The tunes review of what’s new

The MC Music Man takes on: John Butler Trio

By: Dustin Looney
Features Editor

The John Butler Trio recently released their third studio album, “Sunrise Over Sea.” Although the CD is viewed as their debut album in the U.S., the John Butler Trio, or JBT, has been an extremely popular band in their homeland of Australia for several years.

The heart of the band is their lead singer, John Butler. Butler was born in California, but moved to Australia at a young age. He started playing the guitar when he was 16 and about ten years later—in 2002—he released his first album.

The JBT features Nicky Bomba on drums and Shannon Birchall on upright bass. Although the band has only three members, they play a unique diverse style of music that is not limited to one specific genre.

“Hip-hop comes from funk, and funk comes from blues, and blues comes from a clash of English folk and African songs. And you can play any Country & Western song to a reggae beat because they both love accentuating the offbeat. So all that music does seem to have a tie that works together,” Butler said in an interview with VH1.

The album, “Sunrise Over Sea,” has the Aussies jumping up and down like kangaroos, as it went double platinum in ten weeks and has already won several awards in Australia.

The CD has 13 tracks, and the following are some of my personal favorites:

“Treat Yo Mama” is the first track on the CD and this upbeat song is sure to make mothers proud all over the world, as in the chorus Butler sings “you better treat your mama with respect.” The song has more to it than a love song for mamas as Butler also sings about a familiar theme in his music, the corruption of big business and government. “I just write about the world I live in. I’ve always just written songs for myself. But I believe if someone is speaking their personal truth and being as honest as possible, it resonates with other people. I know Tracy Chapman or Bob Dylan or Bob Marley were all just speaking their minds, but in their truth, they ended up speaking for a lot of us,” Butler said.

Track number two is titled “Peaches and Cream.” This is a slow emotional song written for Butler’s daughter who “filled his half empty cup.”

The third track on the CD is a song called “Company Sin.” As indicated by the title, this song points out how big corporations build their buildings on sacred land that was inhabited by Australia’s indigenous people.

After “Company Sin,” is my personal favorite track on the CD, “Betterman.” This catchy bluesy tune features Butler singing about how he has become a better man since he met his girl, “And you taught me so many things about myself/and you know this is true.”

The seventh track on the CD is titled “Hello.” In this song Butler tries to talk some sense into a friend who has made some obvious bad decisions. The chorus offers some clever metaphors for this person, “Can’t you see your days/They’ve turned into night/Can’t you see the sun/Can’t you see the moon/Can’t you see that Karma will be coming for you/Hello!”

Another really good song is track 11, “Zebra,” which received the best song of the year in Australia. “Zebra” is a memorable tune that features some witty lyrics and a fantastic guitar solo.

In my opinion, “Sunrise Over Sea” is an excellent album and deserves your attention. JBT offers a unique style that is different from typical American music. Their new CD has already achieved immense success in Australia, and with its distinctive style and powerful lyrics, it is likely to do the same in America.

I definitely suggest you check out JBT’s previous albums, including “Three” and “Living 2001-2002” as well.