Much like when I first heard John Mayer, I wondered where the heck did this Jack Johnson guy come from. While The CD says it was released in 2000, it was nationally released by Universal Records late in 2001 and now Jack Johnson has become this grass-roots word of mouth artist. Not bad for a guy who claims surfing as his "day job" and first love.

Johnson has said that music just came to him and that he really didn't think about a music career until he recorded a few sides and a producer said he should release a whole CD. He did and left his native Hawaii to promote the CD appearing on such shows as Carson Daly's "Last Call" show.

Who would've thought that Acoustic artsy rock would re-emerge in the post-grunge/rap-rock era? I guess there are people out there who do like this type of music.

Jack Johnson's CD "Brushfire Fairytales" is one that would typically be classified as a "Triple A" or "Adult Rock" artist and would never see the light of day on Alt Rock or Pop stations. Alas his single "Flake" is receiving airplay and thus thrusting this CD up the billboard Charts.

To Compare Jack Johnson to another artist is no small feat. He can be compared to many other artists. Some that immediately come to mind are: John Mayer, Josh Rouse, some Foo Fighters, David Gray, Dave Matthews Band among others. I even would say he's the 2002 version of James Taylor. I know some of y'all are snickering by now but I truly feel this way. There's even a hint of Ben Harper in his stuff. In fact, my own brother thinks that Ben is Jack's biggest influence.

As for these songs themselves, they are lyrical, whimsical, and smart at the same time. Jack Johnson simply has a way with his lyric and an acoustic guitar that will amaze even the novice fan. While some of his songs have a simple chord structure to the tracks, that simplicity is overtaken by the smart lyrics.

Top TRACKS
While all are highlights,

The best Tracks are Bubble Toes, Posters, Flake, Mudfoorball, and F-Stop Blues.

"Bubble Toes" starts slow and then by the time the chorus kicks in it's an acoustic rock tour-de-force.

"Posters" starts somewhat like Tracy Chapman's Give Me One Reason but that’s where the similarities end. This track is about a guy who likes to keep posters up because of his own fallicies with women.

"Flake" at first glance is just another acoustic based rock song but after listening to the catchy chorus and lyrics, you will realize that the song simply hits you right in the gut.

"Mudfootball" has a Jimmy Buffett feel to it at first glance but in reality it is a reflection of the way we all act and think about with our friends when we are in college and high school.

"F-Stop Blues" is a basic acoustic blues song. I find that it is simply a Dave Matthews type look at relationships and dreams.

Track Listing
Inaudible Melodies
Middle Man
Posters
Sexy Plexi
Flake
Fortunate Fool
The News
Drink The Water
Mudfootball
F-Stop Blues
Losing Hope
It's All Understood

Final Analysis:

This is one of those CDs that every true music fan will be glad to have in their CD collection and not be embarrassed to play to their children a decade or two down the road.


Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Hanging With Friends