Jordan Fairless spent fifteen years helping define the modern improvisational landscape as bassist, vocalist, and co-founding member of Spafford. From 2009 through 2024, he was a primary creative force behind one of the leading independent bands of the era — writing and performing "Leave the Light On," a track that amassed millions of streams, while helping grow an audience that filled venues across the country.
Beyond performance, Fairless was a pioneer in DIY touring and production. He built the sophisticated digital audio/video workflows and independent live-streaming infrastructure that allowed Spafford to release a vast catalog of live recordings across Nugs.net, Bandcamp, YouTube, and beyond — long before that kind of self-sufficiency was standard practice.
Following a serious on-tour collision that required a pause from the road, Fairless retreated to New York's Hudson Valley. What followed wasn't just recovery — it was redirection. "I've begun to rediscover true personal joy through music," he wrote in late 2024, "allowing it to heal me in ways I never expected." That honesty, and the stillness that preceded it, became the foundation for everything that came next.
© Photo by Vic Brazen — Utopia Studios
Big Deep was born in Woodstock, New York, where the mountains hold onto echoes and songs seem to rise out of the trees. Founded by Fairless and NYC avant-garde guitarist Luke Schwartz, the band delivers clever melodic songwriting with indie harmonic depth.
Schwartz brings a downtown experimentalist's pedigree rooted in the high-concept New York music scene — a counterweight that sharpens what Fairless brings from fifteen years on the improvisational circuit. Together, they've synthesized that experience into something more focused: groove-rock with funk in its bones and the restless energy of the city running through its veins.
Think pocket-heavy rhythms and melodic earnestness. The same restless curiosity that made Spafford's sets feel like an "experimental dance party" channeled through a tighter, song-forward frame.
Celebrated for intertwining intricate melodies, soul-stirring rhythms, and vibrant grooves on his five-string bass, Jordan was born in Florence, Alabama — on the outskirts of legendary Muscle Shoals — before relocating to Nashville, Tennessee at a young age.
His musical roots run from ’90s grunge, alternative, hip-hop and country to the pulse of Florida’s early-2000s rave culture. In Arizona, during his college years, he locked in on bass and began forging the raw, emotional style that still drives his playing today.
With Spafford, Jordan toured extensively across the U.S., sharing stages with Umphrey's McGee, The Disco Biscuits, The String Cheese Incident, and Greensky Bluegrass with notable performances including multiple appearances at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Bonnaroo, Electric Forest, and Hullaween.
As a singer and songwriter, his works include fan favorites "All In," "Backdoor Funk," and "Leave the Light On." Jordan now calls Woodstock, NY home with his family.
Photo by Vic Brazen — Utopia Studios Yamaha BBP35 — Hartke HL Series
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