| April 13th, 2005 11:04 AM |
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| Rolling1 |
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, piano player and blues musician johnny johnson passed away this morning.
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| April 13th, 2005 11:14 AM |
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| Stones Fan, Gar |
Very sad to hear this, truely. He made Chuck Berry the artist he became, as well as influence so many more. A true legend and gentleman, he will be missed. He did an album in 1991, called Johnnie Be Bad that has Keith singing Key To The Highway. Great album all the way around.
[Edited by Stones Fan, Gar] |
| April 13th, 2005 11:16 AM |
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| voodoopug |
quote:
Rolling1 wrote:
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, piano player and blues musician johnny johnson passed away this morning.
this is very sad.....a true legend. I have a dvd of him playing with Keith and recently seen him playing on Hail Hail.
Sad to see a legend pass |
| April 13th, 2005 11:37 AM |
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| Nellcote |
Hail Hail Rock & Roll!
Long Live Johnny Johnson! |
| April 13th, 2005 12:02 PM |
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| Gazza |
ah fuck, no
what a shame. RIP Johnnie |
| April 13th, 2005 12:18 PM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
"They aren't going to be around forever, and when they're gone there's no replacing them." FPM C10
RIP Johnny. I'm sorry.
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| April 13th, 2005 12:25 PM |
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| glencar |
RIP Mr. Johnson |
| April 13th, 2005 12:43 PM |
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| kath |
damn. another legend gone. |
| April 13th, 2005 12:51 PM |
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| FPM C10 |
quote:
Ten Thousand Motels wrote:
"They aren't going to be around forever, and when they're gone there's no replacing them." FPM C10
RIP Johnny. I'm sorry.
DAMN. This is exactly what I was talking about, but we didn't need such a heartbreaking example so soon.
Absolutely no replacing this one.
Hats off to Keith for making sure that Johnny's life story had a decent last act. When Keith started putting together the Chuck Berry birthday celebration immortalized in Hail Hail Rock & Roll, he found Johnny driving a cab (I think) and got his career back on track. He also did a lot of work to get sidemen like Johnny recognized by the R&R Hall of Fame.
Man...just last week my son and I were driving somewhere and Chuck Berry came on the radio. I think it was "Sweet Little 16". My son, being my son, immediately reached over and turned it up. So I gave him a crash course on Chuck Berry, how much he influenced the Stones, etc. When those great rolling piano lines danced out of the radio I said "and THAT is the great Johnny Johnson."
In fact, I don't recall ever saying the words "Johnny Johnson" without prefacing his name with "the GREAT"...
DAMN. |
| April 13th, 2005 12:56 PM |
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| kath |
chuck recently cancelled some of his tour. i think now we know why...... |
| April 13th, 2005 01:04 PM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
Johnnie Johnson: Father of Rock 'N Roll
Intro to Johnnie: Johnnie Johnson was born on July 8, 1924.
Johnnie Johnson is a self-taught pianist, who settled in St. Louis in 1952 and formed the Sir John Trio. He asked Chuck Berry to sit in that New Year's Eve, and a magical half-century collaboration was born.
Johnnie was rediscovered in 1986, when Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards sought out Johnnie for the documentary, "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll." Johnnie's piano playing in the 1987 movie won him a host of new fans, including Keith Richards and Eric Clapton.
Johnnie Johnson is considered by many to be the world's greatest living Blues Pianist & the Founding Father of Rock & Roll Music. Johnnie received a Congressional Citation in 1999, for his lifetime contributions to Blues & Jazz Music. Johnnie Johnson was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.
BluesBlues Legend to Lead W.Va. Festival
By Ed Masley, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Thursday, July 08, 2004
www.post-gazette.com/pg/04190/343130.stm
Johnnie Johnson played piano on some of the most inspired, most enduring records of rock 'n' roll's first decade.
And it's all because his saxophonist called in sick on New Year's Eve in 1952.
Johnson brought in a fledgling St. Louis guitarist, Chuck Berry, who'd been playing professionally for only maybe six months, "I asked him to sit in for me that night. And that night lasted many years."
He could tell from start, he says, that Berry was a different breed.
"We were doing standards back in that time, and what Chuck came in there doing, this rock 'n' roll, it was a novelty thing," he says. "There wasn't no black American doing hillbilly music."
No one sounded like Chuck Berry by the time the Johnnie Johnson Trio came to Chess Records in 1955, the same year Berry "motorvated" all the way to No. 5 on the U.S. pop charts with a hillbilly-flavored car-chase song called "Maybellene." It also spent 11 weeks at No. 1 on the R&B charts.
And the hits kept coming, positioning Berry as both the archetypal rock 'n' roll guitarist and the poet laureate of pre-Bob Dylan rock 'n' roll: "Roll Over Beethoven." "School Day." "Rock & Roll Music." "Sweet Little Sixteen." "Johnny B. Goode." "Carol." "Almost Grown." "Back in the U.S.A."
