Meet Jason “Gordo” Gordon

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Gordon.

Jason, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I started playing guitar and singing when I was 9. During those first few years, I also began learning to play bass, piano, and harmonica. As time went, I became more and more interested in how these different instruments worked together to “build” songs.

Once I had learned the different instrument parts to whatever song I was working on, I then needed a way to put them all together. So I got a boombox stereo with a tape deck and a blank tape and recorded the first part. Then I got another boombox with another blank tape and played back my first recording while adding a second instrument. I would continue recording back and forth, from tape to tape until I had the entire song built.

This was really the first steps that ultimately lead to what I’m doing now. When I was 22, a friend of mine got a guitar effects pedal with a “loop” function. I was not familiar with this feature and sat on the floor of his basement playing with it. When I realized that this pedal could record me live, and instantly playback or “loop” what I had just done, it hit me like a revelation.

This is what I’d been looking for my whole life! So, I got the same pedal and began looping anything I could. Over time, the looper pedals became more advanced, and my capabilities grew. I quickly turned my full attention to my looping and built an entire show around it.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No path worth taking is ever smooth and easy. There have been many obstacles along the way, that I believe have ultimately helped shape me as a person and as a performer. I became a father at 17 and was awarded full custody of my son at 19. With this enormous responsibility, I was forced to put my dreams of pursuing my music career on hold for many years while raising my son. I did, however, use this time to work on my craft.

I spent every available minute practicing and figuring out creative ways to loop the songs I was working on. Once my son was old enough, I went back to playing shows in the local bar scene in southern Mo where we lived, and quickly found myself performing full time.

When the time came that my son was old enough to move out and find his own way, I had a full show and felt ready to really pursue my dreams. My fiancee, Colleen, quit her job in Branson Mo to become my manager, we packed up our things and took off for Key West to seek out our future, but we didn’t get far. In fact, we hadn’t even gotten out of the neighborhood when we got the call that her father in Phoenix had passed away. Heartbroken, we turned the truck around and began the long drive to Phoenix.

We spent a week in Phoenix dealing with her father’s belongings and things and realized pretty quickly that we were running out of money, and didn’t have enough to get back on track with our plans. So, with no income and dwindling funds, we decided to start looking for work in the Phoenix area. We found a bar nearby that was having an “open mic,” and figured that was as good a place to start as any. We went down and signed up to play.

After playing a handful of songs that night, things started to happen. We met and became friends with many of the locals, and many of them introduced us to some of the other bar owners in town. Within a couple of weeks, our schedule began filling up, and I’ve been playing the Phoenix area steadily now for the last four years.

Gordo – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I’m known mainly as a loop artist and modern day one man band. I essentially build entire songs one instrument at a time by recording each part live on the fly, then “looping” each part back while recording other parts on top of it. The art of looping has become widespread, and there are many very talented musicians that have incorporated this in their playing.

However, I think what sets me apart in this arena is the way I use this technology to literally build entire songs very quickly and on the fly while performing the song live. The end result is a full band sound, complete with drums, bass, lead and rhythm guitar, harmonica, and harmony vocals, all done completely live on stage, by one guy, as the audience watches.

Is there a specific memory from when you were younger that you really miss?
I think my favorite memories from childhood would be watching my Uncle Dave play guitar and sing. He was my inspiration, and I was in awe of him. He began teaching me to play, and from that was forged a very strong and unique bond between us. Sadly, my Uncle Dave passed away a few years ago, but will forever be my hero in a musical sense.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jasongordogordon.com
• Phone: (618) 447-7178 (Jason) or (618) 580-8491 (Colleen)
• Email: contact@jasongordogordon.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason_gordo_gordon/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gordoentertainment/
• Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH88fA_k4bmpb92FwHFgUJg

Image Credit:
Colleen Williams, Jacob Gordon, Independent Events

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