Children's Corner: Jack Johnson's Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies for the Film, Curious George

Jack Johnson’s music makes you want to be with someone—coupled-up, buddyed-up, familied-up. Going back to his 2005 release, In Between Dreams, and the track “Better Together,” there’s the togetherness theme from the lyric, “It’s always better when we’re together.” With the soundtrack of Curious George, Johnson continues this theme. On “Broken,” Johnson sings, “Without you I was broken,/But I’d rather be broke down with you by my side.”

While coupling-up on In Between Dreams is different than the buddying-up on Curious George, it’s Johnson’s music with its settled-back, acoustic, jam groove that makes you feel like being alone is way too lonely. It even has that effect on an introvert like me.

With the help from friends like G. Love, Ben Harper, and Matt Costa, Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies for the Film, Curious George does not sound like a children’s album—which makes it the kind of album I want my sons to hear. That’s not to say that music isn’t fun, educational, light-hearted, or able to catch a child’s ear. Instead, you get all of those things with incredible musicianship, originality, and the additional education in great grooves.

I don’t know why John Mayer gets all of the press; Jack Johnson has that jazzy, bluesy, pop rock guitar with songs that build on the little sounds, the little accents. It’s silly to debate about who is better—Mayer or Johnson—but at least it should be said that Johnson shouldn’t be in anyone’s shadow.

With Curious George, Johnson seems to be taking up Randy Newman’s mantle. Newman’s always had a way with a clever lyric, self-depreciating or giving voice to a movie character’s hidden doubts in the face of upfront bravery, and Johnson does a good turn at this with songs like “People Watching.” However, whereas you may have yearned for more of Newman’s original songs on the soundtrack of Toy Story, Johnson delivers a whole enchanting world with the Curious George soundtrack.

Thank you to Jack Johnson and Brushfire Records for the review copy.