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Lonnie Johnson
Photo: Russell Lee, 1941, Farm Security Administration (Library of Congress, Public Domain)
Classic

Lonnie Johnson

Also known as: Alonzo Johnson

This artist is no longer with us.
Born: February 8, 1899, New Orleans, Louisiana · Died: June 16, 1970, Toronto, Canada• United States• Active: 1920s–1970
Country BluesJazz Blues
Instruments
Akustisk gitar, Elektrisk gitar, Fiolin, Vokal
Labels
OKeh, King, Prestige/Bluesville, Columbia
from
New Orleans, Louisiana (lived in Toronto from the 1960s)
Born
February 8, 1899, New Orleans, Louisiana
B.B. King once said it plainly: "Lonnie Johnson was the first guitarist I heard playing single-note solos. He showed me a guitar could sing like a human voice. Without him there would be no B.B. King" (Kilde: B.B. King, as quoted in artist biographies). It is about as direct a lineage claim as the blues offers — one guitarist naming the exact source of everything he built his own career on. He was born Alonzo "Lonnie" Johnson on February 8, 1899, in New Orleans, Louisiana, into a large, musical family where nearly everyone played an instrument; he learned violin, guitar, piano and mandolin as a child. Most of his family died in the 1918 influenza pandemic, a devastating loss that shaped the emotional depth running through his later recordings (Kilde: biografisk forskning). In 1925 he won a two-week engagement at the Booker T. Washington Theatre in a blues talent contest, which led directly to a recording contract with OKeh Records and launched a career that would span four decades (Kilde: biografisk forskning). Johnson's revolutionary single-string guitar solos arrived years before the electric guitar era and directly influenced B.B. King, T-Bone Walker, Robert Johnson and Django Reinhardt. His clean, precise picking technique was genuinely without precedent — most guitarists of the era played in block chords or simple strummed patterns, and Johnson's isolated, vocal-like single-note lines effectively invented the guitar solo as popular music would come to understand it. Between 1928 and 1929 he recorded a series of groundbriaking guitar duets with the white jazz guitarist Eddie Lang, who was credited as "Blind Willie Dunn" specifically to disguise his identity — one of the first cross-racial recording collaborations in American music history, undertaken at real professional risk during the Jim Crow era (Kilde: OKeh Records session documentation). He also recorded landmark duets with Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, including the historic "Hotter Than That" with Armstrong's Hot Five in 1927. His 1948 single "Tomorrow Night" reached number 1 on the R&B charts and sold more than three million copies, produced by Henry Glover at King Records' Cincinnati studio — an extraordinary late-career commercial peak for a musician who had already been recording for over two decades (Kilde: King Records chart data). After years in obscurity working as a hotel janitor in Philadelphia, he was rediscovered in 1960 by record collector and producer Chris Albertson, who produced his comeback album "Blues by Lonnie Johnson" at Rudy Van Gelder's legendary studio. Johnson moved to Toronto, Canada, in the early 1960s, where he spent his final decade performing at folk clubs like the Penny Farthing and became an adopted icon of the Canadian blues scene, recording reunion sessions with Victoria Spivey and appearing at folk festivals alongside banjo legend Elmer Snowden (Kilde: Chris Albertson production notes; comeback-era touring records). He died on June 16, 1970. Robert Johnson — no relation — reportedly studied Lonnie Johnson's records obsessively; the two unrelated Johnsons represent twin pillars of acoustic and electric blues guitar innovation. Lonnie Johnson was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1990, and "Playing with the Strings" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2007 (Kilde: Blues Hall of Fame; Grammy Hall of Fame).

Musical Influence

Lonnie Johnson is widely considered the father of the guitar solo in popular music. His single-string technique directly influenced B.B. King, T-Bone Walker, Robert Johnson, Django Reinhardt and virtually every blues and jazz guitarist who followed. B.B. King called him "the most influential guitarist in blues history" (Kilde: B.B. King, as quoted in artist biographies).

Influences

New Orleans traditionEddie LangLouis Armstrong

Family and personal life

Father
James Johnson

Musician; the family was large and musical.

Brother
James "Steady Roll" Johnson

Also a blues musician; many siblings played music.

Wife
Mary Williams Johnson

Married in the 1920s.

Formative experiences

  • •Grows up in a large musical family in New Orleans where practically everyone played an instrument; learns violin, guitar, piano and mandolin as a child. (Kilde: biografisk forskning)
  • •Loses most of his family in the 1918 influenza pandemic, a devastating blow that shaped his emotional depth as an artist. (Kilde: biografisk forskning)
  • •1925: Wins a two-week engagement at the Booker T. Washington Theatre in a blues talent contest, launching his recording career with OKeh Records. (Kilde: biografisk forskning)
  • •1928–1929: His groundbreaking duets with white guitarist Eddie Lang are among the first cross-racial recording collaborations in American music history. (Kilde: OKeh Records session documentation)
  • •1960: Rediscovered by record collector Chris Albertson while working as a hotel janitor in Philadelphia; launches his comeback. (Kilde: Chris Albertson production notes)

Instruments & Equipment

Guitar

Various acoustic guitars

Pioneer of single-string guitar solos; his clean, precise picking technique was revolutionary for the time.

