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Tony Hogan

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I’m back after a long break of minimal blog posting – Tony Hogan

From the perspective of a musician / guitarist

I was sent a pre-release copy of the new John Butler Trio album to review, and after hours of listening and thinking about the music, here’s what I have to say viewed from the perspective of a musician

One sign of a classic album is whether guitar players across the globe working  as soloists, in duos, trios and bands will be able to grab hold of the tunes and add them to their repertoire.

The opening track Revolution on the new JBT  album had me with a guitar in hand after about 60 seconds, I hit rewind on the CD waited for the eerie intro to finish and was playing along E5 G5 C5 A5 and moving into the chorus without blinking an eye, this tune is very playable.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

My very first impression of the album was, this going to be a big production album, and I don’t mean over produced either, I just mean big sound, professional, mixed and mastered properly.  I went straight to the booklet that came with CD only to find it was recorded in John’s home studio (keeping in mind that home studio means something different in 2010 to what it did 1n 1983), this for me meant that throughout the album there was  going to be a certain amount of intimacy in the music and possibly a little experimentation.

THE RHYTHM SECTION

Before I get too far into this, I must congratulate the rhythm section and John Butler’s common sense to allow them to participate in a big way. So many acoustic players push themselves totally to the front of the mix and use the rhythm section as a backwash.  Not in this case, the album is very percussive and rhythm driven; this is one thing which separates John Butler out from many other guitar players.  He’s not guitar focused, he’s texture focused, yes there a lots of guitars, but they are really just tools.  A lot of acoustic players aren’t willing to dirty up their sound too much, this limits the creativity a little, I think we can all learn from players like JB and his contemporary Ben Harper, and in a way way I’m reminded of the late great John Martyn who would use the Big Muff pedal back in the 70′s, who although played some very pure acoustic guitar open tunings, was happy to explore sound.

CD PRESENTATION

What I do like a lot is the fact that they’ve gone to the trouble of printing a booklet for the album in bigger than size 2 font, it includes all the lyrics and better still, a list of the type of guitars used on each track.   John Butler is using 6 strings in various tunings (amplified), 12′s, lap steel, resonators, backless banjo (?), electrics, and when we hear the whistles and bangs, it’s nice to know they are glockenspiel, steel drums or Ebow etc, it saves a lot of time as a musician trying to make sense what’s going on.

THE ALBUM

It would be an understatement to say that John and the band have a social conscience, but I say it anyway as some people may not be familiar with his approach to life. It is nice to see players getting some commercial airplay who have an interest in the wellbeing of the community, instead of the garbage we are fed by the paparazzi about who’s zooming who this week.  Tracks one and two, Revolution and One Way Road are very strong statements just for starters, and once a person is familiar with the music, it’s worth digging in to see what these guys are about..

The album is a mix of styles, and listening to the diversity of it, it is clear that John Butler could easily be successful in a number of styles if he were to concentrate on just one genre,  this is something that really stands out for me. There are fifteen tracks on this album and if you didn’t know John Butler’s music, it would be easy to say that the person who recorded the first and second song is not the same musician on track six, Johnny’s Gone, or track fifteen A Star is Born, this not a criticism, there is enough glue to keep the whole album together and for me, this is a very good thing, as it shows there is a wealthy well of musical possibilities to draw from and that the John Butler Trio is not a group who will lock themselves into a particular style and run dry due to a lack of inspiration.

My favorite tunes are Ragged Mile,  it briefly reminded me of the bluegrass tune The Cuckoo as done by Doc Watson, the backless banjo sound is glorious, the tune starts with a bass and very good drum part, and a simple harmony in the chorus.  Johnny’s Gone has a tremendous drum part and a very musical sounding chorus, at this point this is the other tune that appeals to me, but it is currently Sunday night, and if I go back and listen to the album tomorrow, I could name a couple of other tunes that I would say are standouts.

I’d Do Anything is very ballady with a very clean light electric guitar part and I reckon  you’ll hear a lot of players playing it in the next few years,  the guitar part is almost hummable (to guitarists) and is very well defined, the band goes a bit harder on the chorus.   This song is sensational, it’s almost trance like.

