Jimmy Johnson (blues guitarist)
Encyclopedia
Jimmy Johnson is an American
blues
guitarist
and singer.
ian Syl Johnson
and Magic Sam
bassist Mack Thompson. In his younger years he played piano and sang in gospel groups. He and his family moved to Chicago
in 1950, where he worked as a welder
and played guitar in his spare time. He began playing professionally with Slim Willis in 1959, changing his last name to Johnson like his brother Syl. As a guitarist he was influenced by both Buddy Guy
and Otis Rush
and he played with Freddy King, Albert King
, Magic Sam
and Eddy Clearwater
among others.
In the 1960s he played more R&B music, working with Otis Clay
, Denise LaSalle
, and Garland Green. He also had his own group from the early 1960s, and by the late 1960s he had released his first single. By 1974 he had returned to blues playing, working with Jimmy Dawkins
and touring Japan
with Otis Rush
in 1975.
His first solo material appeared on Alligator Records
and Delmark Records
in 1978-79, when he was fifty years old. He was an award-winner at the first Blues Music Awards held in Memphis in November 1980. His career continued to pick up until December 2, 1988, when his touring van crashed in Indiana
, killing his keyboardist
St. James Bryant and bassist
Larry Exum. Johnson was injured and took an extended hiatus from the music industry, but returned to record for Verve Records
in 1994. In 2002, he recorded
with his brother
, Syl. He remained active and among other things toured Europe in 2009, playing both the UK
as well as Copenhagen Blues Festival in Denmark
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and singer.
Biography
Several of Johnson's brothers had careers in music; among them are soul musicSoul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
ian Syl Johnson
Syl Johnson
Syl Johnson is an American blues and soul singer and record producer.-Biography:Born Sylvester Thompson in Holly Springs, Mississippi, United States, Johnson sang and played with blues artists Magic Sam, Billy Boy Arnold, Junior Wells and Howlin' Wolf in the 1950s, before recording with Jimmy Reed...
and Magic Sam
Magic Sam
Samuel "Magic Sam" Gene Maghett was an American Chicago blues musician. Maghett was born in Grenada, Mississippi, United States, and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter...
bassist Mack Thompson. In his younger years he played piano and sang in gospel groups. He and his family moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 1950, where he worked as a welder
Welder
A welder is a tradesman who specializes in welding materials together. The materials to be joined can be metals or varieties of plastic or polymer...
and played guitar in his spare time. He began playing professionally with Slim Willis in 1959, changing his last name to Johnson like his brother Syl. As a guitarist he was influenced by both Buddy Guy
Buddy Guy
George "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
and Otis Rush
Otis Rush
Otis Rush is a blues musician, singer and guitarist. His distinctive guitar style features a slow burning sound and long bent notes...
and he played with Freddy King, Albert King
Albert King
Albert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
, Magic Sam
Magic Sam
Samuel "Magic Sam" Gene Maghett was an American Chicago blues musician. Maghett was born in Grenada, Mississippi, United States, and learned to play the blues from listening to records by Muddy Waters and Little Walter...
and Eddy Clearwater
Eddy Clearwater
Eddy "The Chief" Clearwater is the stage name of Edward Harrington ,) an American Chicago blues musician. Blues Revue said Eddy plays “joyous rave-ups…he testifies with stunning soul fervor and powerful guitar. One of the blues’ finest songwriters.” -Early life:He was born in Macon, Mississippi,...
among others.
In the 1960s he played more R&B music, working with Otis Clay
Otis Clay
Otis Clay is an American R&B and soul singer, who started in gospel music.-Life and career:...
, Denise LaSalle
Denise LaSalle
Denise LaSalle is an American R&B/soul and blues singer, songwriter, and record producer.-Career:...
