Jack Johnson

Jack Johnson would undoubtedly make a wonderful dinner companion. Unlike the average rock star, who might well break the good china, wipe his face on the curtains, call your mom the C-word, and violate your Pomeranian, he'd be charming and kind, even if he found out you use environmentally unfriendly...

By Michael Roberts

February 21, 2008

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Jack Johnson would undoubtedly make a wonderful dinner companion. Unlike the average rock star, who might well break the good china, wipe his face on the curtains, call your mom the C-word, and violate your Pomeranian, he'd be charming and kind, even if he found out you use environmentally unfriendly light bulbs. But niceness doesn't translate to interesting music on Sleep Through the Static, an album snoozy enough to put Ambien out of business. Johnson's more serious this time around. For instance, the title track boldly suggests that the war in Iraq might not have been the best idea via rhetorical questions such as "Who needs please when we've got guns?" But as that line indicates, Johnson's lyrics are just too darn polite to make much of an impact, whether he's warbling about life-and-death issues or banana pancakes. The blandly strummy music follows suit. The likes of "Same Girl" couldn't even make George curious. Better play something else when Johnson comes over for dinner. Wouldn't want anyone nodding off in the soup.

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Michael Roberts has written for Westword since October 1990, serving stints as music editor and media columnist. He currently oversees Westword's news blog.

Contact: Michael Roberts

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