And those were just the hits. The album cuts were often better.
Read the Full Article: www.post-gazette.com/pg/04190/343130.stm
Elvis may have been the king, but was he first?
By Ed Masley, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Sunday, July 04, 2004
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04186/340875.stm
*Johnnie Johnson is quoted for this article, which describes the roots of Rock 'N Roll.
It was 50 years ago tomorrow, the Fifth of July, that a young Elvis Presley, a truck-driving R&B scholar from Tupelo, Miss., took his first step down the road to being crowned the king of rock 'n' roll in his first night of sessions at Sam Phillips' Memphis Recording Service.
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Johnnie Johnson, who played piano on Chuck Berry's greatest hits, was on a Freed bill at the Paramount the first time he heard anybody mention rock 'n' roll. It was the night his bandmate introduced his legendary duck walk to the stage show.
"The kids were just having a ball," he says. "And Alan Freed said, 'Well, look at 'em rockin' and rollin'." And right in the middle of his statement, he said, 'Hey, why don't we call this music rock 'n' roll music?' And that to me, was the birth of rock 'n' roll music."
Or if not the birth, the naming.
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Dec. 31, 1952 -- When Johnnie Johnson's saxophonist calls in sick on New Year's Eve, he hires a fill-in guitarist, Chuck Berry, a reform-school graduate who could play the guitar just like a-ringin' a bell. With Johnson on piano, Berry would emerge with "Too Much Monkey Business," "Maybellene" and other three-chord treasures as the poet laureate of pre-Bob
Read the full article: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04186/340875.stm
Johnnie Johnson, Unsung Hero of Rock 'N Roll
Born July 8, 1924 in Fairmont, West Virginia
Johnnie Johnson is one of the unsung heroes of rock and roll. He is recognized by many as “the worlds greatest blues pianist” and “the founding father of rock and roll.” Johnnie was born July 8, 1924 on Diamond Street in Fairmont, West Virginia. Johnnie began playing piano in 1928 when he was four years old. His mother had purchased the second-hand upright piano as a decoration.
Taking to the instrument immediately Johnnie seemed to possess an innate mastery of the instrument even then. Unable to afford lessons Johnnie practiced and absorbed the sounds of big band jazz and swing, barrelhouse boogie, and country western that he heard on local radio. His heroes were piano players: Count Basie, Art Tatum, Earl Hines, Pete Johnson, and Meade Lux Lewis. Johnnie studied each man's repertoire, mixing and matching until he found his own unique style. Johnnie even made his radio debut on local radio station WMMN at the age of eight years old.
In 1943, with the war in full tilt, Johnnie enlisted in the Marines becoming one of the first 1,500 black soldiers in this branch of the service. He fought in the Marshall Islands and later had the opportunity to join the company band- The Barracudas- an elite group made up of some of the finest jazz musicians in the world. The band was made up of members of Count Basie’s, Lionel Hampton’s, and Glen Miller’s bands. It was a dream come true to play alongside his radio idols at U.S.O. shows, and by the time he had returned home, Johnnie had decided to make music his life.
After hearing T-Bone Walker playing in a Detroit club, he decided to move to Chicago, where the post-war blues scene was at it’s height. Befriending and sitting in with legends like Muddy Waters, Memphis Slim, and Little Walter sharpened Johnnie's skills. He finally settled down in St. Louis in March of 1952. Johnnie formed a band “The Johnnie Johnson Trio” and soon landed a regular gig at one of the biggest nightspots in town, “The Cosmopolitan Club.”
On New Year’s Eve of 1952 fate stepped in, as Johnnie's saxophonist became ill and was unable to make the show. Desperate for a replacement Johnnie hired a fledgling guitarist named Chuck Berry to fill in for the night. Although he had only been playing professionally for six months, Berry had a gift for performance and a way with words that caught the audience’s attention. Johnnie decided to keep him on as a singer/guitarist, and for the next two years the Johnnie Johnson Trio rocked the Cosmopolitan every weekend.
In 1955 while still performing as the Johnnie Johnson Trio, Johnnie, Chuck Berry, and Ebby Hardy traveled to Chicago and recorded “Maybellene” along with the legendary Willie Dixon on bass for Chess Records. The record was a hit and soon reached number five on the charts. It was then that Berry approached his partner about taking over the band. Confident of Berry’s business acumen, and yearning to simply play, Johnnie entrusted Berry with his band. And so it was that Johnnie became the silent partner in the first writing and performing team in the history of rock and roll. With Johnnie’s musical prowess and Berry’s gift for words, they collaborated on some of the most influential songs in musical history including, “Wee Wee Hours,” “Sweet Little Sixteen (with which the Beach Boys later had a hit Surfin USA),” “Roll Over Beethoven,” “School Days,” “Back in the USA,” “Rock and Roll Music,” among many others. In fact the song that many people believe to be the national anthem of rock and roll “Johnnie Be Goode” was written by Berry as a tribute to his musical partner and collaborator Johnnie Johnson. Johnnie would often keep playing long after the show ended, sitting in with jazz bands and anyone that would have him. “I would play anytime, anywhere, with anybody,” he has said. Referring to his disappearing acts, Berry would look at him and say, “Why can’t you just be good, Johnnie?”