, and Garland Green. He also had his own group from the early 1960s, and by the late 1960s he had released his first single. By 1974 he had returned to blues playing, working with Jimmy Dawkins
Jimmy Dawkins
James Henry "Jimmy" Dawkins is an American Chicago blues and electric blues guitarist and singer. He is generally considered a part of the "West Side Sound" of Chicago blues.-Career:...
and touring Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
with Otis Rush
Otis Rush
Otis Rush is a blues musician, singer and guitarist. His distinctive guitar style features a slow burning sound and long bent notes...
in 1975.
His first solo material appeared on Alligator Records
Alligator Records
Alligator Records is a Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971.Iglauer started the label with his own savings to record and produce his favorite band Hound Dog Taylor & The HouseRockers, whom his employer, Bob Koester of Delmark Records, declined to record...
and Delmark Records
Delmark Records
Delmark Records is an independent American jazz and blues record label, based in Chicago since 1958. The label originated in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1953 when owner Bob Koester released a recording of the Windy City Six, a traditional jazz group, under the "Delmar" imprint.-History:Born in 1932 in...
in 1978-79, when he was fifty years old. He was an award-winner at the first Blues Music Awards held in Memphis in November 1980. His career continued to pick up until December 2, 1988, when his touring van crashed in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, killing his keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
St. James Bryant and bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
Larry Exum. Johnson was injured and took an extended hiatus from the music industry, but returned to record for Verve Records
Verve Records
Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
in 1994. In 2002, he recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
with his brother
Sibling
Siblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
, Syl. He remained active and among other things toured Europe in 2009, playing both the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
as well as Copenhagen Blues Festival in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
Discography
- Jimmy Johnson & Luther Johnson (MCM Records, 1977)
- Tobacco Road (MCM, 1978)
- Johnson's Whacks (Delmark RecordsDelmark RecordsDelmark Records is an independent American jazz and blues record label, based in Chicago since 1958. The label originated in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1953 when owner Bob Koester released a recording of the Windy City Six, a traditional jazz group, under the "Delmar" imprint.-History:Born in 1932 in...
, 1979) - North/South (Delmark, 1982)
- Bar Room Preacher (Alligator RecordsAlligator RecordsAlligator Records is a Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971.Iglauer started the label with his own savings to record and produce his favorite band Hound Dog Taylor & The HouseRockers, whom his employer, Bob Koester of Delmark Records, declined to record...
, 1983) - I'm a Jockey (Verve RecordsVerve RecordsVerve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
, 1994) - Every Road Ends Somewhere (Ruf RecordsRuf RecordsThe motto of the blues label is "Where Blues Crosses Over". The company's office is located in Lindewerra, Germany. As of 2008 Ruf has produced 120 releases, sold over 1 million albums, received two Grammy nominations and ten Blues Music Award nominations....
, 1999) - Jimmy Johnson Featuring John Watkins (Black & Blue RecordsBlack & Blue RecordsBlack & Blue Records is a French record label specializing in swing jazz and blues.Black & Blue was founded in 1968, and in its early years concentrated on reissuing jazz that had been previously released on American labels. The label recorded Blues and Jazz musicians both in America and France and...
, 2000) - Pepper's Hangout (Delmark, 2000)
- Ma Bea's Rock (Storyville RecordsStoryville RecordsStoryville Records is a large international record label based in Copenhagen, Denmark, specializing in jazz and blues music. Besides its original material, Storyville Records has licensed and reissued many vintage jazz recordings that previously appeared on such labels as Paramount Records,...
, 2001) - Heap See (Black & Blue, 2002)
- Two Johnsons are Better than One (with Syl JohnsonSyl JohnsonSyl Johnson is an American blues and soul singer and record producer.-Biography:Born Sylvester Thompson in Holly Springs, Mississippi, United States, Johnson sang and played with blues artists Magic Sam, Billy Boy Arnold, Junior Wells and Howlin' Wolf in the 1950s, before recording with Jimmy Reed...
) (2002) - Brothers Live (Brambus Records, 2004)