Grab your glitter, your sequins and your shiniest suits for the 14th annual Cover Your Hearts Show, a benefit for The JWF: Feb. 17 at the Get Down.

By Claire Levine

In 2008, a group of musicians got together to celebrate Valentine's Day and the ‘80s – and to raise money for a good cause.

It was so much fun, they’ve been doing the Cover Your Hearts (CYH) show annually – with audience members returning year after year. And once again – the proceeds of this year’s CYH will support The Jeremy Wilson Foundation’s Musician Health & Services Program, an organization that serves a unique and important niche for Oregon’s music community.

Every year, musicians gather in pick-up bands or in their regular ensembles to perform their favorite songs of the ‘80s – when MTV was soaring, there was no such thing as too much, and some of pop’s most enduring hits came out of everybody’s radio.

CYH is a total indulgence in the most popular music of the ‘80s – a time to sing along, to reminisce and to bask in the friendship and quirkiness of Portland’s music scene.

Jenn Nau remembers getting hooked on the event as an audience member. “When I saw my first CYH show over a decade ago, I made a tiny, quiet goal in my head to get myself on that stage somehow.” Once she put a new band together, “It was NOT a quiet goal anymore. I always say, ‘I elbowed my way in.”

She said, “My first performance will always tug at my heart. I sang the Eurythmics, “Would I Lie to You?” with PDX Speedwagon, and it’s an experience I’ll always be grateful for.”

She’s performed at many shows since, with her own band and in groups assembled for the occasion. She warmly remembers singing the Cranberries’ “Linger” with 80HD after Dolores O’Riordan’s death.

Eighties music was the background and foreground of Jenn’s teenage years, as it was for Lael Alderman, who’s played every CYH show.

For most of the ‘80s, Erick Alley was restricted to his parents’ music collection (he heard a lot of Creedence Clearwater and admits to liking the Monkees reruns on TV). But when he started paving his own way musically, he caught up with ‘80s pop. And it’s still an inspiration to him.

Lael’s rule for choosing a song? “Everybody needs to recognize the song within five seconds. Everybody in the whole hall. So that means it had to be super popular for 400 people to know it,” he said. 

“I’ve been playing music for 30 years, and I would love to say that I’ve written a song that hundreds of people would sing along to. But that hasn’t happened. So, this is the next best thing . . . Holy crap! Everybody is singing along.”

Erick stepped in as the organizer in 2016 and restarted it last year after two years without a show during the pandemic. This year, he’ll also be performing with a group of former band-members who played together in the ‘90s. So, this year’s event will be a total indulgence in his younger musical days.

Each year, Jenn looks forward to “all of the moments with fellow musicians, the love, the camaraderie and the overwhelming audience support. Priceless.”

She often remembers  Lael, with a wireless mic, walking through the audience and singing to everyone from the back of the room. And a stellar cover of David Bowie’s “Under Pressure” by Jaycob Van Auken and Brian Free, as well as Deepest Darkest and Derby’s version of “I Wanna Sex You Up.”

She said, “It feels like we’re a family that has this kick-ass reunion every year. What brings us back (besides the fact that it’s for such a great cause) is that it’s just so fun. It’s the highlight of our year, musically speaking.”

Erick, Lael and Jenn are all big supporters of The JWF, and they’re delighted the event brings so much joy to everyone involved while helping something that’s so important to them. 

Jenn said, “Supporting The JWF has a great impact on the folks in our community who are just trying to survive. We owe it to our community. These are our people.” 

For this special event, you won’t be charged a service fee, and 100 percent of your ticket cost will go to The JWF’s Musicians Health and Services Fund. We hope to see you there.

Check out this interview with JWF’s Jeremy Wilson and Cover Your Hearts musician Lael Alderman from FOX 12 Now