Pioneer. Trailblazer. Gamechanger.
Pick one, any two or all three, and you’ve accurately hit upon the essence of what makes Sass Jordan special, and has for close to 45 years now.
Even her adopted first name — her birth name is Sarah — speaks to the Canadian rock singer’s persona. Sure, “sass” is most often associated with disrespectful back talk, but the term is also frequently used to describe a bold, confident, and lively attitude. As things turned out for the Birmingham-born, Montreal-raised tour de force, Sarah was never going to cut it.
For Peterborough Musicfest audiences, it will be on full-on sass once again this Wednesday (July 8) as Jordan pays a long overdue third visit to Del Crary Park, with admission free to the 8 p.m. sponsor-funded concert.
In the late 1980s, having dedicated a good portion of the previous decade to honing her talent on Montreal’s bar scene before working as a session vocalist for a number of Montreal-based acts such as The Box and writing songs recorded by others, Jordan exploded onto the larger music scene across Canada and abroad.
The vehicle was her 1988 debut album Tell Somebody, which gave her chart hit singles in the form of the title track as well as “Double Trouble,” “Stranger Than Paradise,” and “So Hard.” As if that wasn’t enough, she hit the charts again with her remake of the 1965 R&B classic “Rescue Me,” which she recorded the soundtrack of the film American Boyfriends.
That Tell Somebody also drew Jordan critical acclaim must be mentioned. At the 1989 Juno Awards, the album brought her Most Promising Female Vocalist honours. Three more Juno Award nominations followed that.
VIDEO: “Tell Somebody” – Sass Jordan (1988)
After the release of her 1992 album Racine, which yielded four hit singles, and her duet with Joe Cocker on the song “Trust in Me” for the soundtrack of the film The Bodyguard, Jordan recorded her third album Rats. Among its tracks were “Sun’s Gonna Rise,” which gave Jordan her first Billboard Hot 100 entry. Before the 1990s were out, the albums Present and Hot Gossip were added to Jordan’s discography.
With the arrival of the new millennium, Jordan switched gears. After all, that’s what pioneers and trailblazers and gamechangers do. The transition saw her serve, from 2003 to 2008, as one of four judges for CTV’s Canadian Idol reality TV competition. In the midst of that run, Jordan recorded and released the album Get What You Want, followed three years later by From Dusk ’til Dawn and, two years that, the album S.U.N.: Something Unto Nothing.
Following the 2017 release of Racine Revisited — a compilation of reimagined versions of songs from the original 1992 slbum — Jordan did something else that pioneers and trailblazers and gamechangers do: she took on a challenge in the form a new music genre, the result being 2020’s Rebel Moon Blues.
The collection of covers of classic blues songs debuted at a heady number five on the Billboard Blues Chart. Clearly her soulful vocals and pure passion for the music she loves had found a new and exciting home, and revived fan base to go with it.
And then the song “Still Alive and Well,” included on her second blues album Bitches Blues, made it clear she hadn’t gone anywhere. Not even close.
In a 2020 interview with Making a Scene!, Jordan reflected on her journey, from growing up to classical music in the family home, to those first musical steps on Montreal bar stages, to her well-earned reputation as one of rock’s, and now blues, leading female performers.
VIDEO: “I’m The One” – Sass Jordan (2012)
Asked to share her “origin story,” Jordan erupted in laughter.
“I was born with a pack on my back and I pulled the trigger — off I went,” she said.
“When I was about nine years old, my family had just spent two years in India. My family were British emigrants to Canada. My parents only ever listened to classical music. My brother and I discovered that you could change what came out of the radio if you turned the dial. That was an absolute epiphany. The very first time we turned that dial, I heard “The Night They Drove Ol’ Dixie Down” by The Band. It changed my life. It was exactly at that moment I thought ‘I want to do that.'”
“That was the beginning of the entire journey and it just never stopped,” Jordan said. “I didn’t know anybody in the music business. I didn’t know anything about music other than I loved it. I didn’t know how to about creating a band or writing a song. All I did in the beginning was I listened, and I listened, and I listened to everything … from the cheesiest of the cheese to the coolest of the cool. I had no preconceptions of ‘This is good and this is bad.’ It was just all magical to me.”
In terms of artists who ultimately influenced shaped her sound and style, Jordan said “All of them.”
“At some point, I had to find my voice. My voice is not a gentle, sweet, easy listening-type voice. My voice is intense, loud, annoying, obnoxious and somewhat manly. I was not going to be signing in the Joni Mitchell vein, much as I adore her. I tried, and I tried, and I tried, and what came out is what you hear. Chaka Khan was a big influence on me, along with Gladys Knight. I loved a lot of stuff that you would not necessarily emulate as a female singer.”
VIDEO: Sass Jordan performing with Foo Fighters (2015)
Jordan made it clear that “it has never been about gender” for her, adding “It has always been about who I am as a human being, and the energy I’m carrying. That’s what makes me different from anyone else.”
As for her songwriting process, Jordan says the constant has been always writing with someone else.
“I don’t write the chords and music per se. I write the melodies and the lyrics. I literally get my inspiration for a song from the sound of a chord progression that somebody presents me with. The music creates the conduit for me. I don’t every struggle with it. The second I struggle with it, that tell me this isn’t right.”
As for her preference in terms of recording or live performance, Jordan made it clear in a 2017 interview with kawarthaNOW that “each has their pros and cons. Each one is equally important to me, and equally powerful and fun.”
But, of particular relevance to those planning to take in her Musicfest concert, Jordan noted “the most important ingredient is the people that are in attendance at a particular performance. It’s the collective that makes the thing what it is.”
“When I’m doing a song, its effect depends on who is there to listen to it and how it’s affecting them. That’s what we’re here for — to have a lot of fun and get our minds off the bullshit for two hours.”
Prior to Sass Jordan taking the stage, the Cogeco-sponsored Future Sound Series will see Peterborough musician Lotsy (aka Sarah Jayne Riley) perform from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., near the food trucks at the George Street entrance to Del Crary Park.
VIDEO: “Still Alive and Well” – Sass Jordan (2022)
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 16 free-admission concerts during its 39th season, staged in Del Crary Park on Wednesday and Saturday nights until August 19.
Overseen by executive director Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the 2026 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or call the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2026 season.