Johnnie and Berry performed and record together through the seventies. However, as Berry’s popularity grew, and he began to travel internationally, Johnnie elected to stay home in St. Louis. During this time Johnnie also recorded and performed with the legendary Albert King for whom he contributed a great number of musical arrangements even performing in what many have said was the greatest Albert King Band ever. But through it all Johnnie toiled largely unrecognized by the public.
That is, until 1986 when Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards sought Johnnie out for documentary Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll. Richards observed that many of Berry’s songs were written in piano keys Johnnie’s keys. And without Johnnie’s melodies the most influential songs in rock and roll history would be “just a lot of words on paper.” Johnnie’s performance in the film left no doubt that he has no equals on the piano.
Since the release of the film, Johnnie has begun to receive the credit and the public acclaim he so rightly deserves. Johnnie has released six solo albums and contributed his considerable talents to recordings by Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Bo Diddley, and the late greats John Lee Hooker, and Jimmy Rogers. Johnnie has also been inducted into the Boogie Woogie Hall of Fame, won the prestigious Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, received a Congressional Citation for Lifetime Achievement, and in March of 2001 was inducted into “The Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame.”
In the words of Johnnie’s guitarist Tom Maloney, “Fairmont, West Virginia is definitely an important part of Johnnie. Johnnie could have been born in New York, Chicago, Houston, St. Louis, or any other place in the world, but we wouldn’t have Johnnie or rock and roll music as we know it today.” “Fairmont should be very, very, proud of Johnnie.”
Johnnie Johnson has definitely suffered for his art. Yet, through it all he has never lost the gentle self-effacing demeanor that causes everyone he meets to love him. He has no bitterness, no regrets. Whether he is playing in front of thousands or in a small club, Johnnie plays for the sake of playing. Volumes have been written about Johnnie’s influence and many more will be. Every time that a musician picks up an instrument, Johnnie’s influence is there, whether on stage in front of thousands, in a small club, or under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning. Whenever the shuffle and boogie woogie rhythms start, that’s Johnnie’s left hand saying come on let’s rock the house.
Top
Father of Rock and Roll, Johnnie Johnson,
To Receive Degree From Fairmont State College
Press Release from the Johnnie Johnson
Blues & Jazz Society, Inc., May 3, 2002
Johnnie Johnson, who has been recognized by the United States Congress as the Father of Rock and Roll and a National Treasure, will receive the degree Doctor of Music from Fairmont State College. Johnson will be awarded the degree at the annual commencement ceremony scheduled for Saturday May 11, 2002 at 10 a.m.
Johnson who was born in Fairmont in 1924 began playing piano at the age of 5 on a second hand piano his mother had brought into the home as a decoration. Johnson’s mother claimed that his talent was a gift from God, as he had received no formal lessons on the piano. Johnnie developed his unique style by listening to the radio and the popular recordings of the day.
Johnson enlisted in the Marines at the height of World War II and became one of the first 1,500 African-Americans in that branch of the service. Johnson played with an elite group, the Barracudas, that featured members of Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, and Glenn Miller’s bands.
In 1952 Johnson formed the Sir John’s Trio and hired a fledgling guitarist, Chuck Berry. Over the next 20 to 30 years in collaboration the duo created songs that help to forge a new musical style that changed the face of music. Johnson and Berry collaborated on “Roll Over Beethoven,” “Rock and Roll Music,” “Wee Wee Hours,” among many others. Berry wrote the song “Johnny Be Goode” as a tribute to Johnson.
Johnson has released six solo albums and has recorded with John Lee Hooker, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, among many others and is recognized as the world’s greatest blues pianist. Johnson served as FSC’s Artist in Residence for 2002.
State Senator Lloyd G. Jackson II D-Boone, Lincoln, Logan, Wayne, will also receive a degree from Fairmont State College on Saturday May 11. Sen. Jackson will receive the degree Doctor of Laws because he has provided a vision for improvement of education in West Virginia, both in the public schools and in higher education.
“Fairmont State is pleased to honor these two gentlemen who have contributed so much to our society,” says FSC President Daniel J. Bradley. “They have each shown a commitment to excellence and innovation, and are deserving of this special recognition.”
