LARGER THAN LIFE

He's played on records by Johnny Cash, Neil Diamond and Donovan. As he drops his latest solo effort, Jonny Polonsky reflects on how he spun a few homemade cassettes into a remarkably varied music career.

- RICHARD BIENSTOCK

"I LOVE PLAYING music," Jonny Polonsky says. "To some other people it's a career. But to me, it's just my life." And what a wild, colorful life it's been so far. After releasing a series of homemade cassette tapes of his own music in the early '90s, the Chicago-born singer-songwriter was invited by John Zorn to play his New Jewish Music festival in New York City, where, still a teenager, Polonsky was backed by a band featuring Mark Ribot, playing in front of an audience that included soon-to-be fan Jeff Buckley. His solo career kicked off in earnest when super-producer Rick Rubin signed Polonsky to his American Recordings label, which released his acclaimed 1996 debut, Hi My Name Is Jonny. That album, a sharply written and incisive collection of infectious power-pop tunes, saw Polonsky performing all the instrumental parts and vocals himself, and was self-recorded at his childhood home.

Since then, Polonsky has continued to release critically lauded, if not necessarily commercially massive, solo efforts, making him something of a cult favorite among rock and pop aficionados in the know. At the same time, he's experienced a remarkable career as a collaborator, with his name attached to recordings by everyone from Johnny Cash (he played on his posthumous releases American V and VI) and Neil Diamond to Tom Morello, the Dixie Chicks and Donovan.

Now 49, Polonsky continues to be incredibly prolific. Last year, he unveiled an eclectic trio project with Rage Against the Machine bassist Tim Commerford under the name 7D7D; the group issued its debut single, "Capitalism," in December. And now he's back with Rise of the Rebel Angels, the first of two solo records he'll release this year. The album has been issued by Loosegroove Records, the imprint headed by Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard.