Combining the best elements of country, folk and classic rock
meet Topanga Canyon, California's CITY FRITTER.
What ARE the best elements of country?
The honesty and grit of Loretta Lynn and Buck Owens.
Folk?
The storytelling of Bob Dylan and the harmonies of CSNY.
Classic rock?
The ringing guitars and energy of The Beatles, Stones and Byrds.
What IS CITY FRITTER?
A fried up tasty mix of all those influences flavored by the experience and creativity
of singing and songwriting team JEWELS & JOHNNY NATION.
Rooted firmly in the present, listening to what has come before,
with eyes to the future - this is timeless music.
Since forming in 2003 CITY FRITTER has performed extensively
for enthusiastic audiences at nearly every venue in LA. Some favorites:
Canter's Kibitz Room, House of Blues, Molly Malone's, The Viper Room, Cinema Bar,
and Liquid Lounge Long Beach where they had a monthly residency for 2 years.
In their own close knit community of Topanga Canyon, Jewels & Johnny
have become local favorites playing the legendary
Topanga Days Country Fair for the past 4 years
and the Topanga Earth Day Festival for the past 3 years
as well as regular gigs at local watering holes Abuelita's and Froggy's.
Outside of LA, CITY FRITTER plays regular shows at infamous desert roadhouse,
Pappy & Harriet's and GRAMFEST -
the annual Gram Parsons tribute concert in Joshua Tree, California
where they make their second home.
Besides touring Northern and Southern California extensively, CITY FRITTER has also toured the east coast including shows in New York City, Philadelphia, the beautiful Berkshire mountains, and the rich musical area around Woodstock. Other tour stops include Baja, Mexico and the islands of Maui and Kauai in Hawaii.
Jewels & Johnny have been deeply inspired by these varied environments
and the energy and support they receive from these diverse audiences.
Wherever they play, audiences respond immediately and positively to the unique sound and stage presence of the band. High energy vocals meet laid back California guitars - a curly haired dynamo gets the crowd moving by dancing up a storm while a handsome rock & roller takes his licks on a collection of beautiful instruments.
Their original songs are full of honest good humor
and tell mostly true stories of real lives full of real emotions. On their own, each had written songs, but when they started writing together, a new voice was created and the music just flowed. After a songwriting workshop with alt-country guru Jimmie Dale Gilmore, their process was solidified and the songs continue to get better and better.
"We balance each other perfectly as songwriting partners" says Jewels "I'm primarily a lyricist, I start with the truth and emotional honesty of the story of the song while Johnny focuses on the hooks and guitar parts - we meet in the middle and that's where the magic happens"
"Some of the first songs we wrote together like 'LAUREL CANYON', 'TRAVELLIN" MOON', and '$91' are still favorites in our live show 5 years down the line. That's the test of a good song, it holds up over time" says Johnny.
They also Fritterize a wide variety of cover tunes by
The Beatles,The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Neil Young
and many, many more.
Johnny's lead guitar playing for the seminal LA cowpunk band, THE JONESES
gave him a solid background in the rootsy style later to be recognized as alt-country.
Jewels background in theatre gives her an immediate way to connect with an audience, singing and dancing professionally since childhood, she fronts the band with humor and confidence.The chemistry between them is apparent onstage and they’re having so much fun together, the good time is infectious!
Although Johnny’s background was in rock & roll and Jewels’ was in musical theatre, soon after meeting and starting to jam, Jewels & Johnny discovered a mutual curiosity about the history of country music and a real appreciation for the form. Together they dug deep into traditional, mainstream, outlaw, and cosmic American music - approaching and interpreting it all with new eyes and a fresh perspective.
Jewels & Johnny received their first big song placement in 2006 - the track "DON"T YOU KNOW" can be heard in the 20th Century Fox feature film "FLICKA" starring Tim McGraw. They are pursuing other licensing opportunities to get their songs out to a wider audience.
The song is included on their 2006 release
"FROM THE OCEAN TO THE DESERT".
In addition to the newest CD, CITY FRITTER has released 2 EPs :
the 5 track self titled "CITY FRITTER" and the 7 track all acoustic "JUST US"
Set to release in February 2010 is "BIG CITY BREAKDOWN" - a brand new 5 track EP produced with Jim Watts (Gram Rabbit, String Cheese Incident, Emmylou Harris). "BIG CITY BREAKDOWN" explores the grittier, edgier side of the Fritter sound and includes the barn burning "BUILD ME A TREEHOUSE"
an instant classic that's been knockin 'em dead at the live shows.
Check the NEWS page to read the latest goings on, the TOUR DATES page to find out when and where we're playing next, and be sure to sign our e-mail list to stay in the Fritter loop.
Thanks for listening and PEACE!