Johnnie Johnson to Perform at Fairmont State College
January 23, 2002
Fairmont native Johnnie Johnson, who has been called the "world's greatest living blues pianist" and "the founding father of rock and roll," will perform Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. at Colebank Hall on the Fairmont State campus.
The concert, sponsored by Student Government, the School of Fine Arts and the Johnnie Johnson Blues and Jazz Society, is free and open to the public.
Johnson began playing the piano in 1928; he was 4 years old when his parents brought a new piano into their Fairmont home. Taking to it immediately, Johnson seemed to possess an innate mastery of the instrument. By age 9, he was playing jazz tunes by Count Basie, Oscar Peterson and Earl "Fatha" Hines on the local radio station. By the 1950s, he was living in St. Louis where he worked in a factory by day and fronted the Johnnie Johnson Trio, an R & B band, as time allowed.
Right before a big date on New Year's Eve in 1952, Johnson suddenly had to replace his ailing saxophonist, so he called a guitar-playing friend to sit in. His name was Chuck Barry.
Berry's rocking hillbilly style melded with Johnson's jazz-tinged blues and boogie, and rock and roll was the result. Many of Berry's rock and roll classics - including "Sweet Little Sixteen," "School Days" and "Roll over Beethoven," - came about during impromptu rehearsals, when Berry would show up with lyrics and ask Johnson to put some music behind them. "Just me, Chuck and the piano," is how Johnson put it.
Johnson's musical contributions to Berry's songs were essential to their success. The overlooked pianist finally received some long-overdue recognition in the 1985 Chuck Berry film documentary, "Hail! Hail! Rock and Roll," where Keith Richards and others talked about the importance of Johnson's piano stylings.
In 2000, Johnson was honored by the Fairmont community. In July, he performed a local concert that attracted the largest audience for any gathering of this kind in recent years. He graciously received the key to the city and July 8, his birthday, was declared Johnnie Johnson Day.
March 19, 2001: Johnnie Johnson is Inducted
Into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame!
Johnnie Johnson's Page on the Rock 'N Roll
Hall of Fame Web Site
It took place at the sixteenth annual induction dinner.
Keith Richard was his presenter. Johnnie Johnson was born July 8, 1924.
Article From The Chicago-Tribune: February 9, 2001
Johnnie Johnson enters Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame.pdf
You need the Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to read the above PDF file.
Visit the Adobe Web Site & Get The Acrobat Reader For Free!
Johnnie Gets Inducted
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Honors Legends
NewYorkRock.Com ~ www.nyrock.com/worldbeat/12_2000/121300.asp
December 13, 2000. (Yahoo/Hoopla Media) – 11 new inductees to the Cleveland-based hall of fame were announced in a live presentation Tuesday morning. The induction ceremony, featuring the traditional all-star jam session, will take place March 19 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York.
Pianist/composer Johnnie Johnson is among the 2001 inductees in the "Side-Man" category. As Chuck Berry's bandleader and writing partner for almost 40 years, Johnson has been championed as the true father of rock 'n' roll by Hall of Famers Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and Bob Weir. Criteria considered for induction into this 1999 established category includes the influence and significance of the musician's contribution to the development and perpetuation of rock and roll.
"This is the best Christmas present I could have gotten," enthused Johnson, 76, who is widely recognized as the best blues pianist in the world today. "I'm so happy I could burst. They (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation) didn't know where to put me for a while. Even though I made up the music to a lot of Chuck's songs, my name wasn't on the records, so I guess because of their rules they couldn't put me in with Chuck. But thanks to all the people who supported me, they came up with this "Side-Man" category last year, and now all of us who weren't famous have a place to go. I'm very thankful for that."
For Johnson and his many supporters, this day has been a long time coming. Since 1995, Johnson has been the subject of an intense and unprecedented campaign by Houston businessman George Turek, who publicly urged the voting members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominating Committee to induct Johnson. It is believed that Turek's efforts in part led to the Foundation creating its "Side-Man" category last year. "Johnnie changed the course of music history. I'm ecstatic for him and his family," remarked Turek.
Read the Full Article: www.nyrock.com/worldbeat/12_2000/121300.asp
Johnnie "B. Goode" Stakes His Claim
in Music History from Partner Chuck Berry
NewYorkRock.Com ~ www.nyrock.com/worldbeat/12_2000/120100.asp
December 1, 2000 – A multi-count lawsuit against guitarist/lyricist Chuck Berry was filed Wednesday (11/29/00) by attorneys for legendary pianist/composer Johnnie Johnson (aka "Johnnie B. Goode") in St. Louis Federal District Court. The suit seeks Johnson's rightful share of monies realized from numerous Johnson/Berry composed songs for which Johnson never received proper credit or royalties.
