Jack Johnson

Jack Johnson一個成長在夏威夷海邊的職業沖浪選手，在他厭倦了滑板的生活之后，跑去當導演拍攝了一部嘻哈歌手的紀錄影片。 后來又和民謠歌手合作，走入了唱片界。他不僅一手包辦整張專輯的詞曲、還會彈吉他，長的可愛討人喜歡、有著詩人卻不至文弱的陽光氣息。出生在陽光滿地的夏威夷，抱著吉他懶洋洋的在海邊唱歌，是他最大的滿足。 命運是很奇妙的，就跟海邊的浪潮一樣，不知不覺地會把人推到新的方向。從小在夏威夷長大，杰克強森會走路的時候也會沖浪，17歲的時候他已經是沖浪界的天才，以最年輕的年紀揚名于世界級沖浪大賽(Pipeline Masters)，正當體壇將他鎖定成海灘明日之星，比賽后一個月，杰克強森在沖浪時發生嚴重意外，臉上縫了150針(但不影響他俊俏的外貌)，讓他整整三個月無法出門，卻也給了他三個月抱著吉他、創作音樂的時光；但是杰克強森并沒有一股作氣成為創作歌手，18歲的他選擇到加州大學念電影，99年導演并且擔任電影配樂完成了沖浪電影‘Thicker Than Water’，初執導演筒的他，贏得各影展最佳導演等大獎，眼見著杰克強森就要加入電影界，新的一波浪潮卻迎面來襲；杰克自彈自唱的歌曲，早期就被沖浪巨星們作成卡帶復制流傳，命運的浪潮意外的把卡帶輾轉流傳到唱片公司老板的手上…2005年的今天，杰克強森，這個海灘男孩，不只是沖浪天才、不只是得獎導演、他是全球銷量300萬張的創作才子。 Before Jack Johnson became the 21st century kingpin of beachside pop/rock, he was a champion surfer on the professional route. The sport was second nature to the Hawaiian native, who began chasing waves as a toddler and, by the age of 17, had become an outstanding athlete on the Banzai Pipeline. However, Johnson was also testing other creative outlets — specifically film and music — and a serious surfing accident convinced him to devote more time to those landlocked hobbies. After studying cinematography in college, he turned his full attention to music, writing breezy pop songs punctuated by an unassuming voice and mellow, beach-bum demeanor. The combination proved to be particularly commercial, as Johnson's first five major-label albums all climbed to platinum status. While studying film at the University of California in Santa Barbara, Johnson partnered with friends Chris Malloy and Emmett Malloy to produced a surfing documentary entitled Thicker Than Water. Although the project spotlighted Johnson's talent as a director, it also showcased his flair for songwriting, and the accompanying soundtrack featured several of his own tunes. Thicker Than Water was deemed 2000's Video of the Year by Surfer magazine and paved the way for a second surf flick, The September Sessions. Meanwhile, Johnson began receiving similar notice for his songs, one of which was covered by G. Love & Special Sauce on the band's 1999 album, Philadelphonic. Shortly thereafter, Johnson's demo material piqued the interest of J.P. Plunier, a French producer who had helped launch Ben Harper's career several years prior. With Plunier's help, Johnson recorded and released Brushfire Fairytales in 2001. The debut album featured a cameo by Ben Harper, thus sparking a friendship between the two musicians. Moreover, its casually spun folk songs attracted an audience that stretched far beyond Johnson's own surfing community, and Brushfire Fairytales went platinum as a result. After touring throughout the early half of 2002, he returned to the studio and issued On and On one year later. Despite its musical similarity to Brushfire Fairytales, On and On found Johnson delving into social commentary, resulting in a number of songs that paired worldly, insightful lyrics with a sunny surf vibe. Jack Johnson toured heavily in support of his growing catalog, taking frequent breaks to surf and spend time with his family. When it came time to return to the studio, he resumed his partnership with Mario Caldato, the same producer who had helmed On and On, and decamped to the Mango Trees Studio in Hawaii. In Between Dreams was released in 2005, sporting a mango tree on the album's cover (in tribute to the studio) while offering a familiar mix of tropical songwriting and conscious commentary. The album peaked at number two, Johnson's highest position to date in America, and sold more than two million copies stateside. Oddly enough, it was Johnson's next project, the kids-oriented Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George, that finally sent him to the top of the charts. The soundtrack debuted at number one in February 2006, selling 149,000 copies during its first week and making Curious George the first animated film since Pocahontas to have a chart-topping soundtrack. Like the four albums before it, it climbed to platinum status. Despite such continued success, however, Johnson was dealt a sharp blow in 2007, when his cousin Danny Riley succumbed to brain cancer. That death, coupled with the decision to record outside of Hawaii's familiar environment, lent a moody ambience to Johnson's next record, 2008's Sleep Through the Static. Nonetheless, the bulk of the album retained a warm, sand-scrubbed feel, and Sleep Through the Static went platinum within five weeks.