Various hollow-body electrics

Transitioned smoothly to electric guitar in the 1940s, retaining his signature clean tone.

Other

Violin

Originally trained on violin; occasionally performed with it throughout his career.

Vocals

Vocals

Smooth, urban vocal style that influenced generations of blues and R&B singers.

Stories & Anecdotes

"Johnson's guitar duets with Eddie Lang in 1928–1929 (Lang credited as "Blind Willie Dunn" to disguise his Italian heritage) were among the first cross-racial recording sessions in American music — a bold act during the Jim Crow era. (Kilde: OKeh Records session documentation)"
"B.B. King once said: "Lonnie Johnson was the first guitarist I heard playing single-note solos. He showed me a guitar could sing like a human voice. Without him there would be no B.B. King." (Kilde: B.B. King, as quoted in artist biographies)"
"When rediscovered in 1960, Johnson was working as a janitor at the Benjamin Franklin Hotel in Philadelphia. He hadn't performed publicly in nearly a decade. (Kilde: Chris Albertson production notes)"
"After moving to Toronto in the early 1960s, Johnson became a beloved figure on the Canadian folk and blues scene, performing at clubs like the Penny Farthing and inspiring a generation of Canadian blues musicians. (Kilde: comeback-era touring records)"
"Robert Johnson (no relation) reportedly studied Lonnie Johnson's records obsessively. The two unrelated Johnsons represent the twin pillars of acoustic and electric blues guitar innovation. (Kilde: biografisk forskning)"

Collaborators

Louis Armstrong

Recorded groundbreaking duets including "Hotter Than That" (1927).

Duke Ellington

Session guitarist on several Ellington recordings.

Eddie Lang

Guitar duets, 1928–1929; groundbreaking cross-racial collaboration.

Victoria Spivey

Reunion recordings on Spivey Records during his comeback.

Elmer Snowden

Performed together at Toronto folk music festivals.

Watch & Listen

Featured

1948 HITS ARCHIVE: Tomorrow Night - Lonnie Johnson (#1 R&B hit)

His 1948 chart-topping single, which sold over 3 million copies.

The78Prof

Lonnie Johnson (1899-1970) playing with the strings, 1928

Lonnie Johnson (1899-1970) playing with the strings, 1928

Hotter Than That - Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five (w Lonnie Johnson)

Hotter Than That - Louis Armstrong & His Hot Five (w Lonnie Johnson)

Watch & Listen

Henter videoer fra YouTube…

Discography

YearTitleProducerStudioLabelChartSalesMusiciansYouTubeNotes
1925Mr. Johnson's BluesRalph Peer—OKeh Records———One of his earliest recordings after winning the talent contest; Ralph Peer led OKeh's race-records sessions.
1927Hotter Than That (with Louis Armstrong)Tommy Rockwell—OKeh Records——Louis Armstrong (Cornet, vocals), Johnny Dodds (Clarinet), Kid Ory (Trombone)Historic collaboration with Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five.
1928Guitar Blues / Blue Guitars (with Eddie Lang)Tommy Rockwell—OKeh Records——Eddie Lang (Guitar)Groundbreaking cross-racial guitar duet; Lang credited as "Blind Willie Dunn" to disguise his Italian heritage.
1928Playing with the StringsTommy Rockwell—OKeh Records———Showcases his revolutionary single-string solo technique; considered the birth of the guitar solo in popular music. Inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, 2007.
1948Tomorrow NightHenry Glover—King Records———#1 R&B hit; sold over 3 million copies; Henry Glover produced at King's Cincinnati studio.
1960Blues by Lonnie JohnsonChris Albertson—Prestige/Bluesville———Comeback album after being rediscovered by Chris Albertson; recorded at Rudy Van Gelder's legendary studio.
1963Lonnie Johnson with Elmer SnowdenKenneth S. Goldstein—Prestige/Bluesville——Elmer Snowden (Banjo)Duets with banjo legend Elmer Snowden; Kenneth S. Goldstein produced for Prestige.
1967Stompin' at the PennyJohn Hammond—Columbia (Canada)———Live recording at Toronto's Penny Farthing coffeehouse; produced by legendary John Hammond for Columbia.

Famous songs

01Tomorrow Night
02Mr. Johnson's Blues
03Playing with the Strings
04Got the Blues for Murder Only

External links

YouTube Music Wikipedia

Sources

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