 Photo by Pamela Murray. Click for high-resolution version. |
About Jacob Haller
I grew up in Holland, Massachusetts and I still remember the music parties my parents used to throw, where friends and families would bring their instruments by and we would sing all kinds of music, from old traditional songs to Motown hits. When I got to college I picked up the guitar and started learning some of those songs, and eventually I started writing songs of my own, mostly strange little songs I wrote to entertain my friends.
In 2010 I was nominated for 'Best Singer/Songwriter' in the Providence Phoenix. I currently perform solo and with a backing band, the Running Commentary. I'm also a member of two other bands, the Killdevils (a blues/soul/rock band) and the Double Decker Dance Band (an afro-beat/dance band).
I've been a member of the Rhode Island Songwriters Association since September of 2006. In 2011, my song 'The Ballad of Anne Hutchinson' was one of those selected to be played in 'Singing About Providence', a show celebrating Providence's 375th anniversary put on by HEAR In Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Songwriters Association.
I've recorded a demo of nine songs you might hear me play at a show (covers and originals) which I encourage you to listen to!
 Photo by Sarah Sturtevant. Click for high-resolution version. |
Jacob Haller and the Running Commentary
In September 2010, my friend Natalie suggested doing some shows together. We recruited Joe Auger to play drums in the project and quickly came up with arrangements for a bunch of my songs (many of which I had written with no notion of ever performing them with a band). Together, we are Jacob Haller and the Running Commentary!
Natalie Markward is a talented jazz guitarist perhaps best known for her work with Anne's Cordial, a folk/jazz group in which she also sings. The Running Commentary provides an opportunity to explore the bluesier side of her playing.
When he isn't playing the drums here and with Anne's Cordial, Joe Auger is a great singer/songwriter in his own right. He also plays more instruments than you can shake a stick at, and is an experienced sound engineer and producer as well.
I feel very lucky that two musicians of this caliber have agreed to be in my band, and I'm having a lot of fun collaborating with them!
"No one spins a tale more uniquely than Jacob Haller." -- Chris Conti, The Providence Phoenix, November 15, 2011
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"Jacob Haller knows how to play to a crowd." -- Ted Hayes, The Sakonnet Times, January 17, 2012
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"I can picture Jacob at the front of a classroom making a bunch of kids bop along while learning about a controversial heresy trial." -- Heather Rose, December 1, 2011
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"Haller ranges with hints of Leon Redbone, Greg Brown and Paul Geremia, smoothly pulling out lines that are as catchy as a smile. The tunes themselves never try too hard. They are just fresh and somewhat jolly sounding." -- Jonathan Cook, Turley Publications, October 27, 2009
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"Jacob Haller's lyrics are edgey, current, and most amusing, revealing a man so personable, bright, and talented, any knitter would love to share a knitting sit-in right beside him." -- Sharon Watterson, Providence Knitting Examiner, December 30, 2009
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"Music is dumb! I only like music that Uncle Jake sings!" -- my four-year-old niece Harriett, November 19, 2011