Amongst the allegations is that Johnson collaborated with Berry to compose songs which defined a musical genre; "Roll Over Beethoven," "No Particular Place To Go," "Rock and Roll Music," "Sweet Little Sixteen" among numerous others. Johnson maintains that he and Berry, together, created the music for these hits, but that Berry claimed sole copyright ownership as well as the profits generated from them. The suit further indicates that Johnson and Berry were partners, and that Berry took advantage of him when Berry registered the copyrights in his name alone.
Read the Full Article: http://www.nyrock.com/worldbeat/12_2000/120100.asp
Johnnie Johnson With Keith Richards
at New York City's Chicago Blues
NewYorkRock.Com ~ www.nyrock.com/reviews/2000/johnson_richards.asp
October 7, 2000. By Spyder Darling. Though not on tour or in the studio this month, Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards isn't about to let any grass gather on his boot heels. As a surprise guest, he recently appeared at New York City's Chicago Blues during a show by seminal rock 'n' blues pianist Johnnie Johnson. Introduced by Johnson's guitarist as someone "who's never heard of you, but you've heard of him," Richards reeled and rocked through obscure barrel-house boogies like "Tanqueray" and old-time rockers like Chuck Berry's "Oh, Carol," which, incidentally, the Stones covered on their first album.
Read the Full Article: www.nyrock.com/reviews/2000/johnson_richards.asp
Father of Rock & Roll
The Story of Johnnie "B. Goode" Johnson, By Travis Fitzpatrick. Published in 1999. Nominated for a Pulitzer Prize!
Order your copy today from www.amazon.com.
This was a limited edition book, and is currently out of
print, but Amazon has a few copies for sale, new & used.
Includes bonus CD featuring 14 tracks of music and interviews!
Father of Rock & Roll, The Story of Johnnie "B Goode" Johnson
By Travis Fitzpatrick ~ Editorial Review From Amazon.com
"On December 30, 1953, a piano player named Johnnie Johnson phoned me, asking me to join his Sir Johns Trio for a gig on the eve of the year of 1953.", remembers rock and roll pioneer Chuck Berry. And the rest was history. Or was it?
Now for the first time, author Travis Fitzpatrick opens the door on the life of the legendary piano man, Johnnie B. Goode Johnson, the modest musical savant who created rock and roll--and never received credit for it.
They called him the music man. For over twenty years, Johnnie Johnson manned the keys as Chuck Berry's pianist and bandleader, collaborating with him on more than one hundred songs and providing Berry with the distinct sound and boogie rhythm that made him a star. The inspiration behind the first rock and roll hero, Johnny B. Goode, Johnson's music would influence the entire rock pantheon, from Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.
Yet through it all, Johnnie Johnson remained a mystery. Driven by a partner's greed and his own personal demons into a life of impoverished anonymity, the world seemed destined to never know the truth about Johnnie Johnson. Until now.
This is the story behind the best kept secret in rock and roll. It is a story of a man who was lost and found, the partner who forsook him, the woman who saved him, and a young friend who dedicated his life to secure an unsung hero his rightful place in history. This is the story of the music that shaped the world. This is the story of the Father of Rock & Roll.
About the Author: Travis Fitzpatrick was born in Parkersburg, West Virginia not far from Johnnie Johnson's hometown of Fairmont. He lived in California, Michigan, and Tennessee before settling in Houston, Texas. Fitzpatrick first met Johnson in 1993 and commenced writing Father of Rock & Roll: The Story of Johnnie B. Goode Johnson in 1995 - at the age of nineteen. As of the first printing of this book, he was attending the University of Texas at Austin.
Book Review: The Father Of Rock 'N Roll
The Story of Johnnie "B Goode" Johnson By Travis Fitzpatrick
Fox Valley Blues Society, 1999 by Dave Glynn
www.foxvalleyblues.org/articles/bookrev-johnniejohnson.html
Johnnie Johnson's biography tells a heartening story of a man who battled a lot in life, but was guided by the angels along the way. He would have to have the help of the angels because there is no way another individual could have survived so many brushes with death. Despite Johnnie's fight for life, his music and his nonchalant behavior are a steady theme through his struggles.
Author Travis Fitzpatrick does a beautiful job of threading musical history through this tale of Johnnie Johnson, Chuck Berry's original piano player and collaborator for most of his hits. Meet the Chess brothers, who are presented as astute business men and knew how to exploit the music and its authors. Meet Chuck Berry, can you stand to ever look at him again? Meet Albert King who scares the daylights out of you. Enter Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and a host of other musicians in awe of Johnnie's 'God-given' talent.
Read the Full Article: www.foxvalleyblues.org/articles/bookrev-johnniejohnson.html
Native Detroiter Seeks Recognition for Rock Pioneer Johnnie Johnson Detroit Free Press, August 16, 1999 ~ www.freep.com/news/metro/qdes16.htm
George Turek, has been trying for years to get the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland to recognize the efforts of Johnnie Johnson, left, who composed for Chuck Berry. "Johnny B. Goode" was Berry's tribute to Johnson.
