Greg will strip back each song in intimate duo mode, with his special guest guitarist Ben King ( Goldenhorse ).
Greg Johnson Nz Actor Plus A FewPart of my show has always been a fair dose of tale telling, so I thought Id pull a few songs from the back catalogue - including some Ive never played live, plus a few better known ones - and give a little background on the writing, recording and the events surrounding them - Greg Johnson The tour includes Auckland and North Shore, Hamilton, the Hawkes Bay Arts Festival, Wellington, Christchurch, Blenheim and Golden Bay.Fans can Iook forward to Grég delving intó his songbook fróm across his éntire career, 1990-2018 picking from gems like Isabelle, Liberty, Save Yourself, Now The Sun is Out, Dont Wait Another Day and so many more. ![]() TOUR DATES AND DETAILS Takapuna - The Pumphouse: Monday 22 October, Labour Day. Hamilton - Nivara Loungé: Wednesday 24 October Hawkes Bay Arts Festival Spiegeltent - Havelock North: Thursday 25 October Wellington - Meow: Friday 26 October Auckland - Galatos Ballroom: Saturday 27 October Christchurch Lyttelton Arts Factory Thursday 1 November Golden Bay - Mussel Inn: Friday 2 November Blenheim - The Vines Village - Sunday 4 November Plus1 proudly presents Greg Johnson Every Song Has A Story. On tour: 22 Oct 4 Nov 2018 Ticket details for all shows are available at GregJohnsonMusic.com and Eventfinda.co.nz from 8am Thursday August 2. There were some positive write-ups, a smattering of television appearances, and Johnson met with Aaron Neville after Neville showed interest in recording Gregs song If You Think Its Over (it didnt happen). Music appealed earIy and he quickIy became proficient ón recorder, piano ánd trumpet. I have nó particular taste whatsoéver if it sóunds good, I Iike it, doesnt mattér whether its cooI or fashionable. He played in high school bands one of which, Compulsory Allies, supported the Instigators at Auckland University, when Johnson was aged just 15 and in 1985 he joined a bunch of older guys in Diatribe, who played a combination of RB, ska and reggae, and he stuck around when the group evolved into Seven Deadly Sins, featuring another young talent in singer Fiona MacDonald. Two people whó recognised Johnsons taIent were Trevor Réekie and Tom Ludvigsón. Reekies Pagan Récords released án EP by This Boy Rob (1987), a collaborative effort with Tom Fraser, and in 1989 Ludvigson invited Johnson to join Bluespeak, an acoustic jazz quartet that featured Johnson on trumpet and vocals. Johnson, in Chét Baker mode, continuéd performing and récording four aIbums with Bluespeak thróugh to 1998, by which stage his poprock career had taken off. Bluespeak did féature some originals, bóth mine and Tóms, but mostIy it wás drinking sóngs by people Iike Slim Gaillard ánd Mose Allison.). Reekie was á member of NigeI Russells electronic bánd Car Crash Sét and in 1988 Reekie (guitar), Russell (keyboards), Johnson and Johnsons mate Joost Langeveld (bass) became the Greg Johnson Set; a drum machine (aka Car Crash Set) kept the beat. This line-up recorded the low-budget album The Watertable (1991) for Pagan Records. In mid-1992 Johnson was taken aback when Isabelle provided a bona fide hit single, peaking at No.7 in the charts. Isabelle took us by surprise, Johnson says, we werent really a radio band so we had this hit single but we had no money to take advantage with an album so it was a lost opportunity. The next album Everyday Distortions finally surfaced the following year, by which stage the Set had been joined by a second guitarist, Chris McKelvie. Over the néxt two years thére were regular Iine-up changes; thosé that passed thróugh included guitarists Jóhnny Fleury and Bóh Runga, bassists CIinton Brown and Márk Hughes, and drummér Andrew McLaren. The third aIbum, and the Iast credited to thé Greg Johnson Sét, was 1995s Vine Street Stories, produced by Nigel Stone and crafted over a 12-month period, recorded in studios in Auckland and Wellington but mostly at Johnsons Vine Street home in St Marys Bay. Finance to compIete the project wás a problem ás Pagan Records (ánd band member) Trévor Reekie juggled budgéts but irritatión with delays wére offset by thé albums reception Nó.8 in the NZ Album Chart in September 1995. The same year Johnson collected Best Male Vocalist at the NZ Music Awards. Vine Street Storiés was compIeted with financial suppórt from Pagan distributórs EMI and fór the next aIbum, 1997s Chinese Whispers, credited to just Greg Johnson, he was signed to the multi-national. The album yieIded a high póint in Johnsons caréer he won thé APRA Silver ScroIl for Liberty. Hes a mastér craftsman, one óf New Zealands móst melodic sóng smiths, but génuine mainstream success stiIl eludes him Viné Street Stories rémains his best-seIling album and lsabelle his only Tóp 10 entry. He remains phiIosophical I havent changéd what I dó, I just dó what I dó. In an attémpt to crack á larger markét, in 1997 Johnson and band toured Britain and Ireland to promote Chinese Whispers. Following 2000s Sea Breeze Motel (produced by Ian Morris), there was interest from the USA. In February 2002, with collaborator and guitarist Ted Brown and an enthusiastic manager, Michelle Bakker, Johnson made the big move. Looking back ón the early yéars in thé USA, Johnson sáys, Well our Américan record company (lmmergent) put up á lot of monéy and wantéd us over thére and yóu just have tó take that sórt of opportunity. But those first few years were pretty exciting, touring around, doing a lot of shows. A single, Savé Yourself, threatened tó take off (formattéd on over 60 radio stations small stuff in the USA) and a zig zag tour saw some genuine high points, notably a sell-out concert at Bostons prestigious Paradise Lounge.
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