Jack Johnson (musician)
Jack Johnson |
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Jack Hody Johnson (born May 18, 1975) [1] is a Hawaiian born singer-songwriter, musician, filmmaker[2], and surfer who achieved commercial success and a dedicated following, after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales in 2001. He has since released three more albums, and a number of EPs. His music genre is best described as acoustic/soft rock/adult alternative.
Introduction to music
Jack Johnson learned how to surf and skate from his father's best friend Alex Conell. Jack learned to play the guitar at age 14.[2] Jack was a professional surfer until an accident at Pipeline in which his front teeth were knocked out and he received more than 150 stitches.[3] While he was recovering in bed, he spent his time writing songs and playing guitar. However, Jack didn't seriously pursue a career in the arts until his college years at the University of California, Santa Barbara. While in school, he met his wife Kim, a Carlsbad, CA, native who double-majored in Math and Fine Art. They welcomed a son, Moe, in 2004. Jack Johnson also played rhythm guitar for the party band "Soil,"[3] and graduated with a degree in film.
Discography
Albums
- Brushfire Fairytales (2001)
- On and On (2003)
- In Between Dreams (2005)
- Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George (2006)
- Sleep Through the Static (2008)
Soundtracks and EPs
- 2000 Thicker than Water
- 2001 Out Cold
- 2002 September Sessions
- 2005 Some Live Songs EP
- 2005 Sprout
- 2006 A Brokedown Melody
Virtual albums & EPs
- 2004 iTunes Originals - Jack Johnson
- 2005 Sessions@AOL - EP
Unofficial bootlegs
About Bootlegs
Johnson has stated in several interviews that a big part of his success involved his friends recording "bootlegs" of his tracks and distributing them at surf competitions.[3] Johnson has also stated that he supports the sharing of live recordings and bootlegs of his music[3] [4], many of which can be found here.
- "It's pretty crazy. There's stuff I would find online that I'd only given to one friend, so I know how it got there," Johnson says. "It's been a spider-web effect. That's the whole reason all this [success] started. I'm sure there's lots of people who hate [downloading], but I really dig it."[3]
Concert DVDs (also on iTunes)
Chart performance
Albums
| Year | Title | Label | Chart Positions[5] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. | Australia | UK | Canada | New Zealand | |||
| 2001 | #34 | #13 | #36
(peak April 2006) |
- | #1 | ||
| 2003 | #3 | #2 | #30
(peak May 2006) |
- | #1 | ||
| 2005 | #2 | #1 | #1 | #3 | #1 | ||
| 2006 | #1 | #1 | #15 | #1 | #1 | ||
| 2008 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions[5] | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Hot 100 | U.S. Modern Rock | UK Singles Chart | Australian ARIA Singles Chart | |||
| 2002 | "Flake" | 73 | 22 | - | - | Brushfire Fairytales |
| "Bubble Toes" | - | 39 | - | - | ||
| 2003 | "The Horizon Has Been Defeated" | - | 31 | - | 51 | On and On |
| 2004 | "Taylor" | - | - | - | 28 | |
| "Wasting Time" | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2005 | "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" | 66 | 25 | 65 | 24 | In Between Dreams |
| "Good People" | - | 29 | 50 | - | ||
| "Breakdown" | - | 40 | 73 | - | ||
| "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" (UK re-release) |
- | - | 65 | - | ||
| 2006 | "Better Together" | - | - | 24 | - | |
| "Upside Down" | 38 | 25 | 30 | - | Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George / Soundtrack of the Curious George movie | |
| 2007 | "If I Had Eyes" | 47 | 17 | 60 | - | Sleep Through the Static |
| "Sleep Through the Static" | - | - | - | 69 | ||
"Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" re-issue
The single, "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing" only became a chart hit in the United Kingdom, after the re-release climbed into the Top 10 following Jack Johnson's exposure on the 2006 BRIT Awards on ITV1. The single climbed to hit status a week before the release of "Better Together". Both the original release and indeed the re-issue had failed to chart until this point.
- "A friend of mine was trying to get this girl," said Johnson, "and I tried to write a song that would help him have a laugh at himself because he was spending so much time trying to get her and it obviously wasn't leading anywhere. That was one just to cheer up a friend."[6]
Compilations
- 1999 G. Love & Special Sauce's Philadelphonic - "Rodeo Clowns"
- 2004 G. Love & Special Sauce's The Hustle - "Give it to you"
- 2004 Donavon Frankenreiter's self titled album - "Free"
- 2004 Handsome Boy Modeling School's "White People" - "Breakdown"
- 2005 Look at All the Love We Found - "Badfish"/"Boss DJ"
- 2005 The Black Eyed Peas' Monkey Business - "Gone Going"
- 2005 Animal Liberation Orchestra's Fly Between Falls - "Girl I Wanna Lay You Down"
- 2006 G. Love & Special Sauce's Lemonade - "Rainbow"
- 2006 Buena Vista Social Club's Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba - "Better Together"
- 2007 Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur - John Lennon's "Imagine"
Other projects
In 2000, Johnson directed a surf film entitled Thicker than Water with his film school friend Chris Malloy.[7] The film features breaks from Indonesia, Tahiti, India, Ireland, France, Australia, and Hawaii, and Johnson provides various rhythms for the soundtrack, with some appearances being performed by G. Love & Special Sauce. Two years later, Johnson also directed another film entitled The September Sessions.[8]
In 2002, Johnson founded Brushfire Records[9] which released the soundtracks for the aforementioned films. Other artists on that label include Matt Costa, Animal Liberation Orchestra, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Rogue Wave.[10]
In 2004, Johnson co-founded the Kokua Hawaii Foundation, which is a non-profit organization that supports environmental education in the schools and communities of Hawaii. The Kokua Festival is the Kokua Hawaii Foundation's annual benefit event that brings together environmental organizations, eco-friendly businesses, musicians, artists, teachers, and community leaders to promote environmental awareness in Hawaii.
Johnson's latest album, "Sleep through the static" was recorded with %100 solar energy.
See also
References
- ^ e-hawaii.com
- ^ a b http://jackjohnsonmusic.com/main.asp?page=bio.asp?NavId=9
- ^ a b c d e http://www.geocities.com/jackjohnsononline/interviews.htm
- ^ http://www.dailytrojan.com/media/paper679/previousarchive/V142/N59/01-youvegot.59d.shtml
- ^ a b "Jack Johnson worldwide chart positions and trajectories". aCharts.us. Retrieved December 28 2007.
- ^ http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2005/Mar/06/il/il30a.html
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432149/
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386016/
- ^ http://www.brushfirerecords.com/about
- ^ http://www.brushfirerecords.com/index.php/home
External links
