Jon Jackson’s basically the reason I got into mp3 blogging. Not him personally of course but the idea of a Jon Jackson. A guy with limited resources who lives a rough and tumble life. Who battled alcohol and drug addiction and a stint in a psych ward all while still in high school. Who somehow manages to scrap together studio time, money for gear, CD duplication, etc. etc. to release their life’s dream in the form of a CD. In Jon’s case it took almost half of his annual income and a year of work to accomplish this feat.
The result of all that trouble and strife is Green Apples. This post is not going to bring in much in the way of google searches, no one’s going to link to it (that’s a challenge to all you bloggers reading this btw and I know you’re out there!) and it’s not going to be picked up by Boing Boing, VH1′s Best Week Ever or Idolator. But writing about Green Apples is the one thing I can do to support independent music. Jon puts it best in this entry on his MySpace blog:
“well let me start by saying that up until last year i never considered the possibility that i would ever make an album of any kind. The last year has been the busiest of my life. it has flown by in a blur never to return again. having said that it’s also been one the best years of post-childhood life. i’ve been absolutely blessed to be living where i am and hanging out with my friends everyday and surrounded by the best musicians i’ve ever known.
when i decided to make this album i had one goal with it; that i could pull it out of a drawer in twenty years and say “oh yeah, man i’m glad i did that.” then i could listen to it and laugh at myself. anything more than that would be gravy. also, if i had kids i could say “hey, you might not believe this, but your dad was pretty cool in his day.” and then show them this thing called a compact disc as some sort of proof, to which they would yawn and ask me for $200 dollars to go to a movie.
but i’m getting off the point even though i’m not really sure what the point is…i think it’s knowing that i won’t regret this. even if it gets shit on by everyone that hears it, and even though it’s cost me almost half a years wages, and even though i can barely stand to hear myself sing, i would do it all over again tomorrow without a second thought.”
Anyway if you’ve read through all that you’re probably as intrigued as I was about what this record might sound like. Of course it sounds like Jon’s influences. What musician’s debut record doesn’t? So take equal parts Hank Williams Sr., John Prine and The Beatles, let that stew in the Nashville sun for a bit, add some talented session players (mandolin, guitar, piano) and on a few songs a lovely female vocalist and you’ve got Green Apples. Which may turn out to be the most self assured, confident, musically satisfying, self-released debut record you’ll ever hear. You can buy Green Apples with the simple click of a link here at CD Baby.
Green Apples
Sycamore Tree
P.S. I promised Jon I’d post only one song but I couldn’t pick between these two gems.
