News
My favorite children's album of all time, Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George, was made by Jack Johnson, the barefoot Hawaiian surfer-songwriter. The 2006 sound track gently swings with eco-imagery, jungle-gym rhythms and a peacenik sweetness. But what I really dig about George is that it puts my hellion children to sleep in no time at all. That's right, demon spawn, dream your evil dreams!
Despite being as exciting as a Xanaxed panda, the 35-year-old Johnson was an instant star when he first caught the fame wave in 2001. And for all his bestoned stasis, he remains seductive: Along with debuting at No. 1, his last album, 2008's Sleep Through the Static, set a then-record for digital sales, moving 139,000 downloads in its first week. His follow up, the new To the Sea, is expected to enter the charts at No. 1, as well.
Once again, Johnson is strangely effective at setting a hookah-on-the-lanai vibe. His casual midrange delivery and island-time strums possess opiatic qualities. To the Sea is being called his most aggressive album yet, as singles You and Your Heart and At or With Me feature plugged-in guitars and fully awake drummers. But the truth is that this album is really no different than his others. And that, for the most part, is a compliment. In turbulent times of change — Jack Johnson doesn't.
Johnson has his own label now, the solar-juiced, recycle-happy Brushfire Records, a "green" company as serious about carbon footprints as iTunes sales. He's forever the Earth Daddy, all about Zen love, mellow gold and drum circle riddims. "Stop upsetting yourself, upsetting your thoughts, upsetting this world that you're standing on," he advises on The Upsetter. His mantra: chill out, dude.
Sometimes Johnson's schtick becomes cloying: On the circular Pictures of People Taking Pictures, he lazily informs that we're so busy trying to capture moments that we ultimately lose them. The reverb-drench Only the Ocean, a tribute to the Big Briny, is far more likable in its approach: "When this world's too much / It will be only the ocean and me." It's liquid and lovely.
Only on the title track, which has ferocious guitar and manic energy, does the artist charmingly lose his cool. It'd be nice to hear more of that — and we just might. In 2003, Johnson released the caustic The Horizon Has Been Defeated; the cautionary lyrics for which have proved nothing less than prophetic: "And then the rigs begin to drill / Until the drilling goes too far / Things can go bad / And make you wanna run away." To the Sea was presumably written before the Deepwater Horizon spill. It makes you wonder whether the unflappable Johnson will be in as mellow of a mood the next time around.
Sean Daly can be reached at sdaly@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8467. His Pop Life column runs every Sunday in Floridian.
Loading...
