Jess Tardy

Music appears to come effortlessly from this indie troubadour, though there's a lot of hard work behind it. "I guess the term country-soul works,'' says Jess, whose talent really eludes simple boundaries. She currently has a Friday night residency at the Boston-area club Bull McCabe's, where the cream of Boston's roots musicians join her. Jess anchors the event with her twinkle light adorned keyboard, and her drop-dead stunning voice. With her shoes perpetually kicked off, she plays vintage covers by Cindy Walker, Van Morrison and Dan Penn, among others.