J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

trombonist,

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

. Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop.

Biography

Big bands

After studying the piano beginning at age 9, Johnson decided to play

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

at the age of 14. In 1941, he began his professional career with Clarence Love, and then played with

Snookum Russell Snookum Russell (April 6, 1913 – August 1981) was an American pianist and leader of a territory band that played tobacco warehouses and dance halls in the South and Midwest in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Russell was born in Columbia, South ...

in 1942. In Russell's band, he met the trumpeter Fats Navarro, who influenced him to play in the style of the tenor saxophonist Lester Young. Johnson played in Benny Carter's orchestra between 1942 and 1945, and made his first recordings in 1943 under Carter's leadership, recording his first solo (on "Love for Sale") in October 1943. In 1944, he took part in the first '' Jazz at the Philharmonic'' concert, presented in Los Angeles and organized by Norman Granz. In 1945, he joined the

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ...

of Count Basie, touring and recording with him until 1946.

Bebop

While the trombone was featured prominently in dixieland and

swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing rid ...

music, it fell out of favor among bebop musicians, largely because instruments with valves and keys (trumpet, saxophone) were believed to be more suited to bebop's often rapid tempos and demand for technical mastery. In 1946, bebop co-inventor

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

encouraged the young trombonist's development: "I've always known that the trombone could be played different, that somebody'd catch on one of these days. Man, you're elected." After leaving Basie in 1946 to play in small bebop bands in New York clubs, Johnson toured in 1947 with Illinois Jacquet. During this period, he also began recording as a leader of small groups featuring Max Roach,

Sonny Stitt Edward Hammond Boatner Jr. (February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982), known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his ...

and

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Along with Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke and Dizzy Gillespie, Powell was a leading figure in the development of modern ...

. He performed with

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

at the 17 December 1947 Dial Records session, following Parker's release from Camarillo State Mental Hospital. In 1951, with bassist Oscar Pettiford and trumpeter Howard McGhee, Johnson toured the military camps of Japan and Korea, before returning to the United States and taking a day job as a blueprint inspector. Johnson admitted later he was still thinking of nothing but music during that time, and indeed, his Blue Note recordings as both a leader and with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

date from this period. Johnson's compositions "Enigma" and "Kelo" were recorded by Davis for Blue Note, and Johnson was part of the Davis studio session band that recorded the jazz standard "Walkin'" in 1954 (the title track of a Davis album issued by Prestige).

Jay and Kai

In 1954, producer Ozzie Cadena, then with

Savoy Records Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by Concord Bicycle Music. ...

, convinced Johnson to set up a combo with trombonist

Kai Winding Kai Chresten Winding ( ; May 18, 1922 – May 6, 1983) was a Danish-born American trombonist and jazz composer. He is known for his collaborations with fellow trombonist J. J. Johnson. His version of "More", the theme from the movie ''Mondo Ca ...

: the "Jay and Kai Quintet". The trombone styles and personalities of the two musicians, although very different, blended so well that the pairing, which lasted until August 1956, was a success both musically and commercially. They toured U.S. nightclubs and recorded numerous albums. The duo reunited again in 1958 for a tour of the UK, an

Impulse! Impulse! Records (occasionally styled as "¡mpulse! Records" and "¡!") is an American jazz record company and label established by Creed Taylor in 1960. John Coltrane was among Impulse!'s earliest signings. Thanks to consistent sales and positiv ...

studio album in 1960 and, in 1968–1969, (two albums for CTI/A&M Records). In January 1967, Johnson and Winding were in an all-star line-up (alongside the likes of

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duke ...

, Charlie Shavers and Joe Newman) backing

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...

on her last sessions for

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

, released as the album ''

Sassy Swings Again ''Sassy Swings Again'' is a 1967 studio album by Sarah Vaughan. This was Vaughan's last album for Mercury Records, and her last studio recording for four years. Reception The Allmusic review by Stephen Cook awarded the album four stars and said ...

'', with three of the cuts, including

Billy Strayhorn William Thomas Strayhorn (November 29, 1915 – May 31, 1967) was an American jazz composer, pianist, lyricist, and arranger, who collaborated with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington for nearly three decades. His compositions include "Take ...

's "

Take the "A" Train "Take the 'A' Train" is a jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn that was the signature tune of the Duke Ellington orchestra. History The use of the Strayhorn composition as the signature tune was made necessary by a ruling in 1940 by the American ...

", being arranged by Johnson himself. The duo also made some jazz festival appearances in Japan in the early 1980s, the last shortly before Winding died in May 1983.

