Buck Johnson Has Always Had a Rock Edge — but ‘Just Feel Better’ Shows His Tender Side (Exclusive)

It was 2019 and Buck Johnson found himself in Las Vegas with Aerosmith with nothing.

“So I decided to make an album with a mix of my best songs,” Johnson, 57, recalled in an interview with PEOPLE. “And then, of course, the pandemic hit, and I just destroyed the album.”

But, as is the case with any ‘throwaway’ album, there were gems lying around — one of which was Johnson’s own cover of a song he wrote in 2004 and the song that Santana and Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler made famous a year later called “Just Feel” Better.”

The song, which became an international hit, touched on the importance of mental health, something that used to be rarely talked about, but now seems to be at the forefront.

“As we develop as a society in these United States, growing troubles, but I think there are good things that are happening – and one of those things is that now we can talk about things that are painful to talk about,” says Johnson.

Buck Johnson.

Kyler Clark

It was written by Johnson along with Jamie Houston and Damon Johnson, and the story of the song was born out of personal experience. “It came from a real place,” Johnson remembers. “It was about a close friend who was going through childhood trauma that was never talked about and never talked about, and the end result was tragic.”

And now, it’s a song that the renowned singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and music producer believes deserves some time back in the spotlight.

“Hopefully, sharing this song and this story can encourage someone that it’s okay to reach out for help and talk about it,” Johnson explains. “I have people who know me as the singer and keyboardist for Aerosmith and Hollywood Vampires, and a lot of those younger fans have already commented that they love ‘Just Feel Better.’ I’ll take it all day, even if it only reaches a few people.”

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Buck Johnson.

Katerina Benzova

Johnson wants to reach even more people with the upcoming release of his nine-track album Tongue and groovewhich will be released this September and an album named after a song inspired by Johnson’s late father.

“I wrote a song not specifically about him, but something he was always saying to me,” Johnson says of the heartfelt “Tongue and Groove.” “We lived outside of Birmingham and we lived in this old house that Dad was proud to help us restore. And whenever there was a tornado warning, he’d say, ‘Son, you don’t have to worry. This house is built on tongue and groove. It will weather any storm.’”

Certainly, on the day “Tongue and Groove” was written, Johnson didn’t want to write a song about his father. And on the day “Just Feel Better” was written, Johnson had no intention of writing a song about his close friend.

“But that’s the thing about music,” says Johnson, who enjoyed a brief stint in the country music realm in 2006 when he joined country rock band Whiskey Falls, with two Country Top 40 hit singles, “Last Train Running” and “I’m Falling In Love In you.” “Music can be therapy if you let it.”

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Buck Johnson.

Aaron Perry

So he can also return to the stage Johnson loves, including the one he’s shared with Hollywood Vampires members Alice Cooper, Johnny Depp, Joe Perry and Tommy Henriksen since joining the all-star band in 2014.

“We did a European tour last year that was actually originally planned for 2020 that kept getting pushed back,” says Johnson. “But here’s the deal. Alice Cooper is the Energizer Bunny. He doesn’t stop touring. And of course, Johnny has whatever film schedule he’s working on. And there is hope that Aerosmith will return to Peace Out tour maybe later this year. So we deal with all these schedules. Who knows when we’ll get that thing back on the road.”

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Source: HIS Education