Jack
Johnson does not realize the analogy he has with Charleston, a city
on his tour with Mason Jennings.
The
influence of the Bible is so prevalent that southerners call the region
the Bible Belt. Bars are open until 5 a.m. everyday except for Saturdays.
That day they close at 2 a.m. for Sunday service.
Alcohol
purchases on Sunday are not allowed, not even for the Super Bowl. In
the same manner that the holy book affects the historic town, surfing
guides Johnson.
Growing up in Hawaii
Johnson
was the youngest of three sons to Hawaiian big-waves legend Jeff Johnson,
who reared his children on the North Shore. Jack used the world-class
waves near his house to earn a pro sponsorship by Quicksilver.
At
16, he was the youngest ever to make the finals at the Pipeline Masters.
His performance gave him a Hell-Man reputation.
The
same waters that Johnson spent most of his adolescence riding altered
his life once again. He cracked his skull in a life-threatening fall
at Pipe. He needed 150 stitches and reconstructive surgery to his face.
He decided to give up surfing professionally, but not surfing altogether.
Johnson
enrolled into the University of California, Santa Barbara. It was an
educational institution that would allow him to continue surfing. Originally
a mathematics major, he switched into the university’s film department.
As a Filmmaker
Johnson
produced many surf videos. He filmed the movie Eight and worked
with Taylor Steele and Chris Mallory in the making of All for One.
He teamed up with Steele again to film The Show and on a music
video for Unwritten Law.
Johnson
started working on personal projects after graduating UCSB. He produced
another surf movie, Thicker than Water, which follows surfers
like Kelly Slater and Rob Machado on surfing trips around the world.
The movie won Video of the Year from Surfer He was noted for
the film’s cinematography and Johnson’s original score.
As a Musician
Now
in his mid-20s, Johnson added the film September Sessions to
his credit. The movie won the Adobe Highlight Award at the ESPN Film
Festival. He produced a music video for the Foo Fighter's song “Breakout.”
Johnson’s “Rodeo Clowns” was the first single off of G. Love and Special
Sauce’s Philadelponic album. The song earned radio success.
He
has a new band that consists of Adam Topol and Merlo that recently toured
with Ben Harper. This fall he headlines a tour to promote his album
Brushfire Fairytales, which was released in November of
2000. Harper appeared on "Flake." Johnson's mellow voice and
acoustic folk vibe is attributed to his surfing experiences.
