Sifting warm sand between your toes, tasting the salt of July on your lips, bittersweet romance under star-spotted skies: singer and guitarist Jack Johnson bottled the emotions that define summertime and poured them into his new album, Brushfire Fairytales. His songs enchant listeners with acoustic rock that is bare but never boring.
Johnson grew up surfing in Hawaii, and his sound reflects the sultry wickedness of the waves. After gaining cult fame for surviving a wipeout on Oahu’s North Shore, Johnson chose film as his next creative outlet. He made two surfing documentaries, including “Thicker Than Water,” which won best film of the year from The Surfer Magazine Poll.
Johnson broke into the music business after an encounter with G. Love (lead singer of G. Love and Special Sauce). Johnson ran into Love in California, a chance meeting that evolved into a jam session. Johnson ended up writing “Rodeo Clowns” for G. Love and Special Sauce, and performing vocals for the song on their album Philadelphonic.
Brushfire Fairytales was recorded late in 2000 and released earlier this year. Johnson just wrapped up a series of tour dates opening for Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals. Harper contributes to Brushfire with his phenomenal slide-guitar skills.
Johnson and Harper’s styles are like first cousins. They share some of the same bloodlines (acoustic rock, smooth R&B vocals and sundry reggae, rap and pop influences) but their overall moods are different, because of their “upbringings.” Johnson’s songs are less politically charged, and his sound is more soothing and seductive than Harper’s. But Johnson’s sound is not sleep inducing, he simply knows how to rock the spirit and relax the senses at the same time.
“Drink the Water” has a quick beat and a syncopated cadence to the lyrics. Delicate finger picking makes the background pretty, while in the foreground Johnson’s vocals flow at a rollicking pace: “Drink the water drink it down this time, I know I’m bound to spit it back up.” Johnson’s voice draws the listener by employing a versatile rhythm in his vocals, stringing lines together and then stretching them out.
“Flake” is an addictive song trimmed with steel drum and slide guitar. Johnson declares, “it seems to me that maybe/pretty much always means no” and “it might not work because of other ties/and I know she usually has some other ties/and I wouldn’t wanna break `em.”
His voice trills and bounces around an empowered end to the imploring song.
Johnson reveals his humorous side on “Bubble Toes,” a love song about a girl whose “eyes are as big as her bubbly toes.” He doesn’t seem to mind that her “feet are infested with tar balls.” She is beautiful, and he wrote her a catchy song.
Like Marvin Gaye, Johnson’s sexuality drips from every note that falls from his lips. In the socially aware lullaby, “The News,” Johnson asks in a soft voice, “why don’t the newscasters cry when they read about people who die?/at least they could be decent enough to put just a tear in their eyes.”
The issue of violence on the news isn’t a great social concern, but it is something that most Americans can relate to. Johnson is skilled at tapping into emotions and situations that are familiar and giving them a fresh twist that keeps listeners interested.
On “Mudfootball” Johnson describes a childhood memory, and it will resonate with anyone who admits to nostalgia.
“We used to laugh aloud because we thought that everything good always would remain.” Brushfire Fairytales is an album full of moments that create emotional flashbacks. It’s perfect for driving around on a summer day, or even if you just want to pretend.
Getting hold of the CD is fairly easy, but you might have to ask a record store to order it, or try www.cdnow.com. Visit www.jackjohnsonmusic.com for more information. A
