Flippin' Nora I have sooooo many reviews to read!!! Kate x
Flippin' Nora I have sooooo many reviews to read!!! Kate x
Member since:17.07.2006
Reviews:148
Members who trust:99
In Between Dreams
This is one sublime set of songs. Better Together kicks off the album with a slow summer style that calls you in and chills you out without any apparent effort. Simple lyrics and a funky, catchy, guitar based song that makes me want to describe it as "plinky plonky". I know. It's a ridiculous way to describe a piece of music, and quite unacceptable I imagine in most music loving circles, but this is my review, and two weeks away from giving birth and having just lost half a tooth (think I swallowed it - eek!) I think I can use whatever language I want to describe this wonderful musician. Except Swahili or Russian. Don't speak those. I love this album. My nephew was born to the sound of Jack singing merrily. It's a beautiful album with some amazing songs and the added bonus that they are all so different in style from each other, so that when one is finished you just want more! I have this on repeat in my CD player and it's one of the few albums I have that I can listen to all the way through without skipping any tracks. Jack Johnson plays acoustic guitar and piano with a style that makes you feel happy, chilled out, and puts a big smile on your face - the music is gentle, not too heavy, and moves from slow paced to fast without jolting your mood in the slightest! It has an almost summery jazz feel to it, with a touch of Bob Marley in the bass - though only a couple of songs have bass guitar, drums or percussion - most are just acoustic guitar.
My favourite songs are Do You Remember, which is funky and sweet and about how a love begins and how long it has lasted for. Love it! I also really adore No Other Way, which has an almost lullaby quality to it, Staple it Together, which is fast and funky and when you listen to the words - WOW!!! That's the other great thing about this album - the music, the guitars and the piano, well they're just great, but the lyrics.... Wow, the lyrics just get you - they are so true, so beautiful and you want to listen as much for them as for the melody.
Born in Hawaii, Jack started playing guitar at the tender age of 14, no doubt to woo the ladies. He is inspired by a great plethora of musical legends, including Nick Drake, The Beatles, and Bob Marley, to name but three. When you listen to his music, it's very evident that certain songs have been influenced by certain artists. I hear Nick Drake in No Other Way, with it's slow, sad tones, and Bob in Staple It Together - it has such a real flavour of Jamaica to the base line.
You'll probably hear different things in different songs, and that is one of the great things about this album - it has such a lack of pretension about it that it encourages you to hear what you want in it, to enjoy it or read deeper into it as you choose. Without making a judgement on you for it, and without trying to guide you either way. I like that.
Go buy it. You'll see what I mean. Promise.
Jack has four albums out: Curious George, Brushfire Fairytales, On and On, and In Between Dreams
He also has done the music for 3 soundtracks, Thicker Than Water, September Sessions and Sprout.
Thank you for reading, Kate x
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Sep 4th, 2007
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