There are some musicians who make the extensive complexities of an instrument look effortless.
Award-winning folk n’ Americana singer-songwriter and guitarist Jacob Johnson does just that in his upcoming single, a unique acoustic cover of the beloved Allman Brothers’ instrumental track “Jessica,” which officially drops tomorrow, June 21st, 2024.
When he’s not mesmerizing audiences with his writing, Johnson uses his credited ear, accompanied by his caffeinated guitar picking, to bring tasteful and uniquely altered covers that honor the original music with grace and intricacy, as exhibited in his latest project.
Recorded by Shane Nelson in Johnson’s hometown of Greenville, South Carolina, the cover features Mickey Raphael (harmonica), Jack Ryan (drums), Stephen Campbell (bass), and Aaron Bowen (keys). As passionately nuanced guitar establishes the timbre for the track, each instrument seamlessly laces between the lines to perfect that sweet breezy front-porch feeling.
Performances with Grammy-winning Tommy Emmanuel and Victor Wooten, as well as performances at New York’s Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and Texas’s Wildflower Music Festival, have only reinforced the notability of Johnson’s rollicking talent. We got to chat with him to discuss his decision to cover such an iconic song, playing with Tommy Emmanuel, and much more.
We are (somehow) already at the halfway point of the year. Any notable highlights so far you care to share?
It’s been a hectic year here at Jacob Johnson HQ! I’m back in school finishing a guitar performance degree online from Berklee, finishing up an album, and getting ready for some dates on the road at the end of June. I’d say a major highlight so far was the Ocrafolk Festival on Ocracoke Island in North Carolina that I just returned from. I’ve played this festival 5 or 6 times over the years, but I haven’t done it in about 8 or 9 years so it felt like coming home. Lots of familiar faces and friends in the audience and in the lineup.
Your finger-picking style of guitar is quite unique. How did you get started in that direction musically speaking, and who were some of your biggest influences? Any local Greenville mentors?
Well, when I first started playing seriously I was a Strat-guy all the way. I played in a gigging band in high school; we were doing SRV, Prince, Hendrix, Jackson 5, Stray Cats, and that kind of stuff in wing joints and bars. By the time I found out about Michael Hedges and Phil Keaggy and experimenting with open tunings and tapping techniques I was probably 19 or 20, and I had already cut my teeth on that kind of straight-ahead guitar playing.
Phil was probably the first guy I saw doing any of that stuff, but he was always very intentional about directing people back to Micheal Hedges. Victor Wooten’s style on the bass was a big influence too… in particular the way he would use tapping to articulate the bass lines with his left hand and melody on the right. It’s very Stanley Jordan-influenced. I find myself somewhere between the Stanley Jordan thing, and the Keaggy/Hedges/Don Ross thing. I couldn’t play either of those styles properly, but I took a little from each so it comes out a little different.
Unfortunately I had a dearth of local/personal mentors. Not because there aren’t great musicians here…there are a ton… but I just didn’t know how or where to find them. My parents were supportive, but they weren’t musically inclined so they didn’t really know what to do with me. Before I dropped out of college, I had some lessons from the late Tim Haden who was an incredible jazz player and instructor. He didn’t think he knew what to do with me either, but he filled some gaps in my musical knowledge and connected some dots for me. My playing at that point was fairly advanced, but being self-taught I was doing a lot of things I didn’t understand. As an adult, I’ve tried to be intentional about seeking out musical mentors to learn from and play with, but that gets harder as you get older.
You’ve got your cover of the iconic Allman Brothers instrumental, “Jessica,” due out soon. What can you tell us about why you chose to cover this song, and did it take you a while to really nail it down?
Well, when I started dating the woman who would become my wife, Jessica, she was constantly requesting it. I kept explaining that “Jessica” wasn’t really a sit-down-around-the-fire-and-serenade-your-sweetheart kind of song. She never accepted that as an answer, so eventually I didn’t either. I finally put together a rendition of the first two sections, and ended up playing it at our wedding reception for the daddy/daughter dance. When I started thinking about recording and releasing it, I worked out the other parts… the modulations and transitions. But I knew I needed some other players involved to flesh it out.
And tell us about the notable crew of musicians you wrangled to help make the song. How did that come together, and how do you feel they elevated the track?
I’ve known Jack Ryan and Stephen Campbell for many years here in the Greenville scene, Marcus and Marvin King too. They were tearing it up all over town when they were still in high school, and of course have had much deserved success with Marcus King since then. They had some down time back in February, and we got together and laid down the rhythm tracks in Jack’s home studio. It’s a deceptively tricky song with all those little transitions and modulations, and I don’t do it in the original key, so it took some time, but they worked hard and made sure it was right.
We talked about some potential special guests for a solo section, but my first pick was the great Mickey Raphael, longtime harmonica player for Willie Nelson and Family. Willie was my first concert when I was 13. I even met Mickey and got an autograph after the show, so having a little of that same magic on one of my tracks was a bucket-list experience for me. He has such a pretty, lyrical style of playing the harmonica. His lines are almost like what a violin would do. I felt like that was what the track needed. I sent him an email out of the blue with a rough mix and he was into it. We talked out the details over the phone and he sent me a couple of beautiful harmonica tracks about a week later.
