“Where the Good Buzz Goes” by John John Brown is an exploration of the life of a war veteran with PTSD. Brown’s folky guitar sets the scene for the story but his lyricism is the real gold ticket that drives the song home. His exploration of the beauty in mundane living is powerful to those who have been through a lot. The VFW, his daughter’s yellow slide, and many more images sink deep and stay with the listener. The background voice (and fiddle/mandolin) is none other than Jessy Lynn Martens, who was on the FX animated TV series Archer. An excellent modern Americana work by Brown!
Listen to the song on SoundCloud:
A quote from John John Brown about the song in his own words:
“I wrote the song after striking up a conversation with this older fella who would always ride his bike out on a bike trail near my house. I’d be out there taking a walk, and sometimes I’d see him parked at a little bench nursing a beer in a brown bag. One day, after giving him the daily nod I ended up talking to him in passing. He told me about his daughter, and how he hangs at the VFW sometimes. He kind of looked like he’d been through a lot. From there the story of the song unfolded in my head, and it was based on that conversation.”
Guest Blog written by singer-songwriter @niko_storment (IG).