Solo career

Following the mid-1950s collaboration with Winding, J. J. Johnson began leading his own touring small groups for about three years, covering the United States, United Kingdom and Scandinavia. These groups (ranging from quartets to sextets) included tenor saxophonists Bobby Jaspar and Clifford Jordan, cornetist Nat Adderley, trumpeter

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

, pianists

Tommy Flanagan Thomas Lee Flanagan (March 16, 1930 – November 16, 2001) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He grew up in Detroit, initially influenced by such pianists as Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, and Nat King Cole, and then by bebop musicians. ...

and

Cedar Walton Cedar Anthony Walton Jr. (January 17, 1934 – August 19, 2013) was an American hard bop jazz pianist. He came to prominence as a member of drummer Art Blakey's band, The Jazz Messengers, before establishing a long career as a bandleader and com ...

, and drummers Elvin Jones,

Albert "Tootie" Heath Albert "Tootie" Heath (born May 31, 1935) is an American jazz hard bop drummer, the brother of tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath and the double-bassist Percy Heath. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, he first recorded in 1957 with J ...

, and Roach. In 1957, he recorded the quartet albums ''

First Place ''First Place'' is an album by the J. J. Johnson Quartet which was released on the Columbia label.Blue Trombone'', with Flanagan, Paul Chambers and Roach. He also toured with the Jazz at the Philharmonic show in 1957 and 1960, the first tour yielding a live album, featuring Johnson and tenor saxophonist

Stan Getz Stanley Getz (February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of ...

. In 1958–59, Johnson was one of three plaintiffs in a court case which hastened the abolition of the

cabaret card The New York City Cabaret Identification Card was a permit required of all workers, including performers, in nightclubs in New York City from Prohibition to 1967. Its administration was fraught with politics, and some artists' cards were revoked o ...

system. This period overlaps with the beginnings of Johnson's serious forays into

Third Stream Third stream is a music genre that is a fusion of jazz and classical music. The term was coined in 1957 by composer Gunther Schuller in a lecture at Brandeis University. Improvisation is generally seen as a vital component of third stream. Schull ...

music (see below). Periods of writing and recording his music would alternate with tours demanding attention to his playing. Following the six months he spent writing ''Perceptions'' (see below), Johnson entered the studio for a date with

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

's trio (adding Johnson as the only horn). They recorded an entire album of the music of

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

, released as ''Andre Previn and J.J. Johnson Play 'Mack The Knife' and Other Kurt Weill Songs''. In 1962, Johnson toured for a number of months with Davis' sextet of that year, which went unrecorded. Johnson's 1963 album ''

J.J.'s Broadway ''J. J.'s Broadway'' is an album by jazz trombonist and arranger J. J. Johnson recorded in 1963 for the Verve label.Edwards, D. & Callahan, MVerve Label Discography accessed July 13, 2016 Reception The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow o ...

'' is an example of both his mature

style and sound, and his arranging abilities. Johnson's album '' Proof Positive'' (1964) was the last recording of his working band for over 20 years. Beginning in 1965, Johnson recorded a number of large group studio albums under his name, featuring many of his own compositions and arrangements. The late 1960s saw a radical downturn in the fortunes of many jazz musicians, and Johnson was consequently heard almost exclusively on big band-style studio records, usually backing a single soloist.

Composer

From the mid-1950s, but especially the early 1960s on, Johnson dedicated more and more time to composition. He became an active contributor to the Third Stream movement in jazz, (which included such other musicians as Gunther Schuller and John Lewis), and wrote large-scale works which incorporated elements of both classical music and jazz. He contributed his "Poem for Brass" to a Third Stream compilation titled ''Music for Brass'' in 1957, and composed a number of original works which were performed at the

Monterey Jazz Festival The Monterey Jazz Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Monterey, California, United States. It debuted on October 3, 1958, championed by Dave Brubeck and co-founded by jazz and popular music critic Ralph J. Gleason and jaz ...

in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In 1961, he composed a

suite Suite may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Suite (music), a set of musical pieces considered as one composition ** Suite (Bach), a list of suites composed by J. S. Bach ** Suite (Cassadó), a mid-1920s composition by Gaspar Cassadó ** ''Suite' ...

in six movements, titled ''

Perceptions Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous system ...

'', with Gillespie as soloist. The First International Jazz Festival, held in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

in 1962, featured another extended work. In 1965, he spent time in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

to perform and record his ''Euro Suite'' with a jazz-classical fusion orchestra led by

Friedrich Gulda Friedrich Gulda (16 May 1930 – 27 January 2000) was an Austrian pianist and composer who worked in both the classical and jazz fields. Biography Early life and career Born in Vienna the son of a teacher, Gulda began learning to play the piano ...

