jack in brisbane

We tried to get Jack Johnson tickets while we were in New Zealand, but it ended up that they were sold out. Since we were back in Brisbane on the day of the concert, we decided that seeing the show would be a great way to finish our trip in Australia. So, we drove into the city and arrived at the Botanical Garden to look for tickets, but found out that there were two botanical gardens in Brisbane and we were at the wrong one. We thought parking was too easy at that location, so we drove back into the city and with road closures, a big concert, and very little street parking, we drove around for over an hour before finally finding a place to park across the river from the Botanical Gardens. There was a foot bridge to cross that brought us right to the gates of the concert and we sat waiting for someone to offer up their precious pieces of paper to us.

We were beginning to doubt that anyone would come forward with passes, but finally a guy passed us with a yellow envelope and we got our tickets after all!

The concert was a blast! An Australian, Will Connor played to kick off the show and Jack actually came out and played with him for a song. Then, one of my favorites, Matt Costa, also played (incidentally, he was also at Calvin College, my alma mater, two weeks prior). My favorite tune of his, Yellow Taxi Cab, came up and was so fun to hear in concert.

Before Jack Johnson came on to play, they had an Aboriginal welcome which included an Aboriginal man coming on stage in body paint, playing a didgeridoo. We were really happy we saw this concert in Australia right then!

Jack Johnson music was chill and happy as usual. It was grass seating at the Botanical Gardens and most people stood for the entire concert. He played a lot of his old music as well as a few songs from his new CD, which was good for Storey and I because we were not familiar with most of the new CD.

The concert was the perfect way to end our trip. Afterward, we hustled to get gas and find the house of a friend-of-a-friend. When we got there the house was dark and no one opened the door, so we may have googled the directions wrong. Due to the fact that we had to leave for the airport within 5 hours, we decided to drive around the neighborhood and find some unsecured network to get some internet and then we headed to a park to nap a bit before taking off for the Brisbane International Airport. So, our last night was as uncomfortable as the first in our car!
(photos from the Brisbane Times).

From the Sunshine Coast Daily:
A sell-out crowd chilled out under clear skies on Sunday to watch Johnson perform at Brisbane’s Riverstage, supported by Californian and fellow Brushfire Records artist Matt Costa and Byron Bay’s Will Conner...All three artists are touring on the back of new albums, but it was Jack who stole show, giving fans an awesome two-hour performance. Australia is the first stop on his world tour to promote his new release, Sleep Through the Static, which had clearly been listened to many times over by the fans attending his show. The crowd...sang along to song after song from his extensive catalogue of hits, but they saved their biggest screams for his hit songs Taylor and Good People. About the only time they went quiet was when he faded off into covers of songs by Led Zepplin and Janes Addiction. Johnson topped off a brilliant performance by coming out for an encore to perform three intimate solo tracks from Sleep Through the Static.