Musical Foundations: One of Ahwatukee's best bands talks rock, work and life in a band

It’s a Wednesday night and the dance floor is packed. Those who aren’t dancing are singing along, and even the folks on the patio are moving to the music and mouthing the lyrics.

It’s not Top 40 night at a trendy dance club, but rather two guys with acoustic guitars rocking an Ahwatukee Foothills sushi joint just like they do every hump day. The contagious enthusiasm has reached pandemic proportions at RA Sushi, 4921 E. Ray Road, and the cause of the outbreak is two members of Shawn Johnson and the Foundation (SJF).

“The No. 1 thing people say to me is, 'We love your energy. Every time you guys play you play like it’s your last show,’” said Shawn Johnson, lead singer and songwriter for the group.

Added guitarist Jayson Johnson, “I think it’s interesting, because we can be in the worst mood and people will still come up to us and say, 'Man, I love your energy!’ It’s like, 'Do you have any idea how bad my mood is right now?’

“But that’s good. The music translates a whole different vibe; an uplifting, energetic vibe.”

'Passionate and pretty self-revealing’

Shawn Johnson and the Foundation has been RA’s Wednesday night house band for the last three years, and the group has found a passionate following in that time.

“We call them the 'Shawntourage,’” laughed Jayson Johnson.

Listening to just the duo play, it’s easy to see from whence the appreciation grows. The two Johnsons - the pair, incidentally, are unrelated - put their backs into every song.

Guitar solos abound, both guitarists move rhythmically and fluidly, and Shawn frequently bellows mightily in a successful bid to hit every note perfectly.

“It goes in waves,” Jayson said. “You’ll see someone there at every show for three months, then you won’t see them for a while. Then they come back and they have a girlfriend, and that’s where they went.”

Dates, in fact, are a popular source of SJF’s audience. Jayson noted that a lot of people will show up before shows and request a song, explaining that its his or her first date.

“I think Shawn’s lyrics are passionate and pretty self-revealing,” Jayson mused. “They’re also romantic, without having anyone’s masculinity get threatened.”

The lyrics, Shawn explained, continue the tradition of writers who make magic from the inspiration they see around them.

“I write mostly about life experiences,” he said. Every once in a while I’ll try to focus on social issues.”

The music is difficult to categorize, a sort of blend of folk and rock catalyzed by the free-wheeling enthusiasm of a jam band. Shawn lists his influences as a range of alternative singer/songwriter artists and groups, from Counting Crows to Ani DiFranco to Public Enemy and Richie Havens.

'It’s abnormal’

Unlike a lot of local bar bands, SJF plays mostly original material, interspersed infrequently with covers by Peter Gabriel, Verve Pipe and classic rock staples like Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower.”

Audience members inside RA on Wednesday sing along with all the covers, and most of them sing along with the originals as well. It’s impressive to watch, but it makes sense seeing as SJF is one of the hardest-working bands in the Valley.

“We’ve been playing so much over the last few years that we’ve gotten really tight,” Shawn said.

The band plays constantly, serving as the Tuesday night house band for the Red Owl in Tempe and playing gigs in Arizona from Tucson to Flagstaff to Prescott. The group also has fans in California, New Mexico and Massachusetts, the latter of which is Shawn’s home town.

Shawn is now a full-time musician, making enough to support himself and a daughter. It makes for an interesting lifestyle, he said.

“It’s abnormal. I like to sleep during the day when my daughter’s at school; then I’m up until 5 or 6 in the morning.”

Jayson, meanwhile, is an axe virtuoso by night and an accountant by day.

“It’s really hard being at work, especially after a really good gig,” he said. “Not to sound egotistical, but to leave a show where everyone’s giving you praise and then go to a corporate environment where your just a peon is really weird.”

'Famous and rich... actually...’

But constant playing and crunching numbers keeps things in the black, and SJF is gearing up to release its fifth album.

“We’re going to try and release it by the end of the year,” Shawn said. “I think people are going to be surprised; it’s a rock record, an electric-guitar-driven record. A lot of my records have been acoustically oriented.”

To give SJF a listen before their December release date, copies of the band’s live CD can be purchased for $10 at www.shawnjohnson.com. It’s worth every penny, but the best way to see the band is live, which you can do every Wednesday at RA.

And don’t be shy about stopping off to say hi.

“Our band’s really down-to-earth,” Shawn said. “We’ll sit down and have a beer with people; we’ll take requests.”

Time may be ticking. Shawn added that he’s considering a Los Angeles stint after the new album is done in order to seek representation. After that, the sky’s the limit for one of Ahwatukee Foothills’ best bands.

“I hope we get famous and rich,” Shawn laughed. “Actually, switch that around; I hope we get rich. I could do without being famous.”

Jason Ludwig can be reached at (480) 898-7916 or jludwig@aztrib.com.