Oh man, as far back as I can remember, music and performing went hand in hand for me. I come from a family of music. My father, a drummer, played big band music, my great aunt played violin in an all female band in the 40’s and my uncle plays trombone and was in the band which backed Elvis in his only Canadian appearance.

Performing music began for me at age 6 with piano recitals at Massey Hall in Toronto, where I grew up. I have vivid memories of leaning into my Mom before walking on stage in front of hundreds of people and telling her I had to go to the bathroom. She told me it was just nerves. What if I can’t hold it? What if I really have to go in the middle of my piano piece? These are the memories I have of 6 years of Royal Conservatory Music.

At 13 years old my friend’s Dad gave me an Emmylou Harris album, Roses in the Snow produced by Brian Ahern. That album to me was what Supertramp’s Breakfast in America was to most kids in my era. I knew that cover front and back. I made note of every player on that album and got their records. Ricky Scaggs, Dolly Parton and so on. Things ballooned from there. I got into Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn.

The first concert I ever went to was Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty and the Twitty Birds. Can you picture all this? A teenager in the early 80’s, in downtown Toronto, going to a Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty. I don’t think any teenager in Alberta would have gone to that concert. Anyway, my Mom went with me.

After listening to every country album I could get my hands on, I heard the song Me and Bobby McGee. I found Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, The Stones, and The Pretenders.

At this point, musically, I had been playing classical and Irish fiddle songs after picking the fiddle up at school. My friend’s family was from Ireland.

I started playing drums in an all girl band and started gigging at every club in Toronto, Larry’s Hideaway, The Bamboo, The Rivoli and the Elmacombo (yes, the same stage as the Rolling Stones), by the time I was 15.

When I finished university I took my fiddle and guitar, which I had just recently picked up, and headed West. I played in every honky tonk in western and northern Canada. I loved the north. Places I’d loooooove to live include Prince Rupert, BC and Whitehorse, Yukon.

After two years of getting my chops up, I decided to venture into the world of original music. My Dad was very concerned saying you don’t make any money playing your own stuff and my Mom was more the dreamer, like me, with her encouragement to go for it!!!!. Shoulda listened to Dad.

In 1990 I put out my first album As We Walk on Thin Ice. A collection of songs I had written on my Canadian travels in a country band. Movie director Bruce McDonald (Road Kill and Highway 61) phoned and wanted to use my song Mama’s Waitin’ in his film Highway 61. It was all very exciting and I loved the movie.

Then I got hooked up with Edmonton’s “Jr. Gone Wild” and went on an amazing, very hazy road trip with them for a year. That band brought me back to why I came West in the first place playing original material and bringing my rockin’ roll country influence to it. I loved playing in Jr. Gone Wild. Those guys knew how to rock! the intense rockin’ energy we had on stage continues on in my performances today.

Oh yea, and then I met a cowboy in 1990. Those darn cowboys, a bull rider too. We married and I moved away from Edmonton to a ranch near Calgary. That is when I started playing with Tim Leacock. We still play together today. Jane Hawley and the Pistons was formed which gradually formed into a band named Beautiful Joe. We did an amazing tour with Jann Arden in 1994. The band stayed together for 5 years and made one record with producer Brian Ahern.

My brain is starting to hurt with all this info. How’s your’s doing? Anyway, in the middle of the Beautiful Joe project I put out another album Letters to Myself. In 1996 I opened for Lyle Lovett, a highlight of my career, an amazing guy, we talked cattle!!!

After Beautiful Joe ended it was time to take some time off. I was burnt out. It was the best thing I ever did. I am now back in the beautiful world of music, performing, writing and feeling the energy again that I had when I was a teenage locked away in my room listening and learning every note to my favourite new song.

I am looking to promoting and touring with my new release Ordinary Dream.