Jack learned to play the guitar at age 14, but was a professional surfer until an accident at Pipeline in which his front teeth were knocked out and he received more than 150 stitches. While he was recovering in bed, he spent his time writing songs and playing guitar. However, Jack didn't seriously pursue a career in the arts until his college years at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Jack Johnson also played rhythm guitar for the party band "Soil" in 1999, and graduated with a degree in film.
He has written, recorded, and released the albums Brushfire Fairytales (2001), On And On (2003), In Between Dreams (2005), Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George (2006), Sleep Through the Static (2008) and To The Sea (2010), he has also been on 3 soundtracks "September Sessions" from the film The September Sessions, "Thicker Than Water" from the film Thicker Than Water, "Sprout", "A Broke Down Melody" Ep and "Some Live Songs EP". Several of his songs are also featured in the movie "Out Cold". His latest album - Sleep Through The Static - reached the top 10 of the US charts.
In (2009) A live album and DVD of Jack's (2008) world tour to promote the release of Sleep Through The Static album. The DVD entitled En Concert, was released on October 27, 2009. The DVD was directed by Emmett Malloy.
On June 1, 2010, Johnson released his fifth studio album, To The Sea, on Brushfire Records/Universal Republic, which was recorded using Solar Powered energy at his Mango Tree Studio in Hawaii, and the Plastic Plant in LA . To The Sea was co produced by Robert Carranza, Jack Johnson, and his bandmates Merlo Podlewski, Zach Gill and Adam Topol and features guest appearances from G. Love, and Paula Fuga.
Jack Johnson is currently on a world tour promoting To The Sea while continually encouraging his concert attendees to pay greater respect for our planet. An active promoter of environmental causes like Explore.org and One Percent For The Planet, Johnson's 2010 world tour will continue to collaborate with local non-profit groups around the world, according to his website. He will once again donate 100% of his tour profits to support environmental, art, and music education. Learn more about Jack Johnson's current environmental commitments to our planet at: www.AllAtOnce.org.
Jack just cancelled the remaining balance of his Japanese tour on March 12, 2011 in sympathy of the victims of Tohoku Earthquake. Join Jack in supporting this disaster relief by donating to Global Giving Japan, and he encourages others to join this effort. Johnson's Ohana Charitable Foundation has also supported Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit that works to restore and revitalize music education in disadvantaged U.S. public schools. He also decorated a guitar for Little Kids Rock to auction to raise funds for its program.
On September 22, 2012, he donated his time to play a few songs at Farm Aid 2012 in Hershey, PA. Later in 2012, Jack donated $50,000 for Hurricane Sandy relief and added links on his website for others to donate:
"After years of touring and surfing along the East Coast, I have made so many great friends. It is heartbreaking to see the images and hear their stories. I just made donations to help recover and relief efforts for Hurricane Sandy. Below is a list of groups you can support. If you can't donate money, you can donate food, supplies, or your time. Our East Coast family, friends, and neighbors need our help. Aloha"
Johnson released From Here to Now to You with his band on September 17, 2013. On June 15, 2013, Jack and the Band performed as headliners at the 2013 Bonnaroo in Tennessee. He also played two acoustic concerts, one at London's Tabernacle in Notting Hill and the other at New York City's Allen Room at Lincoln Center overlooking Central Park, featuring songs from his upcoming album. The From Here to Now to You Tour ran from March through September 2014.
In February 2017, Johnson announced a U.S. tour beginning in Chicago at the Huntington Bank Pavilion on Northerly Island on June 1 and ending with two Kōkua Hawai'i Foundation benefit concerts at the Waikiki Shell on August 4 & 5. Also, he revealed plans to release an album in the summer of 2017. Later, he added a September 10 concert for the 2017 Ohana Fest at Doheny State Beach, Dana Point, California. On September 8, 2017, Jack released his seventh studio album All the Light Above It Too, and peaked at number 13 on the Billboard chart's "Artist 100." In July 2018, Johnson released his greatest hits album "Jack Johnson: The Essentials" in Japan only.
In late 2019, Johnson released a single "New Axe", which was featured in the This Warm December Vol. 3 album. He then did a "Together at Home" Instagram Live stream concert on March 28, 2020. His concert was the third most watched on the Global Citizen YouTube. He then also performed at the "One World: Together at Home" special, and a live version of "Better Together" was featured on the One World: Together at Home album. On May 1, 2020, he was featured on Milky Chance's new single "Don't Let Me Down". On September 26, 2020, Johnson performed the opening set at Farm Aid: On the Road.
On December 4, 2020, Johnson released a new single titled "The Captain Is Drunk". On April 16, 2021, Johnson released a song titled "If Ever" with Paula Fuga and Ben Harper. The song appeared on Fuga's new album Rain on Sunday, which will be featured on Johnson's record label.
On June 24, 2022, Johnson released his eighth studio album, Meet the Moonlight, his first full-length record in five years. It was produced by Blake Mills, engineered by Joseph Lorge, and recorded both in Los Angeles (at Sound City Studios and EastWest Studios) and at The Mango Tree (Johnson's home studio) in Hawaii. The album's lead single is titled "One Step Ahead".
To coincide with his new album release, Johnson embarked on the Meet the Moonlight Tour with 35 stops at major venues across the United States (including Hawaii) and Canada. He was accompanied by various artists including Grammy-award winner (and personal friend) Ziggy Marley. In November, Johnson will tour the album in Australia and New Zealand, his first overseas concerts since 2019.
