Jody Kessler Press

"A superb songsmith." --Shawna Carol, Ladyslipper recording artist and author of "The Way of Song."

"Bare Bones showcases Kessler's impressive fingerstyle guitar technique,
rich vocals and ability to pen lyrics that should resonate with both locals and fans around the country."
--Jim Catalano, The Ithaca Journal

"Ithaca singer-songwriter Jody Kessler's sound is an engaging blend of folk and pop, acoustic and electric. She's a fine guitarist, an excellent singer with a warm, clear voice that's at once precise and soulful, and a standout writer with a true gift for melody and a way with a tale. Recommended."
--Richard Middleton, Sing Out! Magazine

Click on the graphic below to open this Ithaca (NY) Press & Sun Bulletin article as a large image in a new page, or here to download it as a PDF.

Click on the graphic below to open this Binghamton (NY) Press & Sun Bulletin article as a large image in a new page, or here to download it as a PDF.

Ithaca local Jody Kessler is making her second appearance at MuseFest this year. Hailing from NYC, she started her career as a teacher but in 1995 left that work to pursue music. She performs folk music that serves as sonic comfort food. Her style, both musical and lyrical, is right at the crossroads of the more vital branches of contemporary folk music--weaving together threads of inspiration from a variety of traditional musical cultures with personal, insightful poetry. Her songs frequently assume the perspective of the spiritual traveler, inviting the listener to come along with her on the journey. The guitar and vocals are crystalline reminding one of the best of the 1960's folk movement. Her sound and message come together to create an aural space that is truly meditative and conducive to community empathy which is appropriate as she is an ordained interfaith minister. Her music is inspirational and refreshingly honest. Performing solo at MuseFest will provide audiences with a stripped down taste of the songs that have come out of her studio work.

Since 1996 Jody has released four albums, most recently Bare Bones in 2003. This year will bring a few new tracks which will be available for download on her website, jodykessler.com. She performs in a variety of venues ranging from festivals with a few thousand people in the crowd to intimate living room concerts.

--Erin Leidy, Muse Magazine, 2006

From Random Harvest, Spencer, NY
October 25, 2000
by Sarah Kain
"...Kessler, an Ithaca-based, full-time performing artist, focuses primarily on social issues, spirituality, and personal relationships in No Solid Ground, her third album in the past five years. Recorded in Newfield's Electric Wilburland Studio, No Solid Ground also marks the third title produced under her own label, In The Moment Productions.

With this latest CD, Kessler melds her acoustic guitar with a diverse mix of the electric guitar, bass, drums, piano, organ, clarinet, and cello from area musicians such as Rich DePaolo, Bill King, Charlie Shew, Peter Dodge, Brian Earle, Chris White, and Annie and Marie Burns. The result claims musical kinship with the mellow, soothing intonations of Tracy Chapman and James Taylor, as opposed to the harder, rock-infused chords of fellow folk artist Ani DiFranco - although Kessler cites all three as influences. Her gentle vocals recall Taylor especially, but her lyrics and her guitar work are assuredly her own.

Like many folk artists, Kessler's strength lies in her ability to tell stories both lyrically and musically. The linear structure and narrative element to her lyrics works easily with unassuming melodies she composed, and every track on the album is friendly and accessible. No matter her opinions, Kessler never alienates listeners; even when her lyrics lightly mock her detractors and critics.

In the song "Hocus Pocus," the artist adopts a playful tone and mimics the stern advice of conservative people overly concerned with her choice of career: "The sixties are over, folk music is dead," she sings, "So kick off those Birkenstocks/and get a job instead/get a job instead."

Her sense of humor, introspection, love of life, and warm empathy for others is fully evident on No Solid Ground. She sings about cancer victims and same-sex marriage, asserting their stories and memorializing their pain and persistent, enduring spirits in the face of adversity. She sings about her own painful and positive relationships, and acknowledges the inspiration she gains from almost everything around her.

"But now I don't regret or blame," she sings in "The Way Things Are." "I just keep moving on/and it gives me more grist for the mill/and verses for these songs."

From Centre Daily Times, State College, PA
November 27, 1998
by Andy Adelewitz

"Jody Kessler's music simply rises above the world and tells us how things ought to be.

Kessler, a singer-songwriter from Ithaca, NY, is an adept guitarist, having received musical instruction from such masters as Martin Simpson and Paul Simon. But her true essence is her honest, straightforward and often downright empathic lyrics. Addressing issues from love and spirituality to sexual violence, Kessler tells it sometimes like it is, and sometimes like it ought to be.

She released her second album, Leap of Faith this summer. Kessler's pristine voice and acoustic guitar are behind the bulk of the music, with sparse accompaniment from some of Ithaca's premier musicians.

Kessler's songs deal with profound issues that affect every person, giving her an infallible appeal and strong personality. "Dominoes" deals with broken relationships and gossip and the fear that comes with not knowing where love will lead. In "My Darling, My Only," Kessler expresses the sadness and confusion of a mother whose child and new husband do not get along.

"Walk Without Fear" was written at the request of a rape crisis center and calls for an end to sexual violence and the silence regarding it. She wrote the especially touching "A Path to the Divine" as a marriage proposal for her husband.

The underlying theme on much of Leap of Faith, however, is announced in the album's title. Kessler's faith and spirituality and those of the rest of the world are all fair game for song fodder. "As Long As We Believed" celebrates all spiritual life that's true and genuine. In "Homesick," Kessler finds herself "homesick for God," looking back at her life and the lost purity of spirituality.

...Despite her musical style, Kessler is anything but behind the times, and she is an artist one can't help but connect with, comprehend and respect.

From The Ithaca Times
October 8, 1998
by Gene Ira Katz

A beautiful, distinctive voice, gentle acoustic melodies complemented by the soft hand of a gifted producer, and accompanying musicians possessed of great skill. These are all present in Jody Kessler's second CD, A Leap of Faith. But moreover, we are witnessing here the growth of Jody the Poet, one brave enough to reflect the trials and lessons of her life with delicacy and grace.

Never far from the awareness of God's role in the scheme of things, Kessler explores some of the more difficult features dotting the human landscape: lingering conflicts, troubled times foretold, taking a chance and choosing love amidst the march of lovers breaking apart / like dominoes falling down, or the eternal tearing between step-child and step-parent: how can I choose between my lover and my child / when one despises the other.

In "Walk Without Fear," Kessler takes on the problem of rape with a song commissioned to educate young people about sexual violence. With admirable honesty and courage, Kessler demonstrates that her excellent first CD, Another Day of Loving, was just the beginning, and that this mature artist is still developing her craft, and doing it quite well. Much applause too for producer Rich DePaolo who adds another fine example to his growing body of work. The Burns Sisters join for vocal harmonies on several selections, and some of this town's very best players help to make this another of Ithaca's very best recordings.