Music Smarts

Yo, dudes & dudettes of the musically-oriented, welcome to my distinguished new Berkleemusic blog.  For starters, I’d like to introduce you to my new book MUSIC SMARTS.  Scroll down the information highway below and you’ll get a taste of the quotes in the book, plus background on Jack Johnson.

JACK JOHNSON

Surf Music
“Surfing has helped me in learning how to improvise. It’s like riding a wave. You never really know what the wave is going to be like. You gotta change and make split-second decisions. “

Jack Johnson, born and raised on the north shore of Oahu, was a champion surfer before he entered college to study filmmaking.  While studying at the University of California at Santa Barbara he produced a surf documenatry called Thicker Than Water, with two pals Chris and Emmett Malloy.  It not only featured his talents as a cinematographer, but also included his abilities as a singer/songwriter.
A four-song demo caught the attention of producer J.P. Plunier, who had worked with one of Johnson’s heroes, Ben Harper.  Plunier produced Johnson’s 2001 debut album, Brushfire Fairytales, and also played lap steel guitar on the record. Johnson’s second album, On and On, came out in 2003, folowed by In Between Dreams in 2003.  In 2005, he released the soundtrack to the animated film Curious George, which went to #1 on Billboard’s Top 200 and Rock Album charts.
Early in 2007, Johnson began remodeling an old mansion in Los Angeles, which also houses a recording studio and offices for his record label, Brushfire Records.  The entire building is very “green” and eco-friendly.  It’s here, in June of that year, that he began tracking 2008’s Sleep Through the Static, produced by J.P. Plunier, with recording and mixing by Robert Carranza, and featuring Johnson’s band: Merlo Podlewski on bass, Adam Topol on drums, and Zach Gill on keyboards.

A Higher Love
“When you play a song, whether for a couple people sitting around in a room or thousands of people at a concert, you get on the same wavelength where it feels like you agree with someone—where you have a common ground. Music can unite people.”

If you’d like to see some photos and grander interviews, one of which is from Surfer’s Path, click here for JJ in the world of Mr. Bonzai .  Go to Music Photos and Stories.

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Music Smarts features hundreds of quotations from a vast array of artists and industry gurus, reflecting on influences, heroes, integrity, performances, and many more critical aspects of being a music person. These gems of hard-won wisdom cover not only the highs of success, money, and fame, but also reveal the lows of missteps and rejection.

Drawn from 25 years of feature interviews by notorious studio insider, Mr. Bonzai, and edited by Mix magazine creator, David Schwartz, Music Smarts features razor-sharp insights from the music industry’s savviest artists, producers, technicians, and business execs, and showcases the brainpower that has made popular music the most influential force in modern culture. This handbook also includes a visual “who’s who” of the music biz with original portraits by Mr. Bonzai of the featured artists.

Look Inside the Book and order a dozen at Amazon.com