On July 22, 2000, Johnson married his college girlfriend, Kim Baker. They have three children: two boys and a girl. Johnson lives on the North Shore of the island of Oahu in Hawaii. In an interview with Johnson, Ann Donahue from Billboard described Johnson's family life by saying "There is often trouble in balancing the life of an artist, environmentalist, and family man, but Johnson seems to have the niche for such a challenge. This time around, he's found a pace that agrees with him...bringing his family along so he can spend mornings with them sightseeing." Both Johnson and his wife declined to talk about or release any intimate information concerning their children.
Traffic in the Sky
Jack Johnson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it doesn't seem to be getting much better
There's kids playing games on the pavement
Drawing waves on the pavement
Shadows of the planes on the pavement
It's enough to make me cry
But that don't seem like it would make it feel better
Maybe it's a dream and if I scream
Whole place will fall into pieces
And then they'd say
Well how could we have known?
I'll tell them it's not so hard to tell, no, no, no
If you keep adding stones
Soon the water will be lost in the well
Puzzle pieces in the ground
No one ever seems to be digging
Instead they're looking up towards the heavens
With their eyes on the heavens
There are shadows on the way to the heavens
It's enough to make me cry
That don't seem like it would make it feel better
The answers could be found
We could learn from digging down
But no one ever seems to be digging
Instead they'll say
Well how could we have known?
I'll tell them it's not so hard to tell, no, no, no
If you keep adding stones
Soon the water will be lost in the well
Words of wisdom all around
But no one ever seems to listen
They're talking about their plans on the paper
Building up from the pavement
There shadows from the scrapers on the pavement
It's enough to make me sigh
That don't seem like it would make it feel better
The words are all around
But the words are only sounds
And no one ever seems to listen
Instead they'll say
Well how could we have known?
I'll tell them it's not so hard to tell, no, no, no
If you keep adding stones
Soon the water will be lost in the well, lost in the well
The song Traffic in the Sky by Jack Johnson is a commentary on the modern world and how we are losing touch with the earth and each other. The first verse describes the chaos and congestion of the skies with planes flying overhead and casting shadows on the pavement where children play. The imagery of drawing waves on the pavement speaks to the idea that even in the midst of this chaos, nature is still present, and we should take notice of it. The line, "It's enough to make me cry, but that don't seem like it would make it feel better" suggests a hopelessness about the situation, but also a sense of resignation that crying won't solve anything.
The second verse shifts to a more inwardly reflective tone. Johnson describes the puzzle pieces in the ground and the need to "dig" to find the answers. He laments that no one seems to be looking down, they are only looking up towards the heavens. He suggests that answers can only be found by digging down, but no one seems to be interested in doing the hard work. The final verse brings in the idea of words of wisdom, but the irony is that no one seems to be listening. Everyone is too focused on building and creating, and not enough on the words of wisdom that surround them. The repetition of the phrase "lost in the well" at the end of each verse suggests a sense of hopelessness and futility, as if we are all just lost in the chaos of our modern world.
Line by Line Meaning
There's traffic in the sky
The skies are congested with many planes
And it doesn't seem to be getting much better
The situation doesn't appear to be improving
There's kids playing games on the pavement
Children are playing games on the sidewalk
Drawing waves on the pavement
The children are drawing waves on the ground
Shadows of the planes on the pavement
The shadows of the planes are also visible on the ground
It's enough to make me cry
This is an emotional and upsetting experience for the singer
But that don't seem like it would make it feel better
Crying won't fix the situation
Maybe it's a dream and if I scream
Perhaps this is unreal and screaming might wake the artist up
It will burst at the seams
The situation will come apart or break apart
Whole place will fall into pieces
Everything will come crashing down
And then they'd say
People would react or respond
Well how could we have known?
People might act shocked or surprised, as if they didn't see this coming
I'll tell them it's not so hard to tell, no, no, no
The singer will explain that this could have been predicted
If you keep adding stones
If you continue to make the situation worse
Soon the water will be lost in the well
Soon the situation will be beyond repair
Puzzle pieces in the ground
There are clues or pieces of information available
No one ever seems to be digging
No one appears to be searching for these clues or information
Instead they're looking up towards the heavens
People are looking for answers from above
With their eyes on the heavens
People are focused on the sky or something beyond their reach
There are shadows on the way to the heavens
Even shadows can block the way to finding answers
The answers could be found
The solution might be right in front of us
We could learn from digging down
Investigating and searching for information could lead to a solution
But no one ever seems to be digging
Unfortunately, people still aren't searching for answers
Words of wisdom all around
There is advice and guidance available
But no one ever seems to listen
People don't appear to be taking this advice to heart
They're talking about their plans on the paper
People are making plans on paper or in theory
Building up from the pavement
These plans are based on what they see around them
There are shadows from the scrapers on the pavement
Even the shadows from tall buildings are present on the ground
It's enough to make me sigh
The situation is disappointing and frustrating for the artist
That don't seem like it would make it feel better
Sighing won't make the situation improve
The words are all around
There is plenty of advice and guidance available
But the words are only sounds
However, people aren't truly understanding or internalizing this advice
And no one ever seems to listen
People aren't taking this advice seriously
Instead they'll say
People will react in a certain way or make excuses
Well how could we have known?
People might act surprised or shocked again
I'll tell them it's not so hard to tell, no, no, no
The artist will again explain that this situation was predictable
If you keep adding stones
If people continue to make the situation worse
Soon the water will be lost in the well, lost in the well
Eventually, the situation will be beyond saving
Lyrics © Bubble Toes Publishing, REACH MUSIC PUBLISHING
Written by: Jack Hody Johnson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind