Much more than Less Than Jake
Saxophonist JR Wasilewski speaks to Old Saybrook Middle School kids
THE MAN STANDING IN front of the stage, facing an auditorium full of students in Old Saybrook Middle School didn’t look particularly like a rock star. Neatly but casually dressed in jeans and a dark T-shirt, with short hair and a pleasant smile, he might have been a police department community relations person, or possibly a meteorologist from a local news station.
In fact, it was Peter “JR” Wasilewski, saxophonist for internationally renowned ska-punk band Less Than Jake, and he was on hand to offer a bit of encouragement and advice to five homerooms’ worth of kids gathered in the hall. Given that it wasn’t career day, and these weren’t music classes, Wasilewski was a perhaps unlikely speaker.
But Jason Deeble, a math and science teacher at the school who coordinated Wasilewski’s appearance, is not only a huge fan of Less Than Jake but also an educator who subscribes to the idea that students should be exposed to all sorts of positive influences from different sources.
“As a teacher, I’m a big believer in integration and overlap,” Deeble said in an interview earlier this week. “We use the same process for learning a new math skill that we do for learning a new instrument. I feel sad when people say things like, ‘I can’t draw’ or ‘I don’t dance’ or ‘I have a terrible voice.’ These are all things you can learn to do with practice just as surely as you can learn reading, writing and arithmetic.”
Several months ago, when Deeble saw Less Than Jake had tour stops in Connecticut, he reached out to the band through their website and Facebook page. Though it would have been fun to have the whole band come to the school and perform, Deeble realized the logistics made that unlikely — and he was delighted when Wasilewski reached out and said he’d be happy to show up and talk to the kids.
“I have a degree in education from Berklee College of
Music and originally wanted to be a teacher, but I ended up making different choices,” Wasilewski said, standing outside the auditorium as the students filed in before the event. “But I firmly believe in education, and I remember middle school being a very formidable time. It’s that period when, as a child, you stop wanting your teacher’s approval and start wanting approval from other kids. It’s a tough time and I want them to know that’s it’s OK and cool to pay attention and ask questions in class and work hard.”
Wasilewski said he hoped his message and that his status as a successful musician might resonate with the assembled classes even though he suspected few would be familiar with Less Than Jake or possibly even ska-punk as a style of music.
“None of these kids will know me,” he smiled as he prepared to go in and greet the crowd. “But I’m from Wallingford, a conservative small town where dreams of being a musician maybe weren’t considered realistic, and I just think it’s important to share the message that you can be anyone you want to be.”
Deeble, who’d prepared the students insofar as who their guest was, also made a short introductory video that explained the evolution of ska-punk music as well as its role in fighting racism and discrimination.
Wasilewski spent about 30 minutes speaking, mostly answering questions from Deeble and the students, and was able to fuse his responses to “famous person” inquiries with repeated declarations that hard work, determination and self-belief are incredibly important.
“Hard work is something you have to do, whether you want to be a musician, a doctor or a sandwich maker at Subway,” Wasilewski said in response to a question about how often he practiced. “I’ve played in Less Than Jake for 30 years, and we worked hard at it. We spent a lot of nights sleeping on floors but we kept at it and the crowds kept getting bigger.”
“Have you won a Grammy?” a student called out.
“No, but we’ve sold over a million records,” Wasilewski smiled — and a spontaneous burst of applause came from across the auditorium.
Other questions focused on whether he knows Taylor Swift (yes), if he played with the Beatles (“They’re a little older than me”), the subsequent “Well, who ARE other famous artists you’ve played with?” (Fallout Boy, Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Guns N’ Roses, Kiss), the biggest crowd he’s ever performed for (100,000 at the Redding Festival in 2004), and whether he’s married.
“No, I’m not married,” Wasilewski said. “The other guys are all married, but not me.”
“How do you not have a wife?” another student called out.
He smiled at the laughter the question generated.
“It didn’t work out. You could say I’m married to the band. But I’m not sad. I’m happy,” Wasilewski said — and another wave of applause spontaneously erupted.
There was one more burst of applause, when Wasilewski concluded his remarks by saying, “This is all I’ve ever wanted to be. A musician trying to make a difference. That allows me to be here today to remind you that you can do this. You can write lyrics or a poem about what you’re feeling. You can get together with your friends and play music, and if you work hard at it, you’ll get better. Whatever you want to do, work hard at it and you’ll get better. And you’ll be happy.”