By Allison Barnes, SDAM Staff Writer
©Copyright 2024 SDAM.com/Allison Barnes

Live shows usually offer an incredible sense of force and passion from the musicians involved. Jennifer Jayden is no exception to this idea. In fact, she enforces this concept fully. She opened her show at Borders Bookstore in Carmel Mountain Ranch with a piano set. Immediately, I could feel that she had soul. It was obvious in her voice as well as her stage presence and facial expressions. By the time she played the third song, "Back to the Love," I had no doubt that Jen Jayden was exactly where she should be. "Back to the Love" is played on the piano and has an amazingly catching chorus. It demonstrates her extensive vocal range perfectly: Jayden can go from hushed, low vocals to almost forced high notes. Before the show even started, I met Jayden and her husband, Clint. They both set up the equipment and later I found out that Clint is also a sound engineer. It was a combined effort, and the support and obvious friendship of the two started off the concert with a great vibe. While speaking to her in between sets, she mentioned that performances of other artists influence her own music. She continued this thought by quickly naming local concerts that she has attended lately, including Ernie Halter and Skyler Stonestreet. When it comes to Southern California music, Jayden knows her stuff. Jayden started off the second set with the song "Jaded" (which can be found off of her live CD, "Lost Along the Way"). While the first set was played on the piano, she now used a guitar. The sound obviously changed slightly, but she did not hesitate at all and maintained the same quality performance as ever. Her second song of the set was a cover of The Police's "Message in a Bottle." By the second verse, she was completely rocking out and making the song her own. It was an amazing acoustic cover of the song filled with an incredible drive. Throughout the entire show, a steady crowd filled the seats in the art section of Borders. The audience ranged from a tiny little girl to older adults, each finding something about Jayden's music to pull them in. In true Borders fashion, shoppers passing by the area stopped to listen for at least a moment. Luckily, the performance was also decently amplified to the entire bookstore. This year, Jayden will be teaching voice lessons in the day, playing an increasing number of shows in the evenings, and possibly moving to Los Angeles (but always returning frequently to San Diego). She hopes to be able to release an EP by May, but this idea is just in the planning stages right now. Jen's Website Jen's Myspace Buy her CD from CD Baby