Jack Johnson CD Review
Jack Johnson
Sleep Through The Static
Brushfire 1756 126
**
It may be deepest midwinter as I write this, but the release of a new Jack Johnson CD is enough to signal the first stirrings of spring among his devoted followers. All over the country Bermuda shorts and sleek swimsuits will be surfacing, flip flops dusted down, hammocks unfurled and pina coladas expertly mixed. Yes, the Hawaiian super surfer is back riding the waves and his gentle expressions of love are sure to find a home in many a female heart. The more grounded among us, however, will demand something of greater substance to float our boats.
Two years have elapsed since Johnson’s last album, IN BETWEEN DREAMS, took Britain by storm selling nearly 1.5 million copies into the bargain. Since then, Jack has spent time with his family and worked on the Kokua Hawaii Foundation project, which he and his wife have devoted to recycling programmes and education in the islands’ schools. Writing about the inspiration behind the new album, Johnson explains: ‘Some of the songs are about making babies. Some are about raising them. Some of the songs are about the world that these children will grow up in—a world of war and love and hate, time and space. Some of the songs are about saying goodbye to people I love and will miss.’ All 14 tracks were recorded on tape machines powered by the sun in Hawaii and Los Angeles, so it’s a good job they didn’t plan to cut the record in the UK where solar energy is in short supply.
Now Johnson’s green credentials may be impressive but his music palpably suffers from a serious lack of human energy. The majority of these songs are so similar in mood and tempo that I found myself subconsciously changing the record’s title to Sleep Through The Album since its effect was stiflingly soporific. The first single, If I Had Eyes, is a bright, sunny ditty which stands out as virtually the only tune that breaks away from the monotonous acoustic nurdling that afflicts much of this collection. A keyboard player named Zach Gill has now joined Jack, his drummer Adam Topol and bassist Merlo Podlewski so there are more musical options for the band. But the missing ingredients which really would make a difference are memorable melodies, varied moods and sheer honest-to-goodness passion—an irresistible desire to sell the songs and the message. There have been myriad laid-back troubadours in the eclectic annals of rock, but artists like James Taylor and Cat Stevens were never dull, whereas surfer Jack Johnson is wobbling dangerously close to creative wipeout. Let’s hope Jack livens up before he headlines the big open-air bash at London’s Hyde Park on July 2. Bob Kilbey