AS Detroit-born businessman George Turek left a meeting at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland earlier this month, he sensed he was about to realize his life's dream. In the last five years, he'd spent countless hours and a small fortune trying to get the rock 'n' roll industry to recognize the contributions of his best friend, pianist Johnnie Johnson.
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George Turek and his fiancee, Linda Nutter, were listening to a blues band in Memphis, Tenn., in 1992 when George wondered: Why not fly the band up to Detroit for their wedding? By then, his medical management company was a national corporation. Money was no object.
Weeks before the 1993 wedding, the band canceled. Desperate, George remembered that his brother had bought another band's CD in Memphis. "I listened to that CD and knew immediately, I had to have that band," George remembers during a phone interview. The CD was "Johnnie B. Bad," and the performer was pianist Johnnie Johnson.
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Turek has lobbied tirelessly for Johnson to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He self-published a hardcover biography of Johnson's life, "Father of Rock & Roll: The Story of Johnnie 'B. Goode' Johnson," written by his stepson, Travis Fitzpatrick. He has organized a petition drive signed by the likes of Keith Richards, Bo Diddley and Little Richard.
Read the Full Article: www.freep.com/news/metro/qdes16.htm
[Edited by Ten Thousand Motels] |
| April 13th, 2005 01:51 PM |
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| Saint Sway |
I'm glad I got to see him play.
I saw him with Keith too. Johnnie joined the Wino's at the Brendan Byrne in 88
he was without a doubt one of the founding fathers - basically Chuck stole it all from Johnnie. Hell, you could say that it was Johnnie Johnson who invented R&R.
but also, a brilliant talent. No other piano players sounds quite like him. Unbeliebably gorgeous sound that happened when those big paws tickled the keys.
RIP Johnnie
[Edited by Saint Sway] |
| April 13th, 2005 02:05 PM |
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| LadyJane |
I remember his acceptance speech at the RnR Hall of Fame and how grateful he was to Keith for getting him back on his feet.
RIP Mr. Johnson. A sad day indeed! 
LJ. |
| April 13th, 2005 03:06 PM |
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| Joey |
I bet Keef is in mourning today !
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| April 13th, 2005 04:09 PM |
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| Child of the Moon |
Geez, I can't even think of words. Here's to Johnny! |
| April 13th, 2005 05:33 PM |
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| Phog |
RIP Johnnie. Thanks for all the sweet melodies. |
| April 13th, 2005 07:55 PM |
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| Soldatti |
God bless you Johnnie.
[Edited by Soldatti] |
| April 13th, 2005 11:40 PM |
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| BILL PERKS |
THANKS FOR THE ARTICLES..GONNA HAVE ME A DRINK OF TANQUERAY FOR JOHNNIE... A TRUE UNSUNG HERO..HIM AND STU
TOGETHER FORVER |
| April 13th, 2005 11:42 PM |
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| Taptrick |
My best friend in St Louis, Nick Vogt, went to see Johniie at Shaws Gardens in St Louis within the last two years. He got to talking to Johnnie and Johnnie invited him to his birthday party....and he didn't go! I told him he missed out but at least he got to talk to him.
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| April 14th, 2005 03:17 AM |
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| padre |
First Stu, then Nicky and now Johnnie. There's one helluva boogie band up there! RIP Mr. Johnson. |
| April 14th, 2005 09:54 AM |
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| Fabio Hot Stuff |
Oh no!
J Johnson is a kind of figure who can't died, just like Billy Wilder, Will Eisner , Cary Grant....
I' m very sad and I'm with Nellcote:
Hail Hail Rock & Roll!
Long Live Johnny Johnson!
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| April 14th, 2005 10:02 AM |
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| ResidentMule |
shit. this sucks |
| April 15th, 2005 11:22 AM |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
Chuck Berry Remembers Johnnie Johnson
By CHERYL WITTENAUER, Associated Press Writer
UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo. - Rock 'n roll legend Chuck Berry had just returned from a European tour when he learned at Chicago's O'Hare Airport that his longtime friend and collaborator Johnnie Johnson was dead at age 80.
Late Wednesday, he went directly to Blueberry Hill nightclub in this St. Louis suburb, where Berry and Johnson had played together as recently as a year ago, to remember "the man with a dynamite right hand" with whom he shared a half-century of music and memories.
A master of boogie-woogie, Johnson was "my piano player who no one else has come near," said Berry, 78, still spry and dapper in a royal blue shirt, a silver bolo tie, pleated charcoal slacks and mariner's cap.
Through 50-plus years of riffs and syncopation, late-night jams — and later a painful lawsuit — Berry and Johnson only grew in their mutual admiration and respect.
