Jon Jameson is best known as the bassist for epicly cool rock band, Delta Spirit, but in recent years he’s added “dad” to his resume. As a special Father’s Day edition of our series, I Woke Up Like This, we hung out with Jon and his son, Henry on a weekday morning in their LA home and talked to Jon about how being a dad has impacted him creatively, both as an artist and person.
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Jonathan Jameson. I play bass in Delta Spirit, started a festival in Orange County called Outpost Fest, and am a theological student, husband, and father.
Describe your perfect morning.
It would all start with Henry (my kiddo) sleeping in. I would wake up feeling fully rested for the first time in 3 years, make a perfect cup of coffee, be silent for at least 10 minutes, perfect my migas recipe, bring some to my wife in bed, and then Henry would come in and just chill with us with us instead of crazily jumping on the bed or wanting to watch Toy Story for the one thousandth time. Too bad that’s never happened.
How has being a father changed you/impacted you as an artist? As a person?
Strangely, it has been in becoming a father that I have been able to make a little more sense of time and use it more productively and creatively. Before Henry, I honestly have no idea what did with all my down time when I was home from tour.
On the artistic side, it has made me take what I do more seriously. Not only does my time mean more to me, but it also makes the projects and music that I work on in that time have a greater personal value. It’s hard to overstate the impact of fatherhood (or parenthood, for that matter). We live in a largely self-obsessed society, and I fit into that mold pretty well. It seems to me that children have a special role in keeping us from becoming too convinced that the whole world revolves around our every whim. Like music and art, they bring us outside of ourselves, and our phones – and we desperately need that.
What was the biggest surprise about becoming a dad?
That my kid has honestly had a personality from birth. It’s incredible to watch him develop and it seems more and more like my job to try my best not to screw up this amazingly unique person. I try to just guide him as we both continue to learn how to love and grow into the people that we are becoming (and also to keep him from watching too much YouTube).
What’s your advice to new dads? Something you learned that really helped you.
Being a new parent can be pretty daunting. Don’t feel guilty if it’s not all roses. Lack of sleep and loss of autonomy can do crazy things to your brain. In my experience, fatherhood has just gotten better and better as time goes on. There are new challenges, but it continues to get infinitely more fun. Babies are a wonderful miracle and all, but toddlers are so much cooler! Henry and I sit around and talk about the world, tell jokes, work on art, listen to music (I’m still trying to convince him that “Go, Go Thomas!” is not the best song ever written), search for new breakfast burrito spots, meet up with buds for coffee, hunt for new parks where he can run wild (and then hopefully crash out for a few hours!), and cruise around on other new adventures every day.
How did you and your wife approach designing/curating your home?
We moved back to LA a couple years ago from Brooklyn after Henry was born and suddenly had way more room, so it’s been a process. Our vibe has always been a mix of modern, vintage, beachy, and practical. We somehow can’t stop buying white couches even though we have a kid that spills chocolate milk on them like every two days. We dig bright colors, dried flowers, mid-century lines, old books, and lots of light.
What’s the last dad joke or dad saying you remember saying out loud?
That’s like asking a fish the last time he’s seen water. (Is that a dad joke?) I think dad jokes are just my norm – I told them way before “dad-dom”. I’ve always been a “pun guy” and I think that’s like dad 101.
Photos by: Samantha West
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