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While Jack Johnson has earned numerous accolades for his cinematic work, more often these days, it's been his own countenance reflected through the camera lens. Jack Johnson returns
to home turfBy Shawn "Speedy" Lopes
slopes@starbulletin.comThe Haleiwa-raised surfer-turned-filmmaker-turned-singer has watched his star ascend in 2001 with the award-winning "September Sessions" -- a half-hour celluloid treat featuring the likes of pro wave tamers Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, Shane Dorian, et al. -- and the universally lauded album "Brushfire Fairytales."
As one of a new breed of singer-songwriters who prefer a stripped-down, acoustic sound to the flimsy fanfare of modern rock, Johnson, like his songs, is unassuming, thoughtful and a tad pensive. His music, a quiet fusion of blues, folk, rock and soul, somehow manages to convey emotion without emoting. His lyrics, like snapshots, establish mood through imagery.
With a film crew shadowing his every move, the 26-year-old Renaissance man finds himself on Hawaiian soil once again, this time as the subject of a PBS documentary. While it took a change of address for Johnson to find his calling (or callings), he admits to daydreaming about the islands on occasion and is quite grateful to be back on Oahu.
"I miss it all the time," he says. "But I come back a lot, as much as I can, maybe five times a year. I do want to move back here eventually."
He is also grateful that his greatest passions -- surfing, film and music -- have afforded him the opportunity to travel the world without requiring him to choose between the three. "But if I had to make a choice, I'd say I like surfing the most," ventures Johnson, "then playing music. I enjoy filming, too. The great thing about having different projects is when I take a break from one of them, it makes me more excited to take on the next one."
IT WAS AS A senior in high school that a terrifying surfing mishap (at age 17, he was the youngest surfer to make the finals of the Pipe trials) left him laid up at home for two months. With a guitar bought by his mother to help pass the hours, Johnson used his down time to hone his budding musical skills.
Where: World Cafe, 1130 N. Nimitz Highway Jack Johnson in concert
Time: 8 p.m. today
Tickets: $15, all ages
Call: 599-4450 or 947-3633
"It was a bad one," Johnson said of the accident, which resulted in a cracked skull and more than 100 facial stitches.
Johnson says that just as his father made his way to Hawaii in his early 20s on a sailboat, he believed he needed to discover the world when he came of age. "He just kinda learned on the way," he says of the senior Johnson. "That's why I think it was in my blood to travel."
For an inquisitive youngster with a love for the ocean, California held a certain allure with Johnson. He enrolled at UC-Santa Barbara, became acquainted with film and began forging friendships that would lead him through a succession of bigger and better opportunities.
Through a mutual friend, Johnson met Epic/OKeh recording artist G. Love of G. Love and Special Sauce, and the two hit it off. After one particularly productive afternoon jam, both found they shared common ground on a variety of subjects.
"He's a surfer himself," Johnson explains. (The Philly-bred G. Love, Johnson claims, is "not bad" for an East Coast 'boarder.) "We both like surf movies and I liked his music. The next day, we recorded a track ("Rodeo Clowns") that ended up on his album ("Philadelphonic"), just like that. It really wasn't like a business deal or anything."
Another chance meeting resulted in the acquaintance of J.P. Plunier, producer and manager of exploratory troubadour Ben Harper (a huge influence on Johnson), which led to a supporting slot on a Harper tour and eventually a recording deal and his own tour with Enjoy Records. "I will do more shows here, even on the Big Island, Kauai, Molokai, and eventually establish Hawaii as one of the places I go to on a regular basis," Johnson promises. "It's where I'm from."
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