"Johnnie and I have always been friends," said Berry, who teamed with Johnson for hits like "Roll Over Beethoven" and "No Particular Place to Go." Johnson died Wednesday at his St. Louis home; the cause of death was not immediately known.
Johnson, a self-taught pianist with a low-key persona, never won the fame heaped upon Berry. But he eventually became known as the "Father of Rock 'N' Roll Piano" and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 in the "sidemen" category.
Johnson's and Berry's long collaboration helped define early rock 'n' roll and put St. Louis on the music map along with the budding team of Ike and Tina Turner. Each performed at clubs on both sides of the nearby Mississippi River.
On New Year's Eve 1952 at The Cosmopolitan in East St. Louis, Ill., Johnson called Berry to fill in for an ailing saxophonist in his Sir John Trio.
The struggling and unknown Berry, who says he was playing more then for enjoyment than money, rushed over.
"He gave me a break" and his first commercial gig, for $4, Berry recalled. "I was excited. My best turned into a mess. I stole the group from Johnny."
Johnson never held it against him.
"Midway through the show, Chuck did a hillbilly country number with a bluesy vein, and it knocked people out," said Blueberry Hill club owner Joe Edwards, a friend of both men.
Johnson later recalled Berry had a car that allowed them to travel to more distant clubs — the Blue Flame, Blue Note and Club Imperial.
Berry played so well he became front man for the band, which took his name. Their long partnership, forged in the '50s, would run steadily for another 20 years. They still performed occasionally in the 1980s and '90s.
Edwards said their collaboration formed the bricks of rock 'n roll, and that the two stirred hillbilly and blues in one pot to create a unique sound.
Johnson often composed the music on piano, then Berry converted it to guitar and wrote the lyrics. Berry's "Johnny B. Goode," was a tribute to Johnson.
After he and Berry parted ways, Johnson performed with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker and Bo Diddley, among others.
Still, there were rough spots in the pair's collaboration. In 2000, Johnson sued Berry over royalties and credit he believed he was due for the songs they composed together. The lawsuit was dismissed two years later.
Berry said he always wondered who was behind the lawsuit, because "Johnnie would never initiate a complaint such as that. Johnnie would never have waited 40 years to sue."
Berry said he would perform a tribute concert in Johnson's honor, ideally at downtown St. Louis's roughly 70,000-seat Edward Jones Dome.
"We'll fill that sucker," he said.
Though Berry said he'll miss his friend and his music, he's not melancholy.
"My turn is coming very soon," he said. "Would you shed a tear for Chuck? I hope not, because I don't see why one should weep when something inevitable must come.
"At 78, I'm glad to be anywhere, anytime."
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| April 15th, 2005 01:38 PM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
That's sad.
The great ones, the founding fathers...they seem to be going away to often.
You know the band in RnR heaven just got a whole lot better.... |
| April 15th, 2005 01:47 PM |
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| Joey |
quote:
Sir Stonesalot wrote:
That's sad.
The great ones, the founding fathers...they seem to be going away to often.
You know the band in RnR heaven just got a whole lot better....
 !!!!!!!!!! |
| April 15th, 2005 08:14 PM |
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| Monkey Woman |
Keith pays tribute to Johnnie today at RollingStone.com:
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/7250961/johnniejohnson?pageid=rs.Home&pageregion=single1
Keith Remembers Johnnie
Stones guitarist reflects on friend, idol Johnson
"It's a sad day," says Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, mourning his idol and good friend Johnnie Johnson. "I've been playing Chuck Berry records all day, listening to Johnnie."
Johnson died on Wednesday at his home in St. Louis, at the age of eighty, after recent bouts with pneumonia and a kidney ailment. With his death, rock & roll lost a vital link to its roots in the Chicago boogie-woogie of Meade Lux Lewis and the jumping-piano jazz of Earl Hines and Count Basie. Born on July 8th, 1924, in Fairmont, Virginia, Johnson was the son of a coal miner and entirely self-taught on the piano. By the early Fifties, he was in St. Louis, leading his own combo. But on New Year's Eve 1952, Johnson hired a struggling, local guitarist, Chuck Berry, to sit in for another member of the band. Johnson quickly ceded the limelight to Berry's guitar and songs, and both of their lives were changed forever.
Johnson went on to become the greatest sideman in rock & roll, at the very moment the music was being born. He played on most of Berry's biggest and best records of the Fifties and early Sixties, including "Maybellene," "Roll Over Beethoven," "Memphis, Tennessee," "Little Queenie" and "Nadine (Is It You?)." Johnson played with Berry, on and off, into the Seventies, until personal tensions, compounded by Johnson's drinking, caused Johnson to retire back to St. Louis. He was driving a van for the elderly when Keith Richards brought him out of retirement to play at the 1986 shows filmed for the Chuck Berry concert movie, Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll.
