“Jessie” by Joshua Kadison
Jessie is the singer’s romantic interest. And they have sort of an on-again/off-again relationship. But this aspect of their association seems to be Jessie’s doing. For she is the type to come around, get serious for a while and then disappear.
Thus the stage is set with the singer receiving a phone call from her, who is somewhere out in Las Vegas, early in the morning. She basically tells him that she wants the two of them to flee to Mexico to live a carefree life together, drinking tequila and chillin’ on the beach. But this is a song he has heard before. In other words, Jessie has the tendency to randomly pop up, make big plans and, before they’re even complete, suddenly bounce. And the insinuation is that the actual reason she may be making contact with Joshua out of the blue is to actually hit him up for cash.
And apparently he has reached the point where he has since moved on with his life. Or stated otherwise, she has been gone for so long that the singer, and even their cat, had already concluded that she is not coming back and set their minds accordingly.
However, he is still there to entertain her conversation. He imagines that perhaps this time around, the situation will actually materialize just as ideally as Jessie is presenting it. But more to the point, he clearly loves her. Indeed the concluding sentiment is that ‘Jessie can sell any dream’ to the narrator. So that’s his way of saying that, even if he doesn’t necessarily approve of her lifestyle or the way she treats him, he will always be there for her.
Facts about “Jessie”
Many people interpret this song, which was written by Joshua Kadison, as actually being about popular American actress Sarah Jessica Parker. This is because Joshua had briefly dated and parted ways with Jessica shortly before “Jessie” came out. Also Jessie, in the female since, is in fact short for Jessica. However, that is just circumstantial evidence. There is actually nothing solid to support the theory that this song is about Sarah Jessica Parker.
“Jessie” was released by SBK Records on 11 May 1993. And it is featured on Joshua Kadison’s maiden album, “Painted Desert Serenade”.
Interesting to note is that there’s another song entitled “Georgia Rain” on the album where Joshua also gives a shoutout to Jessie.
The producers of “Jessie” are Rod Argent and Peter Van Hooke. “Jessie” performed well internationally, charting in over 15 nations including the UK, US and New Zealand.
I love Joshua Kadison`s songs, I wish he would bring out more albums soon.
Awesome! Great singer with strong vocals! I love Joshua Kadison and his amazing music!
Something about this song just speaks to me.
Just listened to this song for the first, I’ve kept on rewinding and I get enough of it,Joshua Kadison penned down the lyrics perfectly.