We're sad to report on the death of Mississippi bluesman Big Jack Johnson on Monday, March 14th, 2011 after a long battle with health issues. Johnson was 70 years old. We held back on publicizing the story until after we received verification; several Internet outlets were reporting on Johnson's death several days before it actually happened.
Johnson was one of the last practitioners of a truly Delta-inspired style of the blues. Encouraged by his father to begin playing guitar as a child, Johnson learned the ins-and-outs of the blues while sitting in with his father's band as a teenager. Influenced by guitarists like B.B. King and Albert King, Johnson also found inspiration listening to country music via the Grand Ole Opry on WSM radio out of Nashville. Johnson was also an accomplished bass guitar and mandolin player, and even played bass behind country superstar Conway Twitty for a while during the 1970s.
In 1962, Johnson hooked up with Frank Frost and Sam Carr as the Jelly Roll Kings, the popular Mississippi juke-joint trio performing throughout the Southeast from the early 1960s through the mid-1980s, recording several labels, including Sun Records in Memphis, Earwig Music, and Fat Possum Records. In 1987, after the Jelly Roll Kings broke up, Johnson launched his solo career with his solo debut, The Oil Man, titled after his nickname as a truck driver for Shell Oil. In the ensuing years, Johnson recorded a number of acclaimed albums, including 1996's We Got To Stop This Killing and 2000's Root Stew.
Johnson had always enjoyed respect as a guitarist and performer, but through the 1990s the artist found his voice as a songwriter, and wrote poetically about life and death, drug abuse and AIDS, and other social issues, turbo-charging his lyrics with a guitar-driven mix of blues, funk, and soul and singing with great passion and emotion. His unique sound earned Johnson a W.C. Handy Award for "Acoustic Blues Album of the Year" for his 2003 release Memphis Bar-B-Que Sessions, as well as a mess of Living Blues Awards and other accolades. A vibrant, electrifying performer and an underrated blues artist, Big Jack Johnson will be missed by his family, friends, and many fans around the world.
Photo courtesy www.bigjackjohnson.com
Comments
This is really sad. Another one of my favorite blues guys gone. Now, the only person left alive in that movie “Deep Blues” is Dave Stewart. Technically, he’s not known to be a blues musician, but he did jam with R.L. Burnside in the film.
it is really sad, but at least he had 70 good years!…that is an amazing film paul, one of my top 5.
Good friend and great musician.Hundeds of years from now people will still watch DEEP BLUES and say “now that is how it’s done!”
I met & performed with Big jack In Dothan Al. 2001 sad to know this.