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~ OFF THE ROAD & INTO THE STUDIO : JOHN'S REPORT PART ONE ~

"As it is the case a lot of times, I'm more concerned with all of us getting the arrangement right than singing good so we got some good samples of the songs but no keepers. It was good to record with Shaun again though, it had been a few years."

The JBT managed to run through 22 songs and lay down rough demos before touring commitments took them back on the road, John continues, "After some more touring around Europe and America we headed back to the studio to start recording the album for real."

Returning to Melbourne's Woodstock Studio where JBT recorded the multi-platinum 'Sunrise Over Sea' 3 years earlier, the first sessions of recording began.
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"As usual some of these songs had their beginnings before SOS was even written."
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"The time was a bit fractured in a sense, cause the first session was only a couple a weeks and then touring and then another session later on. I normally like quite a large chunk of time in the first session just to sink my teeth into the project without feeling rushed, so this session for me felt like a race against the clock and thus made me a bit more serious and less laid back and playful with the songs. Even when recording the first album where I was busking and gigging to pay the bills I always allowed for as much time that was needed to finish the album so this time it felt it bit weird. A bit heady. We tracked quite a few songs but by the end of the 2 weeks we didn't feel happy with a lot of the takes. We were playing good but there wasn't a right feel to the songs. Its hard to put my finger on why most of those songs didn't happen other than my head space throughout some of the sessions. Sometimes songs are just not ready to be born or go to that next stage of recording and you can't push them out of the womb no matter how ready one may feel."
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The Woodstock Sessions

(top) John in front of the desk with Robin Mai behind the controls. (middle) Shannon Birchall on his graphite double bass. (middle) John describes the sound he's hearing to Michael in the drum room. (bottom) John and Shannon work out the riff to 'Come Together' by the Beatles for a French TV appearance in a couple days time.

Not all was lost and those sessions would turn out to be an important contribution to the process.

"We did get a couple of corkers though. "Devil Running" and "Danielle" were keepers from the Woodstock Sessions that I was really happy with and will make it to the album. All in all it was a learning experience. It was great to hook up with Robin (Mai ) Engineer and Troy (Trigwell) Assistant Engineer from SOS. It taught me to be a little lighter in the next round of recording and to make sure the first priority was to have fun. That's the only way the gold comes to the surface."

So where has the inspiration for these songs come from with so much touring on the schedule?

"As usual some of these songs had their beginnings before SOS was even written. The riff from "Recognise Me " was written around the time I was supporting John Mayer around America and "Gonna Take It" I came up with on the main SOS tour and lyrics came some months later while touring the States. I can still remember clearly recording on my little four track in my hotel room bathroom after a gig while my sister slept in the other room after a long night of merch selling. "Loosing you" I wrote fairly recently on a camping trip with Banjo up in the hills in WA.
So the songs were written all over the joint and a lot of times in segments; music in one place and lyrics sometimes in the same time or over a 3 year period."

Stay tuned for the next installment of JBT recording. John starts looking at the idea of co-producing, reaching out to Mario C (Beastie Boys, Jack Johnson, G.Love and whole heap more), changing studios and capturing some chunky, funky moments. From strings sections to percussion ensemble action, back-up singers, tabla rhythms, spacious one drops, tough drum and bass Black Sabbath, to record scratching, beat boxing, brass band madness!

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All information, music & video © John Butler Trio, Jarrah Records, Lava Records ~ 2006-2007
All photography © Tom Walker. Do not copy or reproduce any information without prior written permission.