And I can’t leave out Aaron Bowen, a great keys player who stays very busy here in Greenville. He filled in the empty spaces very elegantly. It seemed like everybody who I brought into the process was inspired by it and enjoyed figuring out how to fit their piece into the puzzle.
Did you ever see The Allman Brothers perform before Gregg passed, or Dickey before he passed (which of course was very recent), and if so, when and what did it mean to you? And how influential were they to you as a southern born and bred musician?
I hate that I never got to see The Allman Brothers, or Dickey, but wow… their influence was and is all over the music scene here. I got ahold of Eat A Peach when I was about 14 from our local library and it was unlike anything I’d ever heard. Of course, as I got older I started to gain some concept of how crucial they were. There’s a lot in our past here that we’re rightfully ashamed of, but they showed us we’ve got a lot to be proud of too. The South definitely needed that coming out of the 60s. They gave us that along with Tom Petty and other great southern acts of the 70s and 80s.
What made Asaph Records your studio of choice? Can you tell us about what drew you there and how the recording process went down?
I’ve been working at Asaph for about a year on various tracks that will be on my next album (including several already available as singles), so “Jessica” came out of those sessions. Shane Nelson, who runs the studio, is a true creative. I wouldn’t quite call him a co-producer here, but we did have a very collaborative way of working. I’ve thrown some weird ideas at him over the past year or so, and he never pushed back, he’d just find a way of giving me what I asked for. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t, but he was always game for experimenting or trying something different, and pitching ideas of his own.
Most of my material I write and arrange for solo guitar and vocals because that’s how I tour, so I’ve struggled finding producers or engineers who could really facilitate my creativity in the studio, but Shane and I struck a good balance. With this particular song, most of it was done remotely either at Jack’s place, or with Mickey tracking from Nashville, but I laid down my guitar parts and Aaron’s keys at Asaph, and we mixed it there. Just like the musicians, Shane really sank his teeth into it and helped shape it into something special from our disparate pieces.
What were some pivotal moments in your career, and how did they impact your creative process and general trajectory going forward?
I’d say most of my career has been made up of little moments. Little ideas and discoveries that moved the needle for me slowly over time. But I would say that something very pivotal was the opportunity to meet and perform with Tommy Emmanuel. He wasn’t a huge influence on me in my early years, and was only just starting to see lots of growth in his own career about that time — we’re talking about the early 2010s — but once I got the chance to meet him and play some dates with him on the road, I’d have to say he’s one of the single-most inspiring musicians and performers I’ve encountered. Lots of folks found me through my association with him, and I’ve learned a lot from watching him and also watching his team and his career.
What does a dream gig look like for you?
I arrive early enough to get comfortable on stage, do a 15-minute soundcheck, warm up on stage playing through the system, and get just a little bored backstage waiting for the show to start. My tip for performers who struggle with nerves is to get there early enough to get bored. That takes the edge off when you finally get onstage. Also, I love playing shorter sets. Two 45 minute sets is good, but one 75-80 minute set is even better. I think solo musicians should take a tip from comedians in that regard. Headlining comedians typically do 60-75 minutes. Not because they don’t have material, but just because it’s hard to really pace that much time out in a theatrical, engaging way and create an arc to the show. It’s different for a band, or if you’re playing bars/restaurants where you’re trying to keep people dancing until the wee hours. But for a solo act I think 70-80 minutes is ideal.
What does success as a musician and songwriter mean to you?
This is a very important question everyone should ask themselves. There are great, even legendary performers who have struggled because they didn’t know what success was when they got it. Or, they achieved one kind of success and realized they would have rather had a different kind of success. Elvis is one of the most successful acts in history, but Sinatra won an Oscar.
To me, success in music means being able to perform and create at a high level. So over the past few years that’s meant transitioning out of performing full time (which probably would have been my definition of success 10 years ago), to teaching guitar at a local university a few days a week and going on the road a few times a month. That’s given me the freedom to focus on playing the right rooms for the right audiences, where I can put on the best show I know how, instead of just keeping the calendar full. That’s made for less grind, and more growth. And it’s given me the financial freedom to get into the studio more regularly, and keep new music coming out instead of just spinning my tires trying to keep the lights on.
What’s next for you after the release of “Jessica”?
I’m on the road at the end of June for some dates around the southeast, and in the fall I’ll be putting out the rest of an album and hitting the road again! Then it’s back to teaching, writing, and touring till I write some more songs.
Jacob Johnson Tour Dates
6/26 – Cleveland, TN – House Concert
6/27 – Crossville, TN – Palace Theatre
6/28 – Huntsville, AL – Tangled String Studios
6/29 – Hayesville, NC – Peacock Performing Arts Center
7/10-13 – Nashville, TN – Chet Atkins Appreciation Society 2024
