Jack Johnson announces new super-righteous live album

Credit: Brushfire Records

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Jack Johnson is a good person, everybody, and to remind us all of that the singer-songwriter has announced the release of a new charity-driven live album called "Jack Johnson and Friends - Best of Kokua Festival", a title that actually just made me fall asleep for five minutes. But what does that matter when the very future of our planet is at stake?

The 13 tracks that make up the LP have been culled from six years of performances featured at the Hawaii-based musician's long-running Kokua Festival, which serves to raise funds for the Kokua Hawaii Foundation, a non-profit started by Johnson and his ethereal and generous wife Kim in 2003. The organization is focused on supporting environmental education in Hawaii's schools, a totally righteous cause that I can say nothing at all sarcastic about. Which is painful for me, but so be it.

As if all of that weren't enough, Johnson will be embarking on a seven-date, all-acoustic Hawaiian tour in support of the record beginning on April 19th (see the full listing of dates below), with the album itself hitting stores on April 17th. The proceeds from both will benefit the Kokua foundation, but of course that goes without saying. I mean we're talking about Jack Johnson here, who is a giving man and a beautiful soul with nothing but love in his heart.

The album's track listing includes collaborations with a host of similarly amazing human beings/musicians including Dave Matthews, Willie Nelson, Eddie Vedder, Ben Harper and more. Covers on the record include Bob Marley’s “High Tide or Low Tide” (featuring Harper), Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released” (featuring Vedder) and Jimmy Buffet’s “A Pirate Looks at Forty” (featuring Matthews and Tim Reynolds). Yo, that's some beautiful stuff right there. Can we please all join hands now?

There are a lot of other incredible things about Jack Johnson and his foundation that I simply don't have the time or the energy to list here (but only because of how emotional I'm getting over how essentially good he is), but rest assured they are truly wonderful.

As a matter of fact, I have below included a link to the Koku Hawaii Foundation's website, because that's the kind of person Johnson has inspired me to be. You can also check out the album's official tracklisting, cover art and Johnson's concert dates by scrolling down, but before you do, please say a prayer for Mother Earth. Because dammit, she needs our help.

Cover art and tracklisting:

1.     Better Together - Jack Johnson with Paula Fuga

2.     Cry, Cry, Cry - Ziggy Marley with Jack Johnson & Paula Fuga

3.     A Pirate Looks At Forty - Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds

4.     Mudfootball - Jack Johnson with Ozomatli & G. Love

5.     Constellations - Jack Johnson with Eddie Vedder & Kawika Kahiapo

6.     Take It Easy - Jackson Browne with Jack Johnson & John Cruz

7.     Island Style - John Cruz with Jack Johnson & Jackson Browne

8.     Breakdown - Jack Johnson with Jake Shimabukuro

9.     Further On Down The Road - Taj Mahal with Jack Johnson

10.   Welcome To Jamrock - Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley with Jack Johnson & Paula Fuga

11.   High Tide or Low Tide - Ben Harper & Jack Johnson

12.   Blue Eyes Crying In the Rain - Willie Nelson with Jack Johnson & Ben Harper

13.   I Shall Be Released - Jack Johnson, Eddie Vedder, Zach Gill & Friends

Tour dates:

An acoustic evening with Jack Johnson, John Cruz and Paula Fuga

April 19th                         Kauai                         Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center

April 21st and 22nd             Oahu                         Hawaii Theatre

April 25th and 26th             Maui                         Castle Theatre

April 28th and 29th             Big Island             Kahilu Theatre

Link to the Kokua Hawaii Foundation's website: http://kokuahawaiifoundation.org/

Follow me on Twitter @HitFixChris

Chris Eggertsen
Producer

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A former contributor to sites including Bloody-Disgusting and AfterElton, Eggertsen enjoys rock music, rainy days and smelling the pages of old books. You should read all of his articles and follow him on Twitter because it's the right thing to do.