Queen of Canadian rock Sass Jordan returns to St. John’s this Dec., and we have your preview.

Fans here in Newfoundland most recently saw you perform alongside Rod Stewart in 2015. You’ve been here countless times throughout your career. Are there any immediate thoughts and memories that stand out about your trips to the island?

Sass Jordan: The first time I was in Newfoundland was 1978. When I was first going there it was such a different place. It was these super tiny communities that were very sort of cut off from everything. There was no such thing as cellphones or computers in everyday lives. People were super kind and friendly. I know Newfoundlanders are known for that, and still are, but back then it was like you were family. They’d invite you right into the house and offer you cod soup. I remember these freezing freakin’ drives. It was scary, because of the moose. It was remote. The island itself has not moved, as far as I know it has not physically moved in the ocean, but energetically it’s closer to the mainland now simply because of the communication capabilities that we have now. Things have changed so dramatically since then.

 2017 marks the 25th anniversary of your landmark album Racine, and you’ve recently released an update version of the record Racine Revisited. What was the reasoning behind touching up this album? 

Sass Jordan: When you think of doing something like this you think of ‘update’ and getting it all fresh and new. With this kind of music, the only way to make it newer is to make it older. It was a twisted way of thinking about it and we were thinking what can we do to give it a cool twist? Really, that record should have been made in 1975, but I was too young at that time. I wasn’t close to making a record.

It was the only way I could think to re-do it without getting bored myself. I’ve been playing these songs for 25 years – it does get a little tedious unless you look at it differently and you put a new perspective on it. When I’m playing the songs live it doesn’t matter that I’ve been doing it for 25 years because it’s always the people who are there, the audience, who make the songs come alive for me. It’s like every single show is a different energy, because it’s a different group of people. It’s never boring live.

 You’ve been touring the album in a more stripped down setting. How has fan response been thus far?

Sass Jordan: It’s a storyteller tour. It’s semi-acoustic and every song on the record and I tell the story of what was going on when that song was written. It’s been a tremendous experience. Everybody absolutely loves it. Even the band loves it.

It’s really fun for me doing a storyteller type show, because I get to write all the stories and I get to read out loud, which I love to do. I get to make people laugh, which is the other thing I love to do, and I get to sing. It’s everything I love wrapped up into one amazing evening. We have standing ovations every single time we’ve done it. We’ll be playing a full rock show in Newfoundland, but hopefully one of these days we’ll bring the storytellers show.

 For any fans who have yet to experience a Sass Jordan rock show, what do you bring to the table?

Sass Jordan: Honest to God heart. It’s heart and energy and joy. It is so much fun to do this job and to have people feel better for however long the show is. It’s a pretty cool job to be able to do … I think that everybody needs to get together and celebrate life every now and then. Music is just a catalyst for that. Have a drink and listen to some great music and enjoy yourself. It’s such an important part of being human. Just forget about your bulls**t for an hour and a half, you know?

For tickets to Sass Jordan at Club One on Dec.8th visit cluboneevents.com