ABOUT JON WILLIAM JOHNSON
I started playing music because I wanted a girl to notice me, I wrote her a song and I sang it to her in the airport in Dallas, Texas, I guess I got the response I desired, we dated for quite some time, I can still remember the exact moments when I was writing those words, sitting on a curb in Houston, Texas, fumbling with the three chords that I knew….
G-C-D repeat
Then the Chorus
D-G-D-C repeat
I used words that I knew, I used phrases that I use on a daily basis, I explained how she made me feel, and how I wanted to feel this way forever, it had a simple melody but it was singable.
I was doing sound on a small tour with an acoustic outfit from Tyler, Texas, Theresa was her name, she went home to Missouri to visit her parents, when she came off the plane, down the tunnel, I was waiting for her with a guitar in hand, I sang to her the song I wrote, I had never felt so alive...
Six months later we were in Birmingham Alabama, we played at Auburn University, I was asked to play a few of my songs to open, three songs never felt so terrifying, I made it through, and was better for it.
Auburn University, I can still see that first sunset, that first day we drove into town, that first night on the couch... There was a small record store on the corner, about three blocks up from the main campus, two floors, and filled with pure magic. We had a show that was put on by a group at the University the next night, which meant we had all day to hang out, walk around and meet people. I took this opportunity to spend some time alone, I must have filled 20 pages in my journal that day.
If anyone has seen the movie "Big Fish" they filmed part of the movie at Auburn University, which adequately captured my memory of those few days very very well, the colors, the scent, the people, it was so bright, colorful and friendly.
The next night we played to a small crowd of college kids, all smiling, all happy, not worried about their mortgage's, about health insurance for their families, none of them thinking about how they are going to pay for electricity, or child support, their minds were clear and clean, present, in the moment. I could see their smiles and there easy minds from the stage... I saw so many faces like those on that tour, so many kids, like me, happy, content, in the moment.
I made a good friend that night, she meant everything to me, the best friend a guy could ever have, we talked, we wrote, we visited each other’s towns, we grew apart... she eventually met an amazing man and got married, I got an invitation to the wedding, and to be honest I actually thought about going, but something held me back... could I be there, smiling, happy, content, in the moment? I couldn’t answer the question.
I remember a huge sense of accomplishment when we pulled out of Birmingham, we had met so many great people, it was the most relaxing part of the trip, I think if I could go back to anytime, any city during that entire tour it would be that last night in town.... standing on the balcony... you had a drink in your hand... it was your best friend’s apartment... there was sweat in the air... you were smiling... the music was playing so loud... everyone was having such a great time... you looked right at me... and all you had to do... was smile.
As years passed I found myself in Ashville N.C. Chicago, Philly, Omaha, Atlanta, St. Louise, Nashville, Denver... the list goes on and on, I can still see the leaves changing while we wound through the Adirondacks in Tennessee, and the Mist rising up for one of the tiny rivers during a foggy West Virginia morning, the cities, towns, people and places welcomed me and my music, moments that will forever be etched in my memories, that road is always there, that long and ever present road, and I will always travel it, I long to capture that feeling in my music, I want to transport the listener to a familiar place, where they have been, or want to go... so they can connect... for a moment... with someone else in this vast world. Music is the universal language of love, pain, loss, and truth; I hope I lead you to all of those things.
Santa Monica Live at the Triple Door
Drive east (live at Trabant)
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