Rock'n'roll hall of famer Johnnie Johnson dies
KMOV
www.kmov.com
Apr 14 / 2005
By Jim Salter - Associated Press writer
ST. LOUIS — Johnnie Johnson, a rock'n'roll pioneer who teamed with Chuck Berry for hits like "Roll Over Beethoven" and "No Particular Place to Go," died Wednesday. He was 80.
Johnson died at his St. Louis home. The cause of death was not immediately known, said publicist Margo Lewis. He had been hospitalized a month ago with pneumonia and was on dialysis for a kidney ailment, said John May, a friend and fellow musician.
Still, Johnson had performed as recently as two weeks ago for events leading up to college basketball's Final Four in St. Louis.
Though he was never a household name, Johnson was considered a legend in blues and boogie-woogie, and his long collaboration with Berry helped define early rock 'n' roll. Johnson often composed the music on piano, then Berry converted it to guitar and wrote the lyrics. In fact, Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" was a tribute to Johnson.
"It was so much fun to play with Johnnie," bluesman Bo Diddley said. "The world has lost a great man and a great musician."
Later in life, Johnson performed and recorded with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker and Diddley, among others. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 in the "sidemen" category.
"He left the indelible imprint of his sound," May said. "He was able to transition through any musical style because he just loved to play music."
Berry, who returned from a European tour on Wednesday, said he would perform a tribute concert to honor "the man with a dynamite right hand ... the greatest piano player I ever had" who gave Berry -- then struggling -- his first paid gig half a century ago.
Berry, 78, said he was playing for free when Johnson gave him his break for $4 a job.
Johnson was born in Fairmont, W.Va., and by age 4 had taught himself to play the piano. He moved to Chicago after World War II, where he played jazz and blues in clubs. He moved to St. Louis in the early 1950s, forming his own R&B trio.
When a band member became ill on New Year's Eve 1952, Johnson hired Berry to fill in.
"Midway through the show, Chuck did a hillbilly country number with a bluesy vein, and it knocked people out," said Joe Edwards, owner of the Blueberry Hill nightclub just outside of St. Louis, where both men often played.
Edwards called Johnson the "classic sideman", a gifted musician but one lacking the flair of the animated, duck-walking Berry. Johnson's performance in the 1987 rock documentary "Hail! Hail! Rock'n'Roll" spurred new interest in his music, and he spent his later years as a front man for his own band.
Friends recalled how Johnson would play a long set in a club, then go to another night spot or someone's home and play until dawn.
"People came from around the world to hear him," Edwards said. "It was magic hearing him play. He could make those 88 keys sing."
In 2000, Johnson sued Berry, seeking a share of royalties and proper credit for what Johnson said were more than 50 songs the men composed together. A federal judge dismissed the suit in 2002, ruling that too many years had passed since the disputed songs were written.
While the men didn't speak during the lawsuit, they later reconciled, performing together at Blueberry Hill as recently as a year ago.
Johnson married his wife, Frances, on Valentine's Day 1991. Edwards credited her with persuading Johnson to stop drinking.
She survives, along with 10 children and several grandchildren.
Chuck Berry reflects on career with Johnnie Johnson
KMOV
www.kmov.com
Apr 15 / 2005
By Associated Press
University City, Mo. (AP) 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 they 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, now 78 but 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, a marriage-like appreciation of the other, late-night jams, and later a painful lawsuit that for a time silenced the duo, Berry and Johnson only grew in their mutual admiration and synch.
Johnson, a self-taught pianist with a low-key, gentle persona, never won the fame that was 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.
Fame eluded rock pioneer Johnnie Johnson until later in life
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
www.stltoday.com/
Apr 15 / 2005
By Kevin C. Johnson
The health of St. Louis music legend Johnnie Johnson had been failing for some time, but the boogie-woogie blues and rock pianist's dedication to his craft lasted to the very end.
The revered Johnson - the Johnny in Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode" - died of natural causes early Wednesday morning (April 13, 2005) at his North County home, according to a publicist at Talent Consultants International in New York. His wife, Frances Johnson, was with him when he died. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer was 80.
Mr. Johnson contracted pneumonia and was hospitalized a couple of months ago, said the St. Louis Blues Society's John May, a friend of Mr. Johnson. He also recently underwent dialysis.
Despite those health problems, Mr. Johnson headlined a blues showcase April 3 on Laclede's Landing as part of NCAA Final Four activities. It was his final performance. On March 23, Mr. Johnson played at the new Clayton club Finale Music and Dining, where he was one of the first acts to perform.
