Born on December 10th 1972, Frankenreiter, was looking for a new direction for his music in the early 2000s, he left the band Sunchild, which was his own project that he founded himself and signed with Brushfire Records and released his eponymous solo album, which was recorded with co-producers, Jack Johnson and Mario Caldato Jr. Johnson features on the album as does G.Love. His first album was released in 2004 in Australia and reached the top forty of the ARIA albums chart. It was a month later that the album was released in the US on May 11th 2004.
For a change of pace, Frankenreiter left Brushfire Records and signed with Lost Highway Records, which is the refuge of Ryan Adams and Willie Nelson. Under this label’s direction, he released “Move by Yourself” on June 6th 2006. His song “Lovely Day” earned a spot on the soundtrack of Snakes on a Plane and Georgia Rule. He also performed a set at the prestigious Abbey road Studios in London, UK, which was later released in early 2006. On the same label he released “Pass It Around” on August 19th 2008, which was followed a couple of years later by the album “Glow” which was released on October 5th 2010, but this time, under his own label, Liquid Tambourine Records. The album’s title track, “Glow” was written by Matt Nathanson.
Donavon Frankenreiter is a Californian singer-songwriter who makes, or at least made, music very similar to Jack Johnson. Unsurprisingly really, given that he has been a close friend of fellow surfer Jack Johnson for yonks. His self-titled debut was perfect, beach campfire music – slow, hook-driven folk rock (one of the songs even featured Johnson). More recently, Frankenreiter has broadened his pallet with bluesy soft rock, reggae and world-laced America.
It probably won’t come as a shock to hear that when I first saw him live he was supporting none other than Jack Johnson. However, this was years and years ago, just as Frankenreiter had launched his musical career and before Johnson became a superstar. It was at a tiny, dingy club in Falmouth, Cornwall; Johnson had wanted to do a special gig in the surfing capital of the UK.
I owned and love Frankenreiter’s debut and was expecting low-key acoustic music. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find a ramped-up, full band show, with his minimal surf ballads turned into extended, bluesy jams. If I had to guess, I would say that his early live touring shaped the recorded albums that followed. Song like ‘Free’ and ‘It Don’t Matter’ sounded fuller live, with the singer-songwriter showcasing real skill on the guitar, which he played with a much flashier style. The chilled out entertainer was eventually welcomed back to join Jack Johnson for a couple of tracks during his later headline slot; by then, Donavon Frankenreiter didn’t need to win over the audience.
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