. In 1968, a Johnson work titled "Diversions" was commissioned by the American Wind Symphony and performed.

Hollywood

Johnson moved to California to compose for cinema and television. During this period, he played almost no concerts, except in 1977 and 1982 in Japan, and in 1984 in Europe. Despite the low profile, he did record six albums as a leader between 1977 and 1984 (including a 1984 trombone duo album with Al Grey) and a few albums as a sideman, two with Basie, and on ''The Sting II'' soundtrack. During the California period he also played in the Cocoanut Grove orchestra of

Sammy Davis, Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

and the TV orchestra of Carol Burnett.

Return to performing

Johnson returned to performing and recording in November 1987, with an engagement at the Village Vanguard in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Tours of the United States, Europe and Japan followed as well as a return engagement to the Vanguard in July 1988 which yielded two albums worth of material. While touring Japan in December 1988, Johnson learned that his wife Vivian had suffered a bad stroke, which incapacitated her for the remaining three and a half years of her life. During this period Johnson cancelled all work, devoting his energy to caring for his ailing wife. After her death in 1991, he dedicated an album to her on

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

. In 1992, Johnson married his second wife, Carolyn Reid, and he began actively performing once again. Following this second comeback in 1992, Johnson's contracts with a variety of record labels, including

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

and

Antilles The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...

, resulted in five albums as a leader, from small groups to separate brass orchestra and string orchestra recordings, as well as sideman appearances with his leading disciple, trombonist

Steve Turre Stephen Johnson Turre (born September 12, 1948, in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American jazz trombonist and a pioneer of using Conch (instrument), seashells as instruments, a composer, arranger, and educator at the collegiate-conservatory level. For ...

, and the vocalist Abbey Lincoln. He earned several

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nominations during this period. He retired from active performing and touring in late 1996, after having performed his last concert at

William Paterson College William Paterson University, officially William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPUNJ), is a public university in Wayne, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Founded in 1855 and was named after American ju ...

on November 10, 1996, then choosing to stay at his home in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

where he could indulge his passion of composing and arranging music with computers and

MIDI MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and re ...

. Later diagnosed with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

, Johnson maintained a positive outlook and underwent treatment. He wrote a book of original exercises and études for jazz musicians, published later by

Hal Leonard HAL may refer to: Aviation * Halali Airport (IATA airport code: HAL) Halali, Oshikoto, Namibia * Hawaiian Airlines (ICAO airline code: HAL) * HAL Airport, Bangalore, India * Hindustan Aeronautics Limited an Indian aerospace manufacturer of fight ...

. A biography, titled ''The Musical World of J. J. Johnson'', was published in 2000. On February 4, 2001, he took his own life by shooting himself. His funeral in Indianapolis drew jazz musicians, friends and family from around the country.

Influence

Johnson's work in the 1940s and 1950s demonstrated that the slide trombone could be played in the bebop style; as trombonist Steve Turre has summarized, "J. J. did for the trombone what

did for the saxophone. And all of us that are playing today wouldn't be playing the way we're playing if it wasn't for what he did. And not only, of course, is he the master of the trombone—the definitive master of this century—but, as a composer and arranger, he is in the top shelf as well." Several of Johnson's compositions, including "Wee Dot", "Lament", and "Enigma" have become

jazz standard Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive lis ...

s. From the mid-1950s onwards, Johnson was a perennial polling favorite in jazz circles, even winning "Trombonist of the Year" in ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' magazine during years he was not active. He was voted into the ''DownBeat'' Hall of Fame in 1995.

Discography

Bibliography

* ''The Musical World of J. J. Johnson'' by Joshua Berrett and Louis G. Bourgois (Rowman & Littlefield). * ''Exercises and Etudes for the Jazz Instrumentalist'' by J. J. Johnson (Hal Leonard Corporation, February 1, 2002).

References

External links

A tribute at trombone.org

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, J. J. 1924 births 2001 deaths People from Indiana People from Indianapolis 2001 suicides 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century trombonists American jazz composers American jazz trombonists American music arrangers Bebop trombonists Hard bop trombonists Third stream trombonists Blue Note Records artists RCA Victor artists Savoy Records artists Suicides by firearm in Indiana Burials at Crown Hill Cemetery American male jazz composers Male trombonists Musicians from Indianapolis 20th-century jazz composers 20th-century African-American musicians