Feb 272015
Last night Tobias Jesso Jr. gave a commanding performance with the Roots on The Tonight Show, justifying the insane hype that has built up around the L.A. songwriter. He sounds most similar – and has been most often compared – to Harry Nilsson, but Alex Chilton isn’t too far off either, and that’s who he honored for a cover this week for the BBC.
He strips Big Star‘s “Thirteen” down to a solo piano ballad, but his plaintive vocals carries the performance. And that crescendo at the end shows he knows his way around the keys too. Listen below (cover starts at 16:05).
Check out more Tobias Jesso Jr. on his website. Debut album ‘Goon’ comes out March 17.