Donavon Frankenreiter

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Donavon Frankenreiter
Donavon Frankenreiter on stage
Donavon Frankenreiter on stage
Background information
Origin Downey, California
Genre(s) Soft Rock
Surf Rock
Label(s) Brushfire Records, Universal Records
Associated acts Peanut Butter and Jam
Website http://www.donavonf.com/

Donavon Frankenreiter, born December 10, 1972, in Downey, California, is an American musician and surfer. He is a long-time friend of Jack Johnson and his debut self-titled album was released in 2004 on Johnson's Brushfire Records through Universal Music and made the Australian ARIA Top-40 charts in April 2004.


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[edit] Surfing career

He took up surfing as a teenager at San Clemente, California, and was signed to a sponsorship deal with Billabong allowing him to travel the world surfing. During his travels, he rented a room in North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii, from Jack Johnson's parents and the surfer-musicians developed a strong friendship.

Donavon is also well known for his appearances in the Drive Thru series of surf videos.

[edit] Musical career

Frankenreiter started playing in Peanut Butter and Jam at the age of 18. In 1996 he began to seriously pursue a musical career when he formed the band Sunchild. In Sunchild, Frankenreiter was the lead guitar player but did not sing. The band had a 70s rock sound similar in style to The Black Crowes. They released their first CD, Barefoot & Live, on Surfdog Records in 1997. Produced by Gary Hoey, the live album featured covers of The Allman Brothers Band, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Rolling Stones, and Van Morrison, as well as several originals. California Honey followed in 2000 on their own Sunchild Records. This studio album is now out-of-print and is very hard to find. Sunchild disbanded in 2001 and Frankenreiter went on to pursue a solo career. Sunchild is rarely mentioned in interviews or press-releases which leads many people to believe that Donavon only started his professional music career more recently.

In 2002 Frankenreiter signed with Brushfire Records.

His self-titled solo album, Donavon Frankenreiter, was recorded with co-producers Jack Johnson and Mario Caldato Jr. Johnson appears on the album, as do G. Love and Eels member Koool G. Murder. The album was released in April 2004 in Australia due to his high profile in that country from his support gigs for Jack Johnson and from Frankenreiter’s own surfing career. He toured Australia in April 2004, helping the album reach the top forty of the ARIA albums chart. Gary Jules was his support act on this tour. The album was released in the United States one month later, on 11 May 2004.

In 2006 Frankenreiter left Brushfire Records and signed with Lost Highway Records, home of such notable artists as Elvis Costello, Ryan Adams and Willie Nelson. His follow-up album, Move by Yourself, was released on June 6, 2006. Later that year Donavon recorded a song called "Lovely Day" along with Koool G., which was featured in the opening sequence of the 2006 film Snakes on a Plane, and also appears on that movie's soundtrack.

Donavon's first live DVD, "Donavon Frankenreiter: The Abbey Road Sessions" was filmed and recorded at a special concert performed at Abbey Road studios in London, England in November of 2005, and subsequently released in early '06.

[edit] Discography

with Sunchild:

  • Barefoot & Live (1997)
  • California Honey (2000)

solo:

[edit] External links