Richards and Johnson quickly became collaborators and more, a relationship that lasted until Johnson's death. The day after Johnson's passing, Richards took a break from spinning those Berry records to talk about Johnson and his rock & roll legacy.
Do you recall the first time you heard Johnnie Johnson -- when you realized who he was and what he was playing on those Chuck Berry records?
That's a good question. I talked to Johnnie about that. It took me a couple of years to track down the band members' names, to know the name "Johnnie Johnson." At first, it was just, "What a great band!" They didn't give credit then. And especially knowing Chuck, you'd never get a credit [laughs].
As a guitarist, what attracted you to Johnnie as a piano player?
Johnnie had amazing simpatico. He had a way of slipping into a song, an innate feel for complementing the guitar. It's the kind of thing I hear when I listen to Muddy Waters with Otis Spann or Pinetop Perkins. Back then, I was also listening to Scrapper Blackwell and Leroy Carr, Big Maceo with Tampa Red. I always thought piano and guitar were a very interesting combination.
Johnnie was a jazzman, too. In fact, most of the best blues piano players were basically jazzmen. You should have heard Johnnie talk about Art Tatum.
But Johnnie came out of jazz, to rock & roll, with a natural energy. He never sounded too smart or clever for the music.
"Natural" is the word. There was also a great sense of humor in his playing. It really fit, because that was what rock & roll was all about. It's a humorous music -- "Too Much Monkey Business." There were a lot of jokes going on.
I was listening to "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" and marveling at the power in Johnnie's playing, which was not always immediately evident on the records because of the way he was mixed back, behind Berry's guitar.
It was that left hand. That left hand was a power station. And the right hand -- listen to "Wee Wee Hours." Wow! You knew you were in the wee, wee hours.
It was very fortuitous that I got to do the Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll movie with him. I knew Johnnie and Chuck hadn't been together for years and years, and I didn't honestly know if Johnnie was still playing. The most surprising thing was Chuck said, "Yeah, he's in town . . . I'll give him a call." That, for me, was the crown on the taping. And it was such a beautiful thing, the way he slipped in and, through that movie, had a whole new career.
He looked like such a gentle, unassuming man. It was hard to imagine the brilliance coming out of those hands.
He was a real gent, absolutely. He was such a sweet, warm guy -- almost like a big baby at times. But inside, there was a very strong guy, and it came out in the music. I was fascinated by those huge hands, doing such incredibly precise, delicate work. I always compared them to a bunch of overripe bananas. But he could do amazing things with those bananas.
You produced two tracks on his 1991 album, Johnnie B. Bad, which was the first album he'd ever made under his own name.
One of the tracks I did was "Tanqueray." That was one of his favorite tipples, before he had to give it up. He was an amazing guy to play with: You could close your eyes, listen to him, and you were back in Chicago, at the Chess studios.
One of his last live performances was with the Stones, in Houston in 2003, on the Forty Licks tour. He came out and played "Honky Tonk Women" with you. Was he still in good form?
He seemed in pretty good shape. He'd slowed down a bit, but not playing-wise. To me, he seemed his beaming, old, jolly self.
Did Johnnie ever talk to you about his feelings over the songwriting credits for those Berry hits? [In 2000, Johnson sued Berry for credits and royalties on more than fifty Berry songs, but a federal judge dismissed the case, saying too much time had passed since the songs were written and recorded.]
In a way, I'm a bit responsible. I said to Johnnie, "These songs should really say Berry/Johnson." It was obvious after talking to him and watching him play. But Chuck being Chuck, you'd be lucky to get a quarter. Or you'd end up paying him.
But in the end, with the way Johnnie's career took off again after the Chuck Berry movie, he got his due.
To me, that was the joy of working with him -- to see him get his own record contract, tour the world and work with loads of other people, who got to dig him. Because otherwise, he would have just been Chuck Berry's sideman.
Actually, it was Johnnie's band to start with. Chuck superimposed himself on top. And Johnnie, being such an easy-going guy, was like, "Yeah, he's the frontman now." He'd take it like that.
In a way, Johnnie reminded me a lot of [Stones pianist] Ian Stewart. It was Ian who pointed Johnnie out to me, because he was a Johnnie Johnson freak. So it all comes around.
DAVID FRICKE
(Posted Apr 15, 2005) |
| April 15th, 2005 10:53 PM |
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| Soldatti |
Great article, thanks for post. |
| April 18th, 2005 10:50 AM |
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| Saint Sway |
Chuck Berry is putting together an all-star tribute show to Johnnie. Hopefully Keef will be on hand. |
| April 19th, 2005 12:29 AM |
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| Happy Motherfucker!! |
I had the opportunity to see him play several times back in 96' when he was working with Bob Weir's band Ratdog. It was a treat when they rolled out some great blues tunes for sure! |
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