The Original Guitar Hero and the Power of Music
ISBN: 9781574415568
Platform/Publisher: Project MUSE / University of North Texas Press
Digital rights: Users: Unlimited; Printing: Chapters; Download: Chapters
Subjects: Music and race; African Americans; African American musicians; Blues musicians; African American guitarists;

Lonnie Johnson (1894OCo1970) was a virtuoso guitarist who influenced generations of musicians from Django Reinhardt to Eric Clapton to Bill Wyman and especially B. B. King. Born in New Orleans, he began playing violin and guitar in his fatherOCOs band at an early age. When most of his family was wiped out by the 1918 flu epidemic, he and his surviving brother moved to St. Louis, where he won a blues contest that included a recording contract. His career was launched. Johnson can be heard on many Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong records, including the latterOCOs famous OC Savoy BluesOCO with the Hot Five. He is perhaps best known for his 12-string guitar solos and his ground-breaking recordings with the white guitarist Eddie Lang in the late 1920s. After World War II he began playing rhythm and blues and continued to record and tour until his death. This is the first full-length work on Johnson. Dean Alger answers many biographical mysteries, including how many members of JohnsonOCOs large family were left after the epidemic. It also places Johnson and his musical contemporaries in the context of American race relations and argues for the importance of music in the fight for civil rights. Finally, Alger analyzes JohnsonOCOs major recordings in terms of technique and style. Distribution of an accompanying music CD will be coordinated with the release of this book."


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