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Touring Band Members: Jonathan Wilson on guitar and vocals, Richard Gowen on drums, Dan Horne on bass, Omar Velasco on guitar and Jason Borger on piano and organ…. all these guys also played on the current release Fanfare.
Biography:
Jonathan Wilson formed the band Muscadine in 1995 and released their debut album for Sire Records in 1998, and then broke up in 1999. JW spent the next 7 years or so travelling from place to place, collaborating with numerous musicians, collecting classic audio gear, and acquiring the skills that have made him a very successful producer. At some point in the mid 2000’s he opened his studio, Canyonstereo, in Laural Canyon, which is located in the Hollywood Hills. His first solo release, although not an official release, was Frankie Ray in 2007, on which he played all the instruments and produced himself.
Throughout this same period, JW began hosting jam sessions at his Laural Canyon home. Pretty much every single article on JW that talks about his past will say something like…. “he is responsible for reviving the music scene in Laural Canyon.” The scene they are referring to is from the late 60s & early 70s when artists like Joni Mitchell, Crosby, Stills, & Nash, and James Taylor were prominent. Notable regarding this topic is that he chooses to record with mostly analog gear in his studio, adding to the throwback sound.
In 2009 JW relocated his studio, now called Five Star Studio, to LA’s Echo Park and began mixing his first official release, Gentle Spirit, with numerous guest musicians contributing, including Chris Robinson(Black Crowes). Released in 2011, Gentle Spirit was a critical success and appeared at the top of many lists, including #4 on Mojo’s 2011 Best Albums of the Year. Notable songs off the album include Desert Raven, The Way I Feel, Can We Really Party Today, and my personal favorite, the spooky and haunting Valley of the Silver Moon. The whole album shifts back and forth between gentle acoustic strumming, country twang, and driving psychedelic electric guitar and rolling bass… equal parts Jackson Browne, The Grateful Dead, and Neil Young/Crazy Horse.
JW released the EP Pity Trials and Tomorrow's Child in 2012, and then his second official full release Fanfare in 2013. Fanfare is more epic in nature than the casual-sounding Gentle Spirit. The album’s sound is anchored throughout by a Steinway grand piano, which they rented off Craigslist for the entire recording period. The beginning of the album recalls classic Pink Floyd, a theme that reverberates throughout the entire album with droning organ and Gilmore-esque guitar toned solos. Fanfare is a classic example of an album that you can NOT simply listen to the first 30 seconds of the song and make up your mind as to whether you like it or not…proof of which is Dear Friend, which takes a full minute to turn 180o into a full blown rocker and finishes with 3 minutes of exchanging solos between dueling guitars, drums, bass, and keys. Other stand out songs on the album are Illumination, and the obscure, spacey cover song from the 70’s Fazon.
Over the last 3 years JW has toured with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Wilco, as well as shared the stage live with Jackson Browne, CS&N, Bonnie Raitt, Erykah Badu, and numerous others. JW has also produced music for Roy Harper, Glen Campbell, Father John Misty, Dawes, Chris Robinson, and Jonathan Rice.
Discography:
• Frankie Ray, unofficial, 2007
• Gentle Spirit, 2011
• Pity Trials and Tomorrow's Child, EP, 2012
• Fanfare, 2013
Suggested Listening
Desert Raven official video, since this was my first introduction and a lot of other’s intro to JW…
Valley of the Silver Moon… live in France
If you like The Grateful Dead, you'll like The Way I Feel
Don't judge a song after 30 seconds.... Dear Friend
If you like Bob Dylan, you'll like Love to Love
Finally, if you like kickass slide guitar, you'll love Angel. I recorded this a couple of months ago, so this will give you a good idea of what they sound like on this tour. The blistering slide work starts at around 3:40.... awesome song!
Physical Reaction/Live Show
I live in Nashville, which is notorious for not necessarily showing up at expected capacity for shows where the artist isn’t Black Keys or Jack White level fame. I saw Jonathan Wilson at Mercy Lounge a couple of months ago, and was blown away by his live guitar skills…in fact blown away by his whole band. As mentioned, the crowd was smaller than I had expected, so the energy wasn’t as rowdy as I would have liked it to be. As mentioned above, I have included a link to one of the songs, Angel, from that night to give you an idea of what the current tour is looking and sounding like and what you can expect, and the audio is great with no distortion, so crank it up.
Personal Notes
I enjoyed doing this little project, as it made me appreciate some of the music even more than before. I’m really hoping the Roo show delivers 1.5 hrs of The Heat.