The tune, Steal It is almost a classic pop song, if  I wanted a hit on the radio I’d go for that one, it’s a slow walk tempo, nice harmonies, uncomplicated and singable. Nice bass part and a distant sounding echoish electric guitar.  Mystery Man is a sort of a three feel, the lighter side of rock, an absolutely beautiful guitar part which will keep the young guitar players busy for a couple of hours here and there whilst they try and immitate it

There’s also a reggae tune, Gonna Be a Long Time, it has that John Butler reggae style vocal where he talks fast and very stacatto.  And once again the rhythm section plays exactly what is rerquired.  Nice solid acoustic guitar part, lots of up strokes and rounded off with a slide resonator solo, bordering on Hawaiin at times.

LIVE PERFORMANCE and MORE ALBUM INFO

I keep hearing from people who saw the John Butler Trio at Woodford this year that they were by far one of the best acts they have seen and although a number of the bigger sounding tunes sound fantastic on the album, the potential of these as they develop over a period of time in the live environment will probably eventually skyrocket the John Butler Trio into one of the worlds top rock live acts, the tunes have that sort of potential, as the band has a very broad audience because of the intangible cool factor that appeals to a younger audience as well as the roots blues crew.  There are four members in my immediate family, we all have different tastes but the whole lot of us like what we’ve heard.

There are a number of very good riffs throughout the album, the tune Close to You is pumping and has a very solid electric guitar part, complete with cowbell leading into the chorus.  One good thing about the album being done in John’s studio is they have had the opportunity to add a lot of additional parts that may not have been possible to add in another studio if working to a tighter timeframe, the option of walking into a very local studio environment when you’re feeling inspired is something that you’ll never get when having to book another studio.

Fool For You, the vocal part sits right back, in fact everything does,  the HAPPY DRUM (?) and drums are sitting slightly in the foreground with strings floating around, a great texture, a song with a lot of yearning and slight melancholy. The song Look Like You is a rather sarcastic dig at what media is doing to the young women of the community, it needs to be said every now and then by at least one person in the music industry.

I’d already heard track two, also it is starting to get TV airplay, it’s a powerful slide tune played on the lap and I’ve had a chance to go through John’s tutorial on how to play One Way Road, guitar players may be very interested in singing how John plays, and also see him thinking out loud.

The final track A Star is Born has a very reflective style of guitar and vocal  part and is a great round off to an album that sounds like a labour of love.

There are a number of tunes which I haven’t mentioned, this is not because I don’t like them, it’s time factor, I’ve spent eight hours listening and writing this article and I have one of my own recording projects to concentrate on.

IN SUMMARY

John Butler is a guitar player / musician who I’d recommend other acoustic guitar players to have a listen to, that is if you are not set in your ways and want inspiration on how to break out of your musical box.  This album is one I’ll be giving a lot spins in my CD player and I’m grateful to have the opportunity to review it.  In the couple of listens I’ve had I’ve learnt a lot about guitar, and the different approaches which are possible on one album.   We are lucky enough today that there is room in the commercial music industry for music that sits a little outside the standard formulas which are being used.  Having John Butler on the edge of that market has a benefit for a lot of other acoustic and roots/ blues musicians because it invites a broader audience into areas of music which deserve a much wider audience.  Congratulations John.

Tony Hogan

FOR MORE INFO go to John Butler  Trio

A quote from Guitar Idol site “Having dedicated himself to the exploration of acoustic guitar technique, Maneli Jamal is a completely self-taught solo acoustic instrumental guitarist that creates eclectic, adventurous and moving songs that capture the imagination of his audiences. Currently living in Canada, he is trying to pursue his passion as a profession!”

To hear another great acoustic guitar player Antoine Dufour Youtube

Tony Hogan

This video, for me,  shows where one area of guitar is heading and the work he is doing is as innovative as such great players as Michael Hedges, Pierre Bensusan. Andy Mckee and other contemporay players.  Here once again Metheny is playing a guitar named “Picasso”by the the great Canadian luthier Linda Manzer, it was recorded at a guitar festival in Cordoba Spain.

For more Pat Metheny playing Acoustic Guitar – click the following link Pat Metheny Acoustic Guitar Video 

The aim of this site is to inspire other guitar players

In this article I have created a simple guitar Tab and music notation of Major Seventh Chords for guitar.  
Major Sevenths have a sweet sound about them,  many of the seventies tunes by acoustic bands were full of major seventh chords.  A clasic example from the sixties would be ‘Don’t let the sun catch you crying’.  Another would be Magnolia by JJ Cale.
I have done them as triads, threenote chords.  I like using triads, they have a lot of bounce in them and are very movable. 

To download the free guitar tab and notation click on the 
Major Seventh Chord Triads for Guitar TAB and Notation