Charmaine Janitha Jones (ADE)
Wives, Lovers and Others

Doors 6pm
Show 7pm

Heartwarming, raw, satirical and uplifting, Wives, Lovers and Others is a must-see live music experience from Adelaide vocalist, pianist and director of vocal powerhouse house, Gospo Collective, Charmaine Janitha Jones. Through her original music and reimagined standards, the Sri Lankan-born, Australian-raised artist reveals an intimate and candid exploration of womanhood, love and survival.

Seeped in jazz, rnb, gospel and semi- classic roots, the musical storytelling prowess moves between passion, vulnerability and humour with an electric precision and warmth, that is unique and yet signature Jones. Art and life are simultaneous in this mesmerising performance with Charmaine at the helm and her band featuring, Damien Thomas (guitar), Oliver Powell (bass) and Jackson Mack (drums).

From Maiden to Martyr, Sinner to the Saved and ‘nothin’ but the truth’, this is a vocal tale not to be missed.

More about the artist

Of Sri Lankan descent, Jones made Adelaide her home in the late 1980s when she migrated with her musical family. Her mother, Patricia Arulampalam, was a renowned first soprano of the Sri Lankan Opera, and that lineage of discipline and passion is evident in Charmaine’s artistry. Charmaine studied at the Elder Conservatorium, where her teachers included American jazz vocal masters Mitos Cox and Connaitre Miller, alongside Australian greats Christine Sullivan, Anita Wardell, and Michelle Nicolle. Jones later returned to lecture at the Conservatorium for 12 years, also teaching at Monash University, St Mary’s College, Woodville Special Music School, and Tatachilla Lutheran College, to name a few. Today she is the Singing and Choral Director at Pembroke School, where she has inspired students for over 13 years. 

As a performer, Jones has spent nearly three decades working with some of the industry’s finest, including Leo Sayer, James Morrison, Vika & Linda, Glen Shorrick, Robbie Williams, and more. Her influences are just as eclectic; Ella Fitzgerald, Jill Scott, Stevie Wonder, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Barbra Streisand, Nana Mouskouri, Rodgers & Hammerstein, The Carpenters, Kirk Franklin, Bach, and Bartók, giving her a vocal style that is lush, versatile, and impossible to pin down.

Charmaine’s career highlights are many: performing under Paul Grabowsky’s direction with Paul Kelly in, ‘Meet Me in the Middle of the Air’ (2006); a backing vocalist with Michael Bublé (2008); headlining ASO Does Disco (2015); and appearing in a wide range of orchestral collaborations with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra from James Bond (Nicholas Buck conductor) and George Michael (John Foreman conductor) tributes to sharing the stage with Kate Ceberano (Vanessa Scammel conductor), Patti LuPone, Marcia Hines, Casey Donovan, Darlene Love and Rueben Kaye, Jones has proven she can adapt to any stage. In 2021 she was a feature with Groove Terminator in the Festival of Orchestra, fronting the powerhouse Gospo Collective after various shows arranging choral House Music for the DJ in ‘House 5’ with the choir. Jones’ recorded work with internationally recognised guitarist Mike Bevan, including the albums ‘A Small Hotel’ (2012) and ‘Still’ (2013), earned critical acclaim, with The Australian awarding four stars and praising her “vocal sensitivity and technical intricacy.” 

Over the years she has also fronted bands such as Supernova, Every Breath, and Ding Productions, dabbling in musical theatre, cabaret floorshows, and carving out a career as one of Adelaide’s most in-demand session singers. Her voice has been heard on jingles and advertising campaigns for brands including San Remo, Tourism SA, and Zamels. Beyond the spotlight, Jones is celebrated for her dynamic work with the Gospo Collective, creating and conducting productions including Gospocentric (2009), Gospolicious (2014), The Gospel According to Earth, Wind & Fire (2018), Jukebox Chorus (2020) Jackson vs Jackson, (2018, 2019, 2021,2024, 2026) and Whitney: The Greatest Love of All (2023, 2024). These last two shows, arranged, produced and directed by Jones, featured in Night at the Barracks (Manly) in 2024. Jones has also co-conducted with ARIA Award-winner Jonathon Welch AM (Choir of Hard Knocks) but is most renowned for her own conducting and arranging style; daring, inventive, and full of fire.

Beyond her collaborations, Jones has also performed under her own name at leading venues across Australia, including Brisbane Jazz Club, The Doo-Wop, QPAC, Melbourne’s Paris Cat and Bird’s Basement, Sydney’s Foundry 616, and The Ellington in Perth. Whether reimagining jazz standards or exploring the rhythms of Brazilian music, she brings the same bold artistry and improvisational edge that defines all her work.

In the past year, Jones has turned her focus toward her own original music, performing  with The Vatican – a collaboration with Julian Ferrareto, Enrico Morena, Alain Valodze, and Jamie Harrison. Together they craft a sound that is intimate yet expansive, weaving jazz, soul, and improvisation into richly layered storytelling. This project marks a new chapter in Jones’ artistry, showcasing her as not only an interpreter of songs but a creator of them, with music that is both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Through it all, Charmaine Jones remains a performer who transcends labels. She is a singer, a composer, a teacher, a producer, and above all, a storyteller. With every note, she delivers the unexpected, raw yet refined, playful yet precise.  Whether fronting a choir of hundreds, commanding an intimate cabaret stage, or guiding a young student to find their voice, Jones leaves a lasting mark: audiences don’t just hear her music, they feel it.