Artist page

Lonnie Johnson was a pioneering blues and jazz singer, guitarist, banjoist, violinist, and pianist, born on February 8, 1899, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is known for being the first to record in a single-note soloing guitar style that featured string bending and vibrato. Johnson began his musical career playing in cafes in New Orleans and, in 1917, traveled to Europe, performing in revues and briefly with Will Marion Cook's Southern Syncopated Orchestra. Upon returning home in 1918, he discovered that his entire family had been killed by the Spanish flu epidemic, except for one brother. He and his surviving brother, James "Steady Roll" Johnson, moved to St. Louis in 1920, where Lonnie played with various Mississippi riverboat bands. In 1925, he married blues singer and won a blues contest sponsored by the Okeh record company, which included a recording deal as part of the prize. Throughout the late 1920s, Johnson recorded with a variety of bands and musicians. In the 1930s, he moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he worked with different groups and eventually took jobs in a tire factory and steel mill. In 1937, he returned to Chicago and played with various artists. Johnson continued to perform throughout his life but often had to leave the music business to make a living. In 1963, he made a brief return to the stage. Trag

For any edit requests, please reach out to info@rovr.live