Tommy Johnson

by David Evans

Genres: Biography, Music

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

David Evans has been a Professor of Music at the University of Memphis since 1978. He directs the ethnomusicology Ph.D. program, the only such program with a specific specialization in southern U.S. folk and popular music. A blues researcher, he has been honored with a 2003 Grammy Award for his album notes to Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton.

Reviews

[M.R. Dowsing · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blues musician Tommy Johnson made only a handful of records in 1928 and 1930, but his work is revered by enthusiasts. A chronic alcoholic, he is said to have drunk Sterno (aka 'canned heat') almost every day, but somehow survived until 1956. Apparently, he never recorded again because he was under the mistaken impression that (while drunk) he had signed away his own right to record! Like the later and more famous Johnson (Robert), he is also said to have sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads in exchange for improved guitar technique.

I'm probably lucky to have found a beat-up copy of this extremely rare book, but much of it is on the academic and technical side. I would have preferred something aimed less at the blues specialist and more the general reader, but it's intermittently fascinating and the research is certainly impressive - Evans travelled all over the American South tracking down and interviewing people who had known Johnson.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool little book here. Almost all the stories and details that make Love in Vain memorable come from this study. Thought he did a really good job of working through Johnson's recordings as well.