Tonight, Jack Johnson plays for over two fun-filled hours. It speaks volumes for the quality of his show that it flits by as quickly as his rise to superstardom, and leaves a trail of converts in its wake.
Jack Johnson may be a regular dude, but with his latest album simultaneously at No.1 in the UK and the US he is one with a vast world-wide fanbase. So how did this happy-go-lucky surfer suddenly become a hero to millions?
While not strictly a fully-fledged follow-up, Sing-a-Longs… is to all intents and purposes a Jack Johnson solo album. Nine of the 13 songs are newly written and recorded by Johnson, in just a month, for the soundtrack of the animated movie.
"...with an album proper to offer this time around, it seems that Johnson is back with a vengeance – fans of his effortlessly laid-back acoustic fare will immediately warm to this strong collection of songs."
A white man inducted into aboriginal culture, 29-year old Australian singer-songwriter Xavier Rudd eschews western-obsessed pop for more indigenous spirits.
"Listening to their lackadaisical, bluesy songs, it’s easy to be transported away from the incessant drizzle to a rooftop bar in the blistering sunshine."
The diet coke ad would love this: “Let’s hear it for the band member who starts a solo project!” That said, we’ve heard Geraghty’s sweet voice occasionally take centre stage in his day job as Bell X1 guitarist (most notably ‘Trampoline’), but this is 100% his own thang: he’s written, performed and produced it, and his mother should shed a tear of pride. Coming across like a blues/country version of Jack Johnson, it’s brimful of ideas which are combined seamlessly. Bodes well for the album.
Having sold 7.5 million copies of their debut album, and collaborated with Sting, Justin Timberlake and James Brown on their new record Monkey Business, the Black Eyed Peas are among the premier pop acts of the moment. And they're still only getting started, as they tell Steve Cummins
A breathtaking variety of acts have come together - as Lennon might have put it - to focus attention on the ongoing genocide in Darfur, under the auspices of Amnesty International.
Their debut album Hopes And Fears launched a host of hit singles, going on to become one of the most successful British records of the past five years. But, their indie background notwithstanding, Keane have still been dismissed by some self-styled aficionados as just too nice to be considered real rock'n'rollers. "If only people knew," says lead singer Tom Chaplin.
If ever a cause needed highlighting, it’s the ongoing tragedy in Darfur, Sudan, which in the recent words of Goal’s John O’Shea "the international community has all but abandoned".
Having struggled in the early days to balance the books, Alternative Ulster magazine is approaching its third birthday with optimism, and a big wad of Arts Council cash.
30 years after the recording of Bitches Brew, the release of The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions comes on like Apocalypse Then The Sequel. PETER MURPHY journeys upriver into the heart of darkness and unearths still more evidence to confirm MILES DAVIS reputation as one of the most peaceful and influential musicians of the millennium.
