Manzie Johnson was an American jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 drummer.

Johnson was raised in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, where he played piano and violin before switching to drums. He worked with Willie Gant

Willie Gant

Willie "The Tiger" Gant was an American jazz bandleader and pianist.Gant began on piano at age 12, and played in local New York clubs and cafes from age 17. He played with Lillyn Brown & Her Jazzbo Syncopators in 1921, and formed his own band, the Ramblers, that same year...

's Ramblers (1926), June Clark

June Clark

Professor Dame June Clark, DBE, RN, FRCN FAAN is a Professor Emeritus of Community Nursing, at Swansea University in Wales....

, Elmer Snowden

Elmer Snowden

Elmer Snowden was a banjo player of the jazz age. He also played guitar and, in the early stages of his career, all the reed instruments. He contributed greatly to jazz in its early days as both a player and a bandleader, and is responsible for launching the careers of many top musicians...

, Joe Steele, Fats Waller

Fats Waller

Fats Waller , born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer...

, Jelly Roll Morton

Jelly Roll Morton

Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....

 (1928), James P. Johnson

James P. Johnson

James P. Johnson was an American pianist and composer...

, and Horace Henderson

Horace Henderson

Horace W. Henderson Born in Cuthbert, Georgia , younger brother of Fletcher Henderson, was an American jazz pianist, organist, arranger, and bandleader....

 (1930) before joining Don Redman

Don Redman

Donald Matthew Redman was an American jazz musician, arranger, bandleader and composer.Redman was announced as a member of the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame on May 6, 2009....

's orchestra, where he played from 1931 to 1937. Johnson then spent time as a freelance musician with Red Allen

Red Allen

Henry James "Red" Allen was a jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose style has been claimed to be the first to fully incorporate the innovations of Louis Armstrong.-Life and career:...

, Benny Morton

Benny Morton

Benny Morton , born in New York City, was a jazz trombonist most associated with the swing genre. He was praised by fellow trombonist Bill Watrous among others. One of his first jobs was working with Clarence Holiday, and he appeared with Clarence's daughter Billie Holiday towards the end of her...

, Willie Bryant

Willie Bryant

Willie Bryant was an American jazz bandleader, vocalist, and disc jockey.Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Bryant grew up in Chicago and took trumpet lessons to little success. His first job in entertainment was dancing in the Whitman Sisters Show in 1926...

, Lil Armstrong, Mezz Mezzrow

Mezz Mezzrow

Milton Mesirow, better known as Mezz Mezzrow was an American jazz clarinetist and saxophonist from Chicago, Illinois. Mezzrow is well known for organizing and financing historic recording sessions with Tommy Ladnier and Sidney Bechet. Mezzrow also recorded a number of times with Bechet and...

, Redman and James P. Johnson again, Ovie Alston

Ovie Alston

Overton "Ovie" Alston was an American jazz trumpeter, vocalist, and bandleader.Alston played with Bill Brown and His Brownies in New York in 1928, recording with them for Brunswick Records. He was hired by Claude Hopkins in 1931 and remained with him until 1936; it is for this association that he...

, and Fletcher Henderson

Fletcher Henderson

James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson, Jr. was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. His was one of the most prolific black orchestras and his influence was vast...

. He served in the military during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, then played part-time with Sidney Bechet

Sidney Bechet

Sidney Bechet was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer.He was one of the first important soloists in jazz , and was perhaps the first notable jazz saxophonist...

 (ca. 1951), Garvin Bushell

Garvin Bushell

Garvin Bushell was an American woodwind multi-instrumentalist.Though never a major name in jazz, Bushell had a lengthy career from the music's early era, to the avant garde of the 1960s.-Biography:Bushell was born in Springfield, Ohio...

, and Happy Caldwell

Happy Caldwell

Albert W. "Happy" Caldwell was an American jazz clarinetist and tenor saxophonist....

. Johnson never led his own recording session.