Episode 525: Rattletree

Hello friends! I hope you're all doing well. I'm recovering from a pretty fun Sunday. I went to the Reckless Kelly Sunset Motel listening party at Arlyn Studios here in Austin yesterday. The album is great. The party was awesome. Lots of old friends and new friends all celebrating one of our own and their new album. It reminds me how lucky I am to be a part of this scene. Sunset Motel comes out this Friday, September 23rd. You'll be hearing from them on this show very soon.
My guest for episode 525 is Joel Laviolette from the electronica/marimba band, Rattletree! This weekend Rattletree will be hosting "The Rattletree Glow Party" with all kinds of activities, musical projects, food and more.The party takes place this Friday, Sept 23rd, Saturday, Sept 24th and Sunday Sept 25th. For tickets and more information, simply go to rattletree.com Joel and i have a great conversation about learning marimba and living in Africa, teaching marimba, incorporating electronic music and traditional African music, the glow party, African chord changes and much, much more. I hope you enjoy our conversation. I sure did. Let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 517: Money Chicha

Hello friends! I hope you're all surviving the end of summer heat and floods. It's crazy out there, right?
I got to see Alice Cooper on Sunday night! I was amazing. I want to thank my friend, AJ Vallejo for inviting me. I had a blast seeing AJ's band, BANG before the Alice show. It was a great night all around. Alice's show is an onslaught of costume changes, snakes, giant frankenstein monsters and heavy metal. Plus, he's super old and still rocking like a champ. it was inspiring.
My Guest for episode 517 is Greg Gonzalez, the bass player from Money Chicha, Brownout and the Grammy winning, Grupo Fantasma! Money Chicha has a fantastic new album out, Echo En Mexico. I've been a fan of Money Chicha for a few years now and I've gotten to see them a few times during their residency at The Continental Club Gallery here in Austin and i'm a big fan. Greg and i have a conversation about balancing, touring and making music with three high-profile bands, growing up in Laredo, teaching composition, making Echo En Mexico, the history of Chicha music, playing with Prince and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know Greg. I sure did. Let's get down!
Ciao! jg

Episode 504: Van Wilks Returns!

hello friends! i hope you're having a good week and ready to cruise into the weekend in style. i have no idea what that means, but it sounds nice. if you live in san antonio, my band, skyrocket will be playing at sam's burger joint music hall, tonight, july 8th 2016. come out and get into the festivities that you can only get into by cutting loose with skyrocket on a friday night in s.a.. i'm playing friday, but i'm off saturday and next weekend. slow month for the skyrocket clan. i have no idea what i'm doing on saturday night. maybe some good peeps are playing and i'll see a band or two.
guitar hero, van wilks returns to the show for episode 504! van has a new album out, 21st century blues. i think it's his best and toughest sounding album yet. the more i have these conversations with my elders, the more i am convinced that if you stay inspired and stay true to yourself, you will always grow and your art will always be honest and good. such is the case with van wilks and his first album in ten years, 21st century blues. van and i have another great conversation. i never ceased to be inspired by van and the other amazingly talented people in my life that i look up to. i hope you enjoy our conversation. i sure did. let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 503: Jane Ellen Bryant

hello friends! i hope you had a good 4th of july weekend. i did. i got to play at the townsend's one year anniversary party. i played with mark hallman, nathan harlan, steven weisburd and the bluebonnets. what a great time. i'm actually booking some future podcast guests today. is there anyone you'd like to see on the show? i'm reaching out to publicists from all kinds of bands. hopefully, we'll be able to nail down some good ones. 
my guest for episode 503 is the incredibly talented, jane ellen bryant! jane's new e.p., twenties, comes out this friday, july 8th. she'll also be playing a release show on friday, july 8th at lambert's in austin with special guest, emily bell. i've heard about jane for years, but i've never gotten to meet her. it was great getting to sit down and talk to this austin native about recording her new e.p. twenties with frenchy smith, come up through the austin school of music, playing with max frost and much, much more. you can see the video for her song, "twenties" at janeellenbryant.com i hope you enjoy getting to know jane. i sure did. lets get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 500: Live at The Townsend w/ AJ Vallejo, Nakia, Kathy Valentine, Taylor Muse, Suzanna Choffel

hello friends! we did it! we hit 500 episodes and we did it in style. on monday, june 20th i was joined by aj vallejo, nakia, kathy valentine, taylor muse and suzanna choffel at the townsend here in austin, tx. we have a great and crazy conversation aj vallejo and i talk about our cooking show, "cooking/drinking w/ johnny & aj" and being producer of the year. we talk to nakia about his prince shows where he raised $15,000 for the sims foundation and haam. kathy tells about her new book, the movie she got to be in the new bluebonnet songs and videos. taylor muse and his love for chicken wings and star wars and suzanna choffel talks about jem & the holograms, her new album and much, much more! i want to thank juan alsina for recording the show, the townsend for having us and being so supportive of the show and last but not least, all of the people who came out and made it such a special night. let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 445: The Welch Family (Kevin, Dustin & Savannah) / Dwight Twilley Checks In!

