Roy Anthony Johnson (born 25 December 1957),Katz, David (2000) ''People Funny Boy: The Genius of Lee "Scratch" Perry'', Payback Press, , p. 301-3 better known simply as Anthony Johnson, is a Jamaican

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

musician who was a member of the group Mystic I and is known for the 1980s hit song "Gunshot".Moskowitz, David V. (2006) "Johnson, Anthony (c.1960–)", in ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 159

Biography

Johnson was born in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

in 1957. His mother Cynthia Hamilton was a market woman by trade, and his father was a Barbadian who worked as a waiter at the Sombero Club in Kingston. Anthony's parents had three children together before separating. They also had other children separately, so Johnson has several siblings. Johnson was raised by his mother in a tenement yard in the heart of Trench Town. Biah's yard at 15½ James Street is significant in Johnson's development as an artist and musician. This yard, owned by an Indian who had moved to Kingston from Cuba, doubled as a popular dance hall on weekends and holidays. Some of the big

sound systems In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

of the era, including

King Tubby Osbourne Ruddock (28 January 1941 – 6 February 1989), better known as King Tubby, was a Jamaican sound engineer who greatly influenced the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s. Tubby's innovative studio work, which saw him elevate the ...

's, played at dances in Biah's yard. Many of the top Jamaican singers of the time were also from Trench Town, and Johnson took inspiration from the likes of John Holt,

Dennis Brown Dennis Emmanuel Brown CD (1 February 1957 – 1 July 1999) was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of l ...

, and

Alton Ellis Alton Nehemiah Ellis (1 September 1938 – 10 October 2008)Godfather ...

, regularly visiting the latter's yard in nearby White Street. When political violence escalated in Kingston, Johnson moved away to

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Por ...

, where he stayed with Ellis's younger brother Irving. While there sang with Irving's steel band, which performed at local hotels. When Johnson moved back south, he lived in Portmore, where he befriended the actor/comedian Carl Bradshaw, and played in Bradshaw's backing band. In the mid-1970s, Johnson began auditioning at Kingston's studios, along with his friend Horace Grassett (better known as Badoo). His first recording was "Free Black Man" for producer

Bunny Lee Edward O'Sullivan Lee OD (23 August 1941 – 6 October 2020), better known as Bunny "Striker" Lee, was a Jamaican record producer. He was known as a pioneer of the United Kingdom reggae market, licensing his productions to Trojan Records i ...

, although this was not released; Lee did, however, suggest that Johnson drop 'Roy' from his name, and he has performed as Anthony Johnson since. He went on to record for the Hoo Kim brothers at

Channel One Studios Channel One is a recording studio in Maxfield Avenue, West Kingston, Jamaica.Campbell, Howard (2014)Making magic at Channel One, ''Jamaica Observer'', 17 July 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2014 The studio was built by the Hoo Kim brothers in 1972, and ...

, and was sufficiently successful that he could buy a guitar. Johnson spent a lot of time at the Rasta camp on Selassie Drive, where he met Les Clarke and Balvin Fials, with whom he formed the vocal trio Mystic I. They recorded several tracks with

Linval Thompson Leval Alphonso Thompson (born 12 October 1954, Kingston, Jamaica), also known as Linval Thompson, is a Jamaican reggae and dub musician and record producer. Biography Thompson was raised in Kingston, Jamaica, but spent time with his mother in ...

, which he released without their knowledge as the album ''Mysterious'' in the UK in 1979. Tracks from those sessions were also released in 2009 by Johnson on the ''Perilous Time Showcase'' album. The group then recorded three tracks for

Lee "Scratch" Perry Lee "Scratch" Perry (born Rainford Hugh Perry; 20 March 1936 – 29 August 2021) was a Jamaican record producer, composer and singer noted for his innovative studio techniques and production style. Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development o ...

at his

Black Ark The Black Ark was the recording studio of reggae and dub producer Lee "Scratch" Perry, built in 1973 and located behind his family's home in the Washington Gardens neighborhood of Kingston, Jamaica. Despite the rudimentary set-up and dated eq ...

studio, with "Forward With Jah Orthodox" released by Perry as a single on his Black Art label. Ongoing solo, he recorded for several of the top Jamaican producers, most at

, including Linval Thompson ("Africa", "Life is Not Easy"),

Henry "Junjo" Lawes Henry "Junjo" Lawes (1960 in Kingston, Jamaica – 13 June 1999 in London, England) was a highly influential Jamaican record producer and a sound engineer. Biography Born in the Waterhouse district of Kingston, Jamaica, Lawes began working ...

("Let Go This One", "Now I Know"), and

Harry J Harry Zephaniah Johnson (6 July 1945 – 3 April 2013), known by the stage name Harry J, was a Jamaican reggae record producer. Biography Born in Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica, Johnson started to play music with the Virtues as a bass player bef ...

("Follow Them Footsteps"), but had his greatest success working with

Jah Thomas Nkrumah "Jah" Thomas (b. 1955, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae deejay and record producer who first came to prominence in the 1970s, later setting up his own ''Midnight Rock'' and ''Nura'' labels. Biography Named Nkrumah after Ghanaian national ...

who produced his first big hit in 1982 with "Gunshot",Foster, Chuck (1999) ''Roots Rock Reggae: an Oral History of Reggae Music from Ska to Dancehall'', Billboard Books, , p. 256 which pleaded for a cessation of the so-called "shotta" mentality,Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edition'', Rough Guides, , p. 286-7 and which has remained a perennial favorite with sound systems. The single was followed by an album of the same name. Johnson continued to record throughout the 1980s, working with

Prince Jammy Lloyd James (born 26 October 1947),Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, better known as Prince Jammy or King Jammy, is a Jamaican dub mixer and record producer. He began his musical career as a dub ma ...

on the hit single "A Yah We Deh", and with

Dillinger John Herbert Dillinger (June 22, 1903 – July 22, 1934) was an American gangster during the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depression. He led the Dillinger Gang, which was accused of robbing 24 banks and four police stations. Dill ...

on the single "Too Much".''Roots Knotty Roots'' (CD-Rom version), Nighthawk Records Johnson is well known in Jamaica and on the European reggae circuit. Since the late 1980s he has lived in the UK, where he worked with producers such as

Jah Warrior Jah Warrior is a United Kingdom roots reggae/ dub production team, record label, sound system, and musical group centred on Steve Mosco. Overview Mosco first got interested in reggae as a teenager in Manchester. He started attending sound s ...

