- by Janne Oinonen
- Monday, February 27, 2006
- filed in: Indie
![Jack Johnson & Friends - 'Curious George [Original Soundtrack]' (Island) Released 06/02/06](http://static.gigwise.com/artists/00006325_Jack.jpg)
Share
Once upon a time not long ago, a pack of Hollywood producers went bananas as they discovered that the considerable grossing potential of monkey-meets-man buddy flicks had gone untapped since Clint Eastwood got chummy with Clyde. Animated, they envisioned Curious George, the latest family-orientated Will Ferrell face-pulling fest starring a wee furry fellow in the titular role. Alas, the efforts to stick with the simian vibes by luring ape-orientated artists to tackle the soundtrack failed (Arctic Monkeys too frosty for LA climate, Gorillaz couldn’t give a chimpanzee, The Monkees no longer operational, Ian Brown busy pondering dolphins’ relations to monkeys), so they settled for a sloth instead.
Not that laidback Hawaiian surfer dude turned guitar-picking crooner Jack Johnson and his mates - third-rate jam band hack G. Love, formerly great but fatally sanitised folk-funkateer Ben Harper, trite tunesmith Matt Costa - actually represent the mammals that dedicate their entire existence to chilling, but the lethargic energy deficit displayed throughout this record is such you’d be forgiven for making the mistaken assumption, as well as phoning in a doc for a stern lecture on the importance of vitamins and iron.
The bongo-bothering beats at the onset of opener ‘Upside Down’ may derive directly from ‘Sympathy for the Devil’, but the dull ditty is closer to AOR atrocity Hootie & The Blowfish during a power-cut than the Stones’ bristling paean to Belzebub. It might be a bit much to expect sweat-drenched histrionics from a platter targeted primarily at children, but after a handful of such sensible, inoffensive, nice and eager to please fare anyone - regardless of age - preferring their music in colours more lively than beige is guaranteed to be begging for something, anything to perk up the listless proceedings.
Unfortunately, the soothing likes of ‘We’re Going To Be Friends’, which opts for an early night and a mug of cocoa where the White Stripes original headed for the crossroads at midnight, prove that Johnson is unwilling to allow any mischievous monkeyshines to mess with his bankable formula for hippy piffle-flavoured mellow mush. On the plus side, it's impossible to hate something this jovial and Johnson's devotion to environmental concerns, voiced here most directly on the pro-recycling nursery rhyme '3 R's', deserves a round of applause, but the most this bland polar opposite to the funky gibbon will inspire anyone to accomplish is a nap. One for the sleep-deprived, then.
Mogwai - 'Mr Beast' (PIAS) Released 06/03/06... Next 
Jack Johnson - 'If I Had Eyes'
‘A Broke Down Melody’ (Woodshed Films) Released 29/01/07
Jack Johnson – 'Upside Down' (Brushfire) Released 22/05/06
Jack Johnson - 'Better Together' (Island) Released 27/02/06
Jack Johnson - 'In Between Dreams' (Island Records) Released 28/02/05
The American Music Awards 2009 In Pictures
Gary Numan's Pleasure Principle Tour Hits Manchester Academy - PHOTOS
Kasabian Storm The Manchester Evening News Arena - Photos
Register now and have your comments approved automatically!