Robert Johnson

[Heather Anne Peel]

Without a doubt, this is where it all began. In some ways, Robert Johnson was the best thing that ever happened. Blues, definitely, but really the genesis of Rock 'n Roll can be found in the recordings he made in San Antonio and Dallas in 1936-37. Certainly, I am aware of his influences and contemporaries (Son House, Charley Patton, Lonnie Johnson,etc.), but Robert was the ultimate Bluesman in my mind. Eric Clapton has said that everything he ever wanted to do musically was summed up by Johnson's recordings. One can hear where Muddy Waters, and later Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and others got it from. Robert played the guitar like an otherworldly instrument. He was truly a one man Rock 'n Roll band. Jorma Kaukonen said that if Johnson had been around in modern times he'd be playing Blues Rock through a Marshall stack like Jimi. I believe it! Robert Johnson was beyond incredible, he was the basis of Rock 'n Roll without even likely knowing it. As I said, this is where it all began.
Heather

[Tim Bowen]

I love Robert Johnson for many reasons... paramount for me, is that I feel that he was/is the greatest song writer that has ever graced the idiom of blues. He is (for me) to blues what Hank Williams is to country, what Lennon/McCartney and John/Taupin are to pop, what Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis are to jazz, what Dylan is to folk, what Brahms is to the Romantic era. He's huge, spooky, larger than life, the stuff of legend, and for good reason.

[televiking]

I used to laugh at all this hype around RJ.
Then I got into botleneck blues from the 20's, especially Kokomo Arnold and Casey Bill Weldon. I thought it was high time to give this Johnson-guy a fair test run.
So I bought the 2 cd- set of his complete recordings.

First song made me laugh. This whining voice is supposed to belong to the best bluesman ever??
And then it hit me. Big time.

I really love his music and the intensity of his recorded performances.
And I hope I can play with even a bit of his intensity. When I am old enough.

Televiking

[Big John]

Funny isn't it ?, i couldn't stand that old stuff when i was younger but maybe as you get older and have more life 'experience' something resonates and now i just adore that old stuff !!
I think he was an 'original' in lots of ways and now its all receding into a dim and distant past makes it somehow more romantic or something, i guess record co. exec's these days are too young to really 'get it' and do something about it though.
If ever an artist was due some major respect it would have to be him !!!
JMHO of course.

[sabby]

This site is sure interesting. Oh, and RJ rocks (even more a tad slower).

Blind Blake is worthy of some propers, too, if anyone is listening.

[Durtdog]

Originally Posted by sabby

This site is sure interesting. Oh, and RJ rocks (even more a tad slower).

Blind Blake is worthy of some propers, too, if anyone is listening.

Very interesting, lots of merit to the rpm argument. Thanks for posting it.

[Dan R]

Robert Johnson deserves all the credit he has received. Without Robert Johnson, things would be very different in the world of music. He had so many great songs that stand up today: Love in Vain, I Believe I'll Dust My Broom, Stop Breaking Down, Rambling On My Mind, Sweet Home Chicago, Cross Road Blues, Come On In My Kitchen. These songs are still being performed and recorded today. That is quite a testament to his legacy.

Dan R

[stevedenver]

ive loved RJ since i was fifteen-i have both of the original vinyls in 33 and one says his songs are in the public domain (not now as i understand things-yet once there i dont understand how they could later be subkect to a copyright claim)


i also really like listening to Bonnies Raitts version of walking blues as well as peter greens RJ albums-both offer interesting RJ insights rhythmically

have to say too that i used to slow down his vinyl on my old dual 1219-it was common to compress recordings to fit onto vinyl -and somehow its seemed instinctive to me that he did not play such a frenetic tempo nor have such an unusually high voice- i think the guy on the british site is dead on when he slows the recordings down

[WickedGTR]

Ya'll might like this:

Prewar-1939-Gibson-L-0-Acoustic-Guitar

[eryque]

Sometimes those early blues guys hit the ears like hard whiskey does to a first-time drinker. It's too hard to take, while blues-rock stuff goes down smoother.

When I was 18 I decided I'd had enough of the light stuff, and sought out the hardest, deepest drunks I could find. Being in Chicago I thought the setting was perfect to start devouring the cheap whiskey of early electric blues as fast as I could buy it up. I bought all sorts of tapes of Muddy & Wolf, but the best move I made was to trade a pair of combat boots for the Robert Johnson Complete Recordings set.

My roommate and friends couldn't stand it. Their tastes ran from Chivas & water on the rocks to Coors Light, while mine was Mad Dog and white lightning.

[Heather Anne Peel]

Originally Posted by eryque

Sometimes those early blues guys hit the ears like hard whiskey does to a first-time drinker. It's too hard to take, while blues-rock stuff goes down smoother.