, Rootsman, and Mike Brooks, and still performs all over Europe, especially with the French Ban
Positive Roots Band

Discography

Albums

*''Gunshot'' (1982), Midnight Rock *''Reggae Feelings'' (1983), Vista Sounds – expanded version issued 1999,

Culture Press Culture Press is an independent record label from UK specialized in Jamaican music. LP Discography *VSLP5000 - Bob Marley - Interviews *VSLP5001 - Clint Eastwood - The Best Of Clint Eastwood - 1984 *VSLP5002 - Dillinger - Blackboard Jungle - ...

*''I'm Ready (Showcase Style)'' (1983), Rusty International *''Reggae Feeling'' (1984), Live & Learn *''We Want More Lovin, Progressive *''A Yah We Deh'' (1985), Jammy's *''Rasta Brothers'' (1985), Dancefloor – with

Don Carlos ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Friedri ...

and

Little John Little John is a companion of Robin Hood who serves as his chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men. He is one of only a handful of consistently named characters who relate to Robin Hood and one of the two oldest Merry Men, alo ...

*''Robert French Meets Anthony Johnson'' (198?), Midnight Rock – with

Robert Ffrench Robert Ffrench (born 1962) is a Jamaican reggae singer and record producer. Biography Robert Ffrench grew up in central Kingston and attended Kingston College. He recorded his first singles in 1979, at the age of 17.McDonald, Kandré (2007)Rob ...

*''Togetherness'' (1996), House of Reggae – reissued (2001), Prestige *''Reggae Chronicles'' (2006), Hallmark *''Gun Shot: Extended Version'' (2007), Roots *''I'm The One'', Teams *''Dancehall Victory'' (2010), Rupa Rupa records ;With Mystic I: *''Mysterious'' (1979), Burning Sounds *''Perilous Time Showcase'' (2009), Anthony Johnson Music

Singles

*"She Afi Come a Me" (1977), Grimm Ben *"Africa" (1979), Strong Like Sampson *"Africa We Want to Go" (1979), GG's *"Hey Baby" (1980), Laser *"Ice Cream" (1980), Laser *"Life is Not Easy" (1980), Strong Like Sampson *"Let Go This One" (1981),

Greensleeves "Greensleeves" is a traditional English folk song. A broadside ballad by the name "A Newe Northen Dittye of ye Ladye Greene Sleves" was registered by Richard Jones at the London Stationer's Company in September 1580,Frank Kidson, ''English Fol ...

*"Just Call Me Girl" (1981), Freedom Sounds – with Lee Van Cliff *"Africans Must Be Free" (1982), Heartbeat *"Dancehall Style" (1982), Corner Stone *"Don't Let Me Down Girl" (1982), Heartbeat *"Gunshot" (1982), Midnight Rock *"Sound Clash" (1982), Midnight Rock *"Too Much" (1982), Oak Sound *"Baby Loving" (1983), Rusty International *"Dreadlocks Fight" (1983), Rusty International *"Now I Know" (1983), Greensleeves *"I'll Never Fall in Love Again" (1984), Rusty International *"Nah Lick Shot" (1984),

Black Scorpio Black Scorpio is a Jamaican sound system and record label run by Maurice "Jack Scorpio" Johnson. History Johnson had started to operate a single turntable and speaker sound system in 1968 and started the Special I sound system in 1972, changing ...

*"Nice & Easy" (1984), Black Scorpio *"Stop My Loving" (1984), Rusty International *"Spend the Night With You" (1988), Heights *"Gunshot 90's Remix" (1991), One Love *"Aware of Love",

*"Come in the Lawn", Connection *"Dance With Me", Midnight Rock *"Every Time I Hear Music", Midnight Rock *"Feel Like Dancing/Dance & Romance", Midnight Rock – with

*"Follow Them Footsteps", Harry J *"I Feel Good", Youth in Progress *"I'm The One", Teams *"Know The Truth", Black Zodiac *"Lost Love", Black Symbolic *"Loving a Woman", Midnight Rock *"Move in Move Out", Explosion *"My Girl", Duke of Earl *"Nice Up the Dance", Jammy's *"Say You Love Me", Connection *"She's My Queen", Reggae Sting *"Strictly Rub a Dub", Midnight Rock *"Take Me to the Show", Midnight Rock *"You I Love", Midnight Rock *"Swinging Medley", Silver Kamel *"True True Love", Jamaica Vices *"Tribulation" (2009), Heartical *"Concentration" (2007), Rupa Rupa Records ;With Mystic I: *"Forward With Jah Orthodox" (1978), Black Art *"Feeling Happy" (1978), 56 Hope Road – miscredited as 'Mystic M' *"Shining Light" (1978), Black Rose – miscredited as 'Mystic Eyes'

References

External links

Anthony Johnson
at Roots Archives * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Anthony 1957 births Living people Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica Jamaican male singers Jamaican reggae musicians Jamaican people of Barbadian descent