May said, "All of the old guys are completely from another school. They will play until the day they die. I've seen it with Oliver Sain and Tommy Bankhead, and Henry Townsend is still out playing. All the old-school guys are tough. They grew up with hard lives and played music all their lives."
Dawne Massey, executive director of the Laclede's Landing Merchants Association, said Mr. Johnson put on a great show during Final Four weekend.
"He was just amazing, as always," Massey said. "We were just glad to see Johnnie on the Landing one more time." Mr. Johnson was a veteran of the Landing's Big Muddy Blues Festival, performing there several times.
This year's Big Muddy was slated to feature a special tribute to Mr. Johnson. He had already been consulted on the event and had been asked to provide a list of acts he'd like to see involved. Among Mr. Johnson's requests were Koko Taylor, Taj Mahal, Bo Diddley and Dr. John. "Now we're wondering if the tribute could still happen," said Massey. "It'd be a great way to honor Johnnie."
Blues harpist Tom "Papa" Ray played with Mr. Johnson at Finale. "It was so clear to me by this point that Johnnie Johnson was playing for pleasure," he said. "There's a difference between pleasure and pure professionalism. He was a professional, but a man who obviously took pleasure in his playing."
At Ray's store, Vintage Vinyl in the Delmar Loop, the marquee reads: "Johnnie Johnson. We love you. Rest in peace."
Said Ray: "On more than one level, he was the ultimate living blues pianist. Scratch that. He was just the ultimate pianist."
The humble Mr. Johnson is considered a true pioneer of rock 'n' roll. He even took out a certificate with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office declaring him the "father of rock 'n' roll." But his name probably wasn't well-known to the average fan.
"I was never at the right place at the right time," Mr. Johnson told the Post-Dispatch in 1999, when he was about to turn 75 and celebrate Johnnie Johnson Week in St. Louis.
"But I don't feel any animosity coming up as slow as I did. But I'm making it now, and I didn't have to wait until I was deceased to get some of the recognition I was due years ago."
Musicians, in fact, applauded Johnson regularly. Eric Clapton once called him the best blues pianist in the world, and Bonnie Raitt and the Rolling Stones' Keith Richards were consistent supporters. Richards once said that without Mr. Johnson, Berry was just a bunch of words on paper. Berry himself said that he considered Mr. Johnson the best piano player he ever worked with.
Mr. Johnson was born July 8, 1924, in Fairmont, W.Va. He began playing piano at age 4 and, according to his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame bio, by 9 was performing jazz tunes at a local radio station. After a stint in the Marines, where he played in the Special Service Band, and an apprenticeship on the Chicago blues scene, Mr. Johnson moved to St. Louis in 1952. While holding down a day job in a factory, he started his own band, Sir John's Trio, aka the Johnnie Johnson Trio.
St. Louis blues legend Henry Townsend was one of the musicians Mr. Johnson befriended early on. He said one of the great things about Mr. Johnson's style was that there was none.
"I don't classify Johnnie Johnson as having a style," Townsend said. "If you wanted jazz, he gave you jazz. If you wanted R&B, he gave you R&B. Or dance or whatever. And he was no slouch at whatever he was doing."
Another musician Mr. Johnson hooked up with after arriving in St. Louis was Berry. When Mr. Johnson's saxophonist took ill just before a New Year's Eve gig in 1952 at the Cosmopolitan Club in East St. Louis, he hired Berry to fill in. The performance marked the beginning of not just the new year but a long and fruitful musical relationship.
Berry remembers the show as "a $4 gig." He describes it as one of his first breaks in the business and recalls showing up two hours early. Berry, of course, soon went on to huge success. Mr. Johnson performed as his sideman for 20 years, not leaving the band until 1973.
Mr. Johnson can be heard on a number of Berry's biggest hits, including "Maybellene", "Roll Over Beethoven", "Sweet Little Sixteen", "Back in the U.S.A." and "School Day". But the musicians found themselves on opposite sides in 2000, after Mr. Johnson filed a suit that asserted he was owed royalties and credit for songs the two created together. But U.S. District Judge Donald Stohr dismissed the suit in 2002 on the grounds that too many years had passed since the songs in dispute were written.
The two eventually mended fences, according to Joe Edwards, owner of Blueberry Hill and a longtime close associate of Berry's. Mr. Johnson joined Berry during a show at Blueberry Hill about 18 months ago.
