Larry Alonzo Johnson
(May 15, 1938 – August 6, 2016) was an American
blues singer
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...
and
guitarist.
Life and career
Johnson was born in
Wrightsville, Georgia
Wrightsville is a city in Johnson County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,195 at the 2010 census, down from 2,223 at the 2000 census. The city limits include Johnson State Prison on the northeast side of town. The city is the county ...
.
His father was a preacher who traveled extensively. This led to Johnson being exposed to blues
records
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An item or collection of data Computing
* Record (computer science), a data structure
** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity
** Boot sector or boot record, r ...
by
Blind Boy Fuller
Blind Boy Fuller (born Fulton Allen, July 10, 1904February 13, 1941) was an American blues guitarist and singer. Fuller was one of the most popular of the recorded Piedmont blues artists, rural African Americans, along with Blind Blake, Josh Whi ...
, who inspired Johnson to learn the rudiments of guitar playing. He served in the
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
between 1955 and 1959, before relocating to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. After his befriending
Brownie and
Stick McGhee
Granville Henry "Stick" McGhee (March 23, 1918 – August 15, 1961) was an American jump blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for his blues song "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee", which he wrote with J. Mayo Williams Note: Accord ...
, Johnson found employment recording with
Big Joe Williams, Harry Atkins, and
Alec Seward. The latter gave Johnson an introduction to
Reverend Gary Davis
Reverend Gary Davis, also Blind Gary Davis (born Gary D. Davis, April 30, 1896 – May 5, 1972), was a blues and gospel singer who was also proficient on the banjo, guitar and harmonica. Born in Laurens, South Carolina and blind since infan ...
.
Johnson's first
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
release was "Catfish Blues" / "So Sweet" (1962).
[ He made numerous live appearances with Davis over that decade. In 1971, Johnson released ''Fast and Funky'', but his live playing gradually reduced. A couple of low key albums appeared in the 1980s, before Johnson received more regular live work in the 1990s, particularly in Europe. Whilst there his output included ''Railroad Man'' (1990) and ''Blues for Harlem'' (1999). ''Two Gun Green'' followed in 2002.]Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...
, New York.
Discography
Albums
* ''Larry Johnson'' (1962)
* "The Blues: A New Generation" with Hank Atkins (Prestige, 1965)
* ''Presenting the Country Blues'' (1970)
* ''Fast And Funky'' (1971)
* ''Blues from the Apple
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the African- ...
'' (1974)
* ''Larry Johnson'' (1974) Biograph BLP-12028
* ''Johnson! Where Did You Get That Sound'' (1983)
* ''Basin Free'' (1984)
* ''Railroad Man'' (1990)
* ''Blues for Harlem'' (1999)
* ''Two Gun Green'' (2002)
* ''The Gentle Side of Larry Johnson'' (2004)[
]
See also
* Blue Goose Records
References
External links
Larry Johnson on allaboutbluesmusic.com
1938 births
2016 deaths
American blues guitarists
American male guitarists
American blues singers
American male singers
Electric blues musicians
Guitarists from Georgia (U.S. state)
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
Southland Records artists
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