hello friends! i hope you all had a great weekend! i did. i was back in the saddle with skyrocket. we went to houston and played a corporate christmas party. it was good, but i didn't feel well during the show. like the whole show. i soldiered through though. came back to austin on saturday, did this podcast with the welches took a two-hour nap and played hanover's with skyrocket. i felt much better. we had a good time. i'm struggling with wearing earplugs on stage... i hate it.episode 445 is a super-sized episode loaded with extra goodness! first up, i have a quick skype conversation with power pop legend and one of my heroes, dwight twilley! dwight is playing a solo acoustic show THIS thursday, december 17th at the hole in the wall here in austin, tx. here's some more info on the show twilley @ the hole in the wall anyway, dwight and i catch up since our last chat (around a year ago) about playing solo shows, his art book, smoking and more! it's a good time. next up, we're joined by kevin, dustin and savannah welch! they're taking their "welch family throwdown" around texas this week. they'll be in wimberley, the woodlands and ft. worth. find out more here welch family throwdown we have a fantastic conversation about making music as a family, dustin's non-profit, soldier songs, kevin's songwriting retreats, nashville then vs. now, broadway faces and much, much more! i love the welches. i'm sure you will too. let's get down! ciao! -jg

Episode 431: LOLO

hello friends! i hope you all had an enjoyable halloween weekend. if you live in austin, i hope that you made it through the floods on friday. i had a pretty harrowing 6 1/2 hour trip to houston on friday getting around closed highways etc. i hope all that were affected by the floods are okay. hey gang! tomorrow, tuesday 11/3 at the townsend here in austin, i'll be playing with my rock band, ladyband johnson along with the bluebonnets, eve & the exiles and more. we'll be celebrating dominique davalos' birthday. she plays bass in ladyband johnson and in the bluebonnets and i love her. the shindig starts at 7:30. come out and party on a tuesday!my guest for episode 431 is singer/songwriter/actor and force to be reckoned with, LOLO. you might know her as lauren pritchard star of the hit broadway show, "spring awakening".  she's written the songs for an off broadway play called "songbird". she's just released an e.p., comeback queen on DCD2 records and is currently on "the wilderness politics tour" with andrew mcmahon in the wilderness, new politics and the griswolds. i caught up with LOLO when the tour stopped in austin at emo's last night and we had a great conversation in the backstage courtyard. her e.p. comeback queen is absolutely amazing. and i suggest you go to her website, weaponforsaturday.com and see when she's coming to a town near you. i hope you enjoy getting to know LOLO as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg 

Episode 429: Big Cat

hello friends! welcome to another episode of "how did i get here?" a podcast where i talk to musicians and other folks in entertainment and art about what, how and why they do what they do. i hope you're all doing well. i want to let you know that my band, skyrocket, will be playing at cedar street courtyard this saturday 10/31, halloween night. we start at 9 or 10 and play til your costume is coming off and your make-up is melting come out and party with us this halloween.my guests for episode 429 are singer, malford milligan and guitarist, dave sebree from austin's newest super-group, big cat! they're self-titled debut album comes out this week and they're playing a fecord release show this thursday 10/29 at the continental club here in austin and they're playing an instore at waterloo records on friday 10/30 at 4 pm. big cat also includes drummer, les fisher, keyboard player, stefano intelisano and bass player, roscoe beck! i had a great time catching up with malford and dave about how they got the band together, making their album and much, much more. i love these guys and i'm sure you will too. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 427: Moving Panoramas / Honky Tonk Heaven: The Story of the Broken Spoke

hello friends! i hope you're all flying high again! things are going well here at la casa de johnny. i have a great big show for you guys today. before we get to my conversation with moving panoramas, i have a quick chat with michelle faires, producer of "honky tonk heaven: the story of the broken spoke" a documentary about the legendary texas honky tonk. they've just started editing and they've started a kickstarter campaign to finish up their movie. michelle gives us an insight to the story, but you can check it out and give at kickstarter.com/brokenspokefilm do it!my guests for episode 427 are the amazing dreamgaze trio, moving panoramas! their gorgeous new album, one came out earlier this month. you can find one and fin out all about them at movingpanoramas.com leslie and rosie from the band came by a few weeks ago and we had an amazing conversation about leslie's life-changing, traumatic few months, turning heartache and confusion into beautiful art, teaching rosie music and becoming bandmates, fear of numbers, school of rock, shoegaze vs. dreamgaze, the making of one, custom earplugs vs. $1 earplugs and much, much more! leslie's story is harrowing, but what she was able to do musically not only made her feel better but it made the world a more beautiful place and for that i thank her and the rest of the band. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 408: David Pulkingham / Utopiafest

hello friends! i hope you're all handling the insane stock market fluctuations with a cool hand like e.f. hutton. things are good here. i've been practicing with pal amy edwards and yates hagen for a show we have at the gibson showroom for the austin film society in a couple of weeks. it's been fun working on songs and changing them up to accommodate our stripped down band. speaking of a coupe of weeks... we have a live podcast coming up on wednesday, sept. 9th at the townsend from 8-10 pm. my guests will be kathy valentine, miles zuniga, emily bell and amy edwards. these live shows are really fun and there is no cover. come out and say hi. my guest for episode 408 is one of austin's most "in demand" guitar players, david pulkingham. you might know david through his work as a sideman with such notable artists as, alejandro escovedo, robert plant, patty griffin and many more. well, david has stepped out of his sideman role for his gorgeous new album, little pearl. just released last friday, little pearl features patty griffin, lloyd maines, the tosca string quartet and many more. david stopped by a couple of weeks ago and we had a great talk about growing up in a commune, music school, taking part in the latin explosion, learning rock and roll from alejandro escovedo, playing with robert plant and much, much more. i've always liked david. he's an exceptional musician and great hang. also, travis sutherland from utopiafest (sept. 4th0 sept. 6th) stops and tells what to expect at the 7th annual utopiafest this labor day weekend. more info on utopiafest at utopiafest.com. let's get down!ciao! -jg