Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon were a U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 vocal

Human voice

The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...

 soul group

Band (music)

In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...

, prominent in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Career

Originally known simply as The Bandwagon, they were formed in 1967 and featured Artie Fullilove, Billy Bradley, Terry Lewis and lead singer Johnny Johnson (born Johnny Mathis (sic), 20 July 1944, Rochester, New York

Rochester, New York

Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...

 - d. 1979).

They had their first major 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...

 hit

Hit single

A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...

 in October 1968 with "Breakin' Down the Walls of Heartache", written by Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell

Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell

Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell are American songwriters who wrote numerous pop and rock songs in the 1960s and 1970s, generally working together and with Bob Crewe...

, on the Direction label, part of CBS

CBS

CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...

, which reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

.

In 1969 the group disbanded, and all subsequent releases were billed as Johnny Johnson and His Bandwagon. In effect, the act was basically Johnson plus additional vocalists, who were hired for recording, touring and TV performances. Because they had been so much more successful in Britain and Europe, they based themselves in London, with songwriter Tony Macaulay

Tony Macaulay

Tony Macaulay is a British author, composer for musical theatre, and songwriter, though it was the latter that made him a household name early in his career...

 being primarily responsible for the next stage of their career. They had top ten hits with "Sweet Inspiration" (1970), and "(Blame It) On The Pony Express" (1970). The latter track

Song

In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...

 was written

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 by Macaulay, Roger Cook

Roger Cook (songwriter)

Roger Cook is an English songwriter who has written many hits for other recording artists. He has also had a successful recording career in his own right.-Early life:Cook was born in Fishponds, Bristol, England...

 and Roger Greenaway

Roger Greenaway

Roger Greenaway , is a popular English songwriter, best known for his collaborations with Roger Cook.-Career:...

.

Their recording

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...

 career continued through the 1970s, with a 1971 LP

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

 Soul Survivor, produced

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

 by Macaulay, as well as subsequent, less successful singles that year including "Sally Put Your Red Shoes On" and a cover version

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of the Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...

 song

Song

In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...

, "Mr Tambourine Man", on the Bell label.

They left Bell, for further singles including "Honey Bee" (1972), on Stateside Records

Stateside Records

Stateside Records is a British record label which initially released licenced American recordings and is now a reissue label....

, and "Music to My Heart" (1975), on Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

, written and produced by Biddu

Biddu

Biddu or Biddu Appaiah is an Indian-British music producer, composer, song-writer and singer who produced and composed many hit records worldwide during a career spanning five decades...

.

Their early hits are still revered as Northern soul

Northern soul

Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged from the British mod scene, initially in northern England in the late 1960s. Northern soul mainly consists of a particular style of black American soul music based on the heavy beat and fast tempo of the mid-1960s Tamla Motown sound...

 classics, as they espoused a more commercial pop

Pop music

Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

-soul style similar in sound to that of early Tamla Motown

Motown Records

Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...

, as opposed to the more funky progressive style favoured by contemporaries like Sly & the Family Stone

Sly & the Family Stone

Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music...

 and The Isley Brothers

The Isley Brothers

The Isley Brothers are a highly influential, successful and long-running American music group consisting of different line-ups of six brothers, and a brother-in-law, Chris Jasper...

.

"Breakin' Down the Walls of Heartache" enjoyed a new lease of life in 1980, when covered by Dexys Midnight Runners

Dexys Midnight Runners

Dexys Midnight Runners are a British pop group with soul influences, who achieved their major success in the early to mid 1980s. They are best known for their songs "Come On Eileen" and "Geno", both of which went No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart....

 on the b-side

A-side and B-side

A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...

 of "Geno

Geno (song)

"Geno" is a song by Dexys Midnight Runners which reached #1 on the UK singles chart for two weeks in May 1980. Written by Kevin 'Al' Archer and Kevin Rowland, it was band's second single and their first number one...

", and as an album track in 1981 on a solo album by Bram Tchaikovsky, formerly of The Motors

The Motors

The Motors were a British pub rock/punk band, formed in London in 1977 by former Ducks Deluxe members Nick Garvey and Andy McMaster together with guitarist Rob Hendry and drummer Ricky Slaughter...

. It was also popular in UK soul clubs

Nightclub

A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...

, during the early 1980s.

Johnson had not been well for several years, and the pressures of constantly touring during the early 1970s took a heavy toll. He died of cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 in 1979. Their frontman is not to be confused with Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry

Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...

's sideman

Sideman

A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform or record with a group of which he or she is not a regular member. They often tour with solo acts as well as bands and jazz ensembles. Sidemen are generally required to be adaptable to many different styles of music, and so able to fit...

, Johnnie Johnson

Johnnie Johnson (musician)

Johnnie Johnson was an American pianist and blues musician. His work with Chuck Berry led to his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.-Career:...

.

Singles

Releases on Direction, credited to Bandwagon; releases on subsequent labels credited the full name.

• "Breakin' Down The Walls of Heartache" (Direction 58-3670, 1968) - No. 4
• "You" (Direction 58-3923, 1969) - No. 34
• "Let's Hang On" (Direction 58-4180, 1969) - No. 36 credited to Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon
• "Sweet Inspiration" (Bell BLL 1111, 1970) - No. 10
• "(Blame It) On The Pony Express" (Bell, 1970) - No. 7
• "Mr Tambourine Man" (Bell BLL 1154, 1971)
• "High And Dry" (Bell BLL 1221, 1972)
• "Sally Put Your Red Shoes On" (Bell 1185, 1971)
• "Honey Bee" (Stateside SS 2207, 1972)
• "Strong Love Proud Love" (EMI 2114, 1974)
• "Music To My Heart" (Epic EPC 3458, 1975)

Albums

• Bandwagon: Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon (Direction 8-63500, 1968)
  • "Breakin’ Down The Walls Of Heartache"; "When Love Has Gone Away"; "Stoned Soul Picnic"; "I Wish It Would Rain"; "You Blew Your Cool & Lost Your Fool"; "You"; "People Got To Be Free"; "Girl From Harlem"; "Are You Ready For This"; "I Ain't Lyin’"; "Don't Let It In"; "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music"

• Johnny Johnson and His Bandwagon: Soul Survivor (Bell SBLL 1138, 1971)
  • "(Blame It) On The Pony Express"; "Love is Blue (L'amour Est Bleu)"; "Gasoline Alley Bred"; "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
    He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
    "He Ain't Heavy... He's My Brother" is a popular music ballad written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russell. Originally recorded by Kelly Gordon in 1969, the song became a worldwide hit for The Hollies later that year and again for Neil Diamond in 1970....
    
    "; "Sweet Inspiration"; "In The Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me)"; "United We Stand
    United We Stand (song)
    "United We Stand" is a popular song by Tony Hiller and Peter Simmons. It was first recorded in 1970 by The Brotherhood of Man , becoming the band's first hit, peaking at #13 in the U.S., #9 in Canada, and #10 in the U.K. It is considered a worldwide standard and has been recorded by over 100...
    
    "; "Games People Play"; "Something"; "Pride Comes Before A Fall"; "Never Let Her Go"

• Johnny Johnson and His Bandwagon: Breakin’ Down The Walls Of Heartache (Ace CDKEND 307, 2008) - compilation