David Earle Johnson (April 10, 1938 - December 22, 1998) was a percussionist, composer and music producer. The son of Earle H. Johnson and Lottie Ruth Troutman Johnson of
Florence, SC.
He appeared on
Billy Cobhams’ Total Eclipse and Voyage to Uranus (1974) by ;
Jan Hammers’ First Seven Days (1975);
Lenny Whites’ Big City and Miroslav Vitouš' Majesty Music (1977);
Jaroslav Jakubovics’ Checkin' In,
Mark Moogy Klingmans’ Moogy II, the
Players Associations’ Born to Dance, and
Josh White Jr’s self-titled album (1978).
Johnson's solo debut came in 1978 with Time Is Free, recorded for Vanguard Records. His relationship with that label proved short-lived, however, and he began recording albums for other labels in subsequent years before his recording career slowed following his 1983 album, The Midweek Blues.
Jan Hammer produced and performed on most of these releases along with
John Abercrombie,
,
Col. Bruce Hampton,
Allen Sloan
Allen Sloan was a Scottish rugby union player.Bath, p139
He was capped nine times between 1914 and 1921 for . He also played for Edinburgh Academicals.
He was the father of Donald Sloan, who was also capped for Scotland.
References
* Bath, R ...
,
Dan Wall
Daniel Lee Wall, Jr. (born September 7, 1953, Atlanta, Georgia, US) is an American jazz organist and pianist.
Wall was leading his own small group at Atlanta club the Carousel while still in high school. He attended the Berklee College of Music, ...
, Billy McPherson (under the pseudonym Ben 'Pops' Thornton), and Gary Campbell.
Johnson was against the use of sampling, as Hammer used samples of his rare Nigerian Log Drums on the
Miami Vice
''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, two M ...
soundtrack without his permission. This resulted in a lawsuit, which Johnson ultimately lost.
He was married to French artist Evelyne Morisot, with whom he had four children. He died from cancer in 1998.
Discography
As leader
* 1978 ''Time Is Free''
* 1979 ''Skin Deep Yeah!''
* 1980 ''Hip Address''
* 1981 ''Route Two''
* 1983 ''Midweek Blues''
* 1986 ''The Feeling's Mutual''
* 1993 ''White Latening''
As sideman
* Bob Belden Ensemble Straight to My Heart: The Music of Sting (1989)
* Blast Blast (1980)
* Billy Cobham ''Total Eclipse'' (1974)
* Billy Cobham Rudiments: The Billy Cobham... (2001)
* Jan Hammer Early Years (1974),
* Jan Hammer ''First Seven Days'' (1975)
* Col.
Bruce Hampton
Bruce Hampton (born Gustav Valentine Berglund III; April 30, 1947 – May 1, 2017) was an American musician. He was a key figure in the Atlanta, Georgia music scene, mentoring numerous other musicians who became national stars. His own musical ...
&
The Late Bronze Age The Late Bronze Age was an American band of the 1980s that performed surrealist, eclectic, and unusual music described by some as "unabashedly weird." It was fronted by Bruce Hampton, in his first appearance under the "Col. Bruce Hampton (ret.)" per ...
''
Outside Looking Out'' (1980)
* Jaroslav Jakubovic ''Checkin' In'' (1978)
* Elvin Jones - ''The Main Force'' (Vanguard, 1976)
* Klemperer/Reiner Gerald McBoing Boing & Others (1990)
* Mark Moogy ''Klingman Moogy II'' (1978)
* Taj Mahal Like Never Before (1991)
* Oregon Friends (1977)
* Oregon Essential (1987)
* Oregon Vanguard Sessions: Best of the... (2000)
* The Players Association ''Born to Dance'' (1978)
* Players Association Players Association/Turn the Music (1998)
* Sea Level Best of Sea Level (1977)
* Sea Level Long Walk on a Short Pier (1979)
* Clive Stevens ''Voyage to Uranus'' (1974)
* Swamp Dogg Swamp Dogg (Rat On) (1971)
* Swamp Dogg Cuffed, Collared and Tagged (1972)
* Swamp Dogg Have You Heard This Story? (1974)
* George Tandy Urban Jazz (1992)
* Nestor Torres Morning Ride (1989)
* Miroslav Vitous ''Majesty Music'' (1977)
* Josh White, Jr. ''Josh White Jr.'' (1978)
* Lenny White ''Big City'' (1977)
* John Williams Empire Strikes Back (1980)
* Betty Wright Passion & Compassion (1990)
* Various Artists Cool Fever (1997)
* Various Artists Vanguard Collector's Edition (1997)
* Jan Hammer Early Years
* Jan Hammer Oh Yeah?
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, David Earle
American jazz percussionists
1998 deaths
1938 births