Singles Spotlight:
Jontan –
“The Only Man You Need”

Hello reader,

How are you today?

We’re excited to discuss another artist making great music: Jontan, the project of Jonathan Gardner, a Chicago-based musician, educator, and audio engineer. He released his debut solo album, The Orange Book, in 2023. It’s a release that features a beautifully diverse sound, with samba-soul, jazz, bossa nova, and more. Josh really enjoyed it, placing the album just outside his top 50 albums of the year. Jontan was also a collaborator alongside fellow Chicago-based artist Walker, whose Water Tower Session debuted early in SWT’s history. So early, it was our fourth session, and you can read about and watch it here. I’m a big fan of Jontan’s music as well, so I’m glad we can advocate for him once again today.

A recent press release for Jontan’s second upcoming album, The Yellow House, which is out February 6th, included a bio written by musician and good friend Eli Winter that outlines an introduction to Jontan quite well, stating, “Jontan is a musical Swiss Army knife. Give him a cello, and he spins out lush webs of strings; give him a drum kit, and he channels physical, cross-cultural grooves. He can sing in English, Spanish, or Portuguese (and on “Mirandolina,” all three). After traveling to Bahía, Brazil in 2019, Jontan began building a musical vocabulary from the commonalities between American and Latin pop. And across The Yellow House, Jontan makes music with a playful, open spirit that dates back to a childhood spent making drawings and stop-motion movies in West LA. Working out of his sunroom home studio in Chicago’s Andersonville neighborhood, he writes, arranges, and records vocals, keys, acoustic and electric guitars, upright and electric bass, and his first instrument, cello, which he often layers in as many as sixteen tracks atop the rest.” Intrigued yet? Imagining how those melodies come together? I know I am and was. 

The press release breaks down the credit on the album by explaining, “The Yellow House also spotlights several Chicago musicians who work across pop, indie, and Afro-Cuban music. Not only does Jontan renew his collaboration with local indie mainstay and jazz singer Walker, he also welcomes percussionist Jean-Christophe Leroy (Lalo Schifrin, Chucho Valdés) and keyboardist Josh Greenberger (Noname). And, for the first time on a Jontan album, mixing engineer John Trainum (Kate Bollinger) and mastering engineer Danny Kalb (Beck, Steve Lacy).” I dig all of this, and hope you do as well. 

A month ago, I was fortunate enough to hear the first single, “Amélie,” along with the rest of The Yellow House. I came away impressed and found that “The Only Man You Need” spoke to me the loudest in the best ways. I’m always a lover of soulful music. What separates the good from the lasting greats is having legendary vocals to pair with glistening melodies. And there are some greats in the modern day.

Before you listen to Jontan’s “The Only Man You Need”, I think it’s easy to assume that the title is presumptuous, but if you take the time to listen to the song and its lyrics, I believe you’d disagree. This song officially came out last week as the second single for the album, and it’s fantastic. I think it’s especially perfect for the chilly midwestern/east coast winter experience right now. And other parts of the northern hemisphere are feeling bitterly cold, with temperatures below freezing. It was the second single off the upcoming album and hooked me from the opening notes. Some gorgeous piano keys start the song, followed by impassioned singing. The entire song is smooth and has what I feel are amazing old school, soulful R&B vibes that will place many in the past 70’s and 80’s. It warms the mind and heart. And thus, I think this song serves as a good starting point for delving into Jontan’s soulfulness.

Click play and listen to “The Only Man You Need” for yourself:

The cover art for The Yellow House:

The track list for The Yellow House:

1. Amélie (3:32)
2. The Only Man You Need (3:53)
3. Suna (2:52)
4. Do You Think (5:51)
5. Autumn Samba (2:25)
6. A Girl Named Sydney (3:12)
7. Jin in June (3:13)
8. The Girl For Me (5:47)
9. One For The Road (4:10)
10. Mirandolina (5:28)
11. Sand (4:55)
12. Before You Had The Chance (3:32)

Alex M Theel

Co-Founder, Reviewer, Content Creator, Business side, Editor at Scummy Water Tower Productions | Web

Scummy Water Tower Productions co-founder, reviewer, business manager, and editor. Thank you for visiting this site: scummywatertower.com, and YouTube for Water Tower Sessions!
Contact me: alex@scummywatertower.com