"Chuck invited him", Edwards said. "Chuck still liked him. He never lost his love for Johnnie, and he loved playing with him. The lawsuit and appeals were done, and the two of them moved past it. Chuck never held it against Johnnie, and he always spoke highly of Johnnie".
Berry maintains that Mr. Johnson was pushed into the suit by others. "Johnnie would never initiate a complaint such as that", said Berry. He also says that even while the lawsuit was proceeding, the two were discussing doing a record together. "We wanted to put out something to give them something to talk about".
Mr. Johnson saw his stock rise after being highlighted in the 1987 Berry documentary, "Hail! Hail! Rock'n'Roll". He played at both of President Bill Clinton's inaugurations, toured with Ratdog (fronted by the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir) and played with the Rolling Stones at Busch Stadium. Mr. Johnson released several solo albums, beginning with 1987's "Blue Hand Johnnie."
Mr. Johnson also oversaw his biography, "Father of Rock & Roll: The Story of Johnnie "B. Goode" Johnson", written by Travis Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick, whose book was released in 1999, said he looked up at Mr. Johnson like a grandfather.
After much lobbying, Mr. Johnson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 in a new category for sideman. Robert Santelli, now artistic director at the Experience Music Project in Seattle, was a vice president at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum at the time.
"I've always believed he was one of the most unheralded yet more important pioneering artists in rock 'n' roll history," said Santelli. "When you consider the contribution he made to the overall legacy of rock, Johnson was a key player. And when I was at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I was very determined to make sure he got his proper credit."
Art Holliday, news anchor and executive producer at KSDK, is producing a documentary on Mr. Johnson.
"He was such a humble, unassuming man," said Holliday. "He played with some of the biggest names in rock'n'roll, but you'd never know it talking to him. He never bragged. He never said he was a big shot or that he was one of the best piano players in the world".
In addition to his wife, among Mr. Johnson's survivors are 10 children and many grandchildren. Details on a memorial service are pending.
Celebrity musicians expected at Johnson wake
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
www.stltoday.com
Apr 21 / 2005
By Cheryl Wittenauer - Associated Press writer
ST. LOUIS (AP) Dozens of musicians and admirers paid respects to rock and boogie-woogie master Johnnie Johnson at a wake and musical jam session Thursday, an event that featured the talents of many of those he inspired.
St. Louis drummer Bob Kuban, blues and boogie-woogie pianist Kelley Hunt, one of the Ink Spots and 95-year-old blues man Henry Townsend were among those attending and performing at a wake service that promised to extend into the wee hours.
Townsend, in black suit and beret, and getting around on a motorized wheelchair, said he used to play and socialize with Johnson, Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie. He came to St. Louis from Shelby, Miss., in the 1920s.
"There was no man or musician any better," he said of Johnson.
Johnson, a rock'n'roll pioneer who teamed with Chuck Berry for hits like "Roll Over Beethoven" and "No Particular Place to Go," died at his St. Louis home last week at age 80.
Trumpeter and pianist Oliver Johnson - no relation to Johnnie - said the two toured nationally with blues man Albert King in the 1980s, sharing hotel rooms.
"He made magic come from those ivories," Oliver Johnson, 52, of Centerville, Ill, said. "He is one of the foundation blocks of rock'n'roll and R&B."
Johnson, a self-taught pianist with a low-key persona, never won the fame heaped upon Berry, but he was considered a legend in blues and boogie-woogie, and his long collaboration with Berry helped define early rock'n'roll and put St. Louis on the music map.
Johnson 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.
Later in life, Johnson performed and recorded with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Bob Weir, John Lee Hooker, Bo Diddley and Bonnie Raitt, among others.
It wasn't clear if Berry planned to attend the visitation or funeral service. Berry was scheduled to perform his monthly concert Thursday night at Blueberry Hill nightclub in the St. Louis suburb of University City - where he and Johnson last performed about a year ago. Berry has scheduled a memorial concert for Johnson on April 29 at The Pageant in St. Louis, club owner Joe Edwards said.
Berry, 78, recalled last week he was often playing for free when Johnson gave him his break for $5 a job half a century ago.
Johnson was born in Fairmont and by age 4 had taught himself to play the piano. He moved to Chicago after World War II, where he played jazz and blues in clubs. He moved to St. Louis in the early 1950s, forming his own R&B trio.
When a band member became ill on New Year's Eve 1952, Johnson hired Berry to fill in.
Berry soon 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.
Johnson's performance in the 1987 rock documentary "Hail! Hail! Rock'n'Roll" spurred new interest in his music, and he spent his later years as a front man for his own band.