Teenager with a Telecaster took to weird road through musical styles

There are lots of reasons — a wide, weird variety of reasons — you might want to hear Jesse Dayton at the Creek Stage on Sunday.

One, he played guitar for Johnny Cash, recording a number of tracks with the performer.

Or maybe because of how he got that gig: Waylon Jennings.

According to Dayton’s bio on his website, Jennings heard Dayton on the Nashville TV show “Crook & Chase” and called him “out of the blue” asking if he’d play on the record he was making, “Right for the Time.”

Sure. Dayton would do that.

When he knocked on the studio door, it was Johnny Cash who opened it and greeted him saying, “We’ve been waiting for you.”

That open door led to record and film work with Cash and the likes of Ray Price, Willie Nelson, Johnny Bush and Glen Campbell, the website states.

But it wasn’t playing country that got Dayton all his chops on guitar, and that’s where it gets a little weird, but not totally weird. As a teenager with a Telecaster, Dayton ventured illegally into clubs as a regular player with black zydeco bands in Lake Charles, La., blues men relatives of Lightning Hopkins in east Texas, as well as playing with country veterans who’d supported George Jones in his early Texas days, the website states.

Dayton’s circle widened further as he aged into adulthood to include work and tours with legendary punk outfits and then to Nashville TV with Jennings tuned in.

In time came another happenstance leading to another call that put Dayton’s career in a higher, weirder gear. Hearing Dayton’s records at a party, a rocker-filmmaker wanted him. Who? Rob Zombie, the horror rock star turned horror film director. Again, a call but this one asking Dayton to write and record a soundtrack for “The Devil’s Rejects.” He did and then co-wrote songs for Zombie’s “Halloween II,” worked other Zombie projects and got additional film and TV work both musically and as an actor, according to the website.

But Dayton is in town to play his songs. The music is raw and lyrics brash and gritty whether he’s singing about his daddy or the woes of “Charlottesville.”

The guitar playing is a bargain for $12 to get in — just remember all those who’ve liked it and given Dayton a call. And “get in” is a good point with such a wet weekend predicted and outdoor events canceling left and right. Seeing Dayton stir up a storm inside on the Creek Stage may be just the thing.

This story was originally published May 30, 2018 at 5:44 PM with the headline "Teenager with a Telecaster took to weird road through musical styles."