybody out, but evidently I didn't block Mom out," he says with a chuckle. "She heard me and said, 'I'd love to have you sing in church.' So that's what I did." Soon he taught himself to play guitar on an old Stella practice model. "I've got it to this day," he says. "You can still see where I wore down the D, C and G chords on the fretboard."
By his late teens he was singing in local nightclubs and beginning to think about making music his life. "I'd sit in my bedroom and stare out of the window and dream of being out there, getting to see the world," he remembers. His first move in that direction was to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, where he performed in a nightly music and variety show.
There he met his wife, Mindee, with whom he now has two young children—and finally set his sights on Nashville. "I could have stayed in Eureka Springs for the rest of my life, but I just had to chase the dream," he says. "I had to follow my gut." He and Mindee sold their house and almost everything in it, rented a moving truck and headed for Music City. Once there, Wesley took a construction job to make ends meet and began learning the ropes of the Nashville music business. He met hit songwriter Rodney Clawson and producer Dan Frizsell, and the three began recording together.
Their work caught the attention of Broken Bow Records, which signed Wesley in December and quickly released the very first song on his original demo, "Jackson Hole," as his debut single. The tune (penned by Clawson and Monty Criswell) immediately began racing up the charts, driven by listeners who loved its vivid story of fleeting love in a snowy setting. "Jackson Hole" offered fans an upfront introduction to the more vulnerable aspects of Wesley's personality. "Growing up with three sisters, I've got a sensitive side too," he says with a smile. "But I'm proud that I have that side, that I'm not callous. The only thing calloused about me is my hands."
The breakout success of "Jackson Hole" instantly validated the enormous risk Wesley took in uprooting his family from Eureka Springs for an uncertain future in Nashville was worth it. "My family has seen all the ups and downs," he says. "There's been a lot of hard work. There's been times it wasn't easy, and they've been there the whole time. They're great." It also meant that Wesley's days of construction work were over. "Thank God I get to put the hammer down, at least for a while," he says with a laugh. "It's nice to be able to do what I love to do."
James Wesley hopes to do what he loves to do for a long time to come. "I want to be in it for the long haul," he says. "I want to do those songs that everybody wants to hear, and that everybody can feel. I want to be the guy who tells the stories, and tells it like it is."
Jackson Hole
James Wesley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She said "We don't get much show in Tampa Bay"
She said, "I got confused, ended up on the blues
I was hopin' someone like you would come my way
I said, "Let's sit here and enjoy the view
Let you catch your breath for a minute or two"
The air is thin in Jackson Hole
Unless you can charm somebody into keepin' you warm
Find a hole in the wall with a cover band
Baileys and beer, yeah you laugh and dance
And you sing along to every song
And fall like the snow in Jackson Hole
Spent a couple of nights drownin' in her eyes
Gettin' lost between those tan lines from the coast
All the words we said, all the promises
I was sure she'd never let me go
But your heart can play tricks on your mind
When you're makin' love at the timber line
The air is thin in Jackson Hole
When the sun goes down, it's bitter cold
Unless you can charm somebody into keepin' you warm
Find a hole in the wall with a cover band
Baileys and beer, yeah you laugh and dance
And you sing along to every song
And fall like the snow in Jackson Hole
She had to leave on Sunday, she almost missed her airplane
We kissed goodbye, I said I'll call you first thing in the mornin'
When I woke up on Monday, I dialed the number she gave
That old man answered, said "Son, no one lives here by that name"
The air is thin in Jackson Hole
When the sun goes down, it's bitter cold
Unless you can charm somebody into keepin' you warm
Find a hole in the wall with a cover band
Baileys and beer, yeah you laugh and dance
And you sing along to every song
That's how hearts get broke in Jackson Hole, in Jackson Hole
The song "Jackson Hole" by James Wesley tells the story of a man who meets a woman while skiing in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The woman, who is from Tampa Bay and doesn't know how to ski, accidentally ends up on a difficult ski trail and is rescued by the man. The two hit it off, spending a few nights together, and the man is smitten with her. However, after she leaves, he discovers that the phone number she gave him is fake and he has no way of contacting her again.
The song's lyrics paint a picture of the bitter cold and the thin air in Jackson Hole, but also show the warmth of falling in love and the pain of heartbreak. The man learns that sometimes love can be fleeting, and that even in a beautiful place like Jackson Hole, not everything is as it seems.
Overall, the song conveys a message of the transience of life and love, and the importance of cherishing fleeting moments and memories.
Line by Line Meaning
It was plain to see she didn't know how to ski
She clearly lacked experience in skiing
She said "We don't get much snow in Tampa Bay"
She mentioned the limited snowfall in her hometown
She said, "I got confused, ended up on the blues
I was hopin' someone like you would come my way
She made a mistake on the ski trail and was seeking help from the person she was talking to
I said, "Let's sit here and enjoy the view
Let you catch your breath for a minute or two"
He offered to take a break and enjoy the scenery with her
The air is thin in Jackson Hole
Due to the high altitude, the air in Jackson Hole is thinner than usual
When the sun goes down, it's bitter cold
Temperatures drop significantly after sunset in Jackson Hole
Unless you can charm somebody into keepin' you warm
You need to find someone to stay warm with in the cold weather
Find a hole in the wall with a cover band
Baileys and beer, yeah you laugh and dance
And you sing along to every song
To enjoy the night, you can look for a small bar with live music, drink some Bailey's and beer, and dance and sing along with everyone
And fall like the snow in Jackson Hole
Like the snowfall in Jackson Hole, you can also fall for someone there
Spent a couple of nights drownin' in her eyes
Gettin' lost between those tan lines from the coast
All the words we said, all the promises
I was sure she'd never let me go
But your heart can play tricks on your mind
When you're makin' love at the timber line
He spent a few nights with her and was enamored by her eyes and tan lines. He believed in their promises, but it turns out that love can make you vulnerable and uncertain.
She had to leave on Sunday, she almost missed her airplane
We kissed goodbye, I said I'll call you first thing in the mornin'
When I woke up on Monday, I dialed the number she gave
That old man answered, said "Son, no one lives here by that name"
She had to leave earlier than expected, and he promised to call her soon. But when he tried to call her, he realized that the number she gave him was incorrect or fake.
That's how hearts get broke in Jackson Hole, in Jackson Hole
The song concludes that people's hearts get broken in Jackson Hole due to romantic adventures that don't always turn out as planned.
Contributed by Violet B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.