When I was 18 I decided I'd had enough of the light stuff, and sought out the hardest, deepest drunks I could find. Being in Chicago I thought the setting was perfect to start devouring the cheap whiskey of early electric blues as fast as I could buy it up. I bought all sorts of tapes of Muddy & Wolf, but the best move I made was to trade a pair of combat boots for the Robert Johnson Complete Recordings set.

My roommate and friends couldn't stand it. Their tastes ran from Chivas & water on the rocks to Coors Light, while mine was Mad Dog and white lightning.

Exactly! It's kinda like smoking one's first cigarette, too. After you start coughing and smoke a few more, you're hooked! No, really, it is very stark, direct music, and the intensity of it can be a bit much for the uninitiated. But that's what is so appealing about it, the depth and honesty. As John Lennon once said, "the Blues is the chair upon which all other music sits". He was absolutely right on with that statement! Case in point: Robert Johnson. He's part of the foundation of everything that came after in Blues and Rock 'n Roll. A HUGE part.
Heather

[stevieboy]

How influential was he really? He certainly didn't invent the blues, and there were plenty of other great performers before him and after him. He basically hoboed around, playing for small crowds. A few of his records were released on 78. And he didn't really live all that long either. Did a lot of people actually hear him or his work, to the point that he was widely imitated? Can we really say that rock and roll originated with him?

I believe that RJ was truly great. And he was, though playing within the blues style, very original and unique. In a lot of ways that uniqueness is very difficult to copy and quite possibly limited his influence as well.

RJ deserves all the accolades he gets and thankfully his work survives. I just think that his legend as well as props from later artists like EC, have rewritten history to a degree. And a lot of great artists get left out of the story as a result.

[eryque]

Yes, he was very influential as a blues musician. His commerical success as an artist was typical for bluesmen of his time, so selling just a few records is not really a negative. His legend helped establish the archetypical bluesman & the devil legend. There were many songs that came after his that were near exact copies of the music, lyrics, or both.

I'm not convinced that he was more influential on other blues artists than his contemporaries, but he was at least on their level. And thanks to 60s brit-rock stars, he's the most well-known (and therefor most influential) of his era among white folk.

[Big John]

Originally Posted by stevieboy

RJ deserves all the accolades he gets and thankfully his work survives. I just think that his legend as well as props from later artists like EC, have rewritten history to a degree. And a lot of great artists get left out of the story as a result.

Yes, i think you are right but without alot of those "props" there may not have been a history to rewrite (if that makes sense).
I guess i mean they made us aware of something we might otherwise not have been aware of.
The "Bluesman and devil" thing ?, well, if nothing else its a great story and one that involves guitar players so it must be good - - right ?

[Dan R]

No, RJ did not invent the blues. However, my point is his catalog is outstanding. Consider the Beatles for example, they are still big today because of their songwriting. There were many other talented groups involved in the British Invasion, just like there were many other great bluesmen of RJ's time. The thing is, the Beatles songs are the ones that are the most remembered and recorded, even to this day. My theory has always been that it takes good songs to make good music. I'm just saying that the songs hold up; for both RJ and the Beatles. RJ's songs are the main reason he is still influential today. This is all quite subjective, but that is my take on RJ.

Dan R

[zombywoof]

I first heard Robert Johnson's recordings back in the early 60's. A friend of my father owned a massive collection of "race records." Went over to record some folk stuff and stumbled across Blind Blake's "Police Dog Blues."
Had never heard anything like it before. Changed my life. Spent weeks recording Johnson, Blake, Charlie Patton, Blind Willie McTell, Tampa Red, Lonnie Johnson and bunches of others onto a Roberts reel-to-reel.
Then spent decades trying to learn the stuff.

BTW, if ya wanna hear some guys who are real important links to modern blues and rock check out Barbecue Bob and Curly Weaver (both played with McTell at one time or another). Extended bass patterns combined with shimmering highs. Also the duets of Lonnie Johnson and Eddie Lang. Amazing stuff.

[kaibu49]

Who were his contemporaries? I'm feelin' lazy... !

I have 2 RJ vinyls and immediately put them on cassette when I picked them up way back then
I enjoy reading about how he hid his hand if being studied too much by someone in the audience and how he could play other styles in addition to what he recorded.... as was said, how many people saw him? and told about it? ... most intriguing stuff!

[zombywoof]

Originally Posted by Heather Anne Peel

Exactly! It's kinda like smoking one's first cigarette, too. After you start coughing and smoke a few more, you're hooked! No, really, it is very stark, direct music, and the intensity of it can be a bit much for the uninitiated.

That is probably cuz most folks backed into the blues, having first heard the songs of Johnson and others played by white boy pickers such as Clapton and Pete Green.

[Fret Wilkes]

The Invention Of The Blues by Elijah Wald.

The Book is set up in 3 segments:

1. The World That Johnson New (a look the development of the many early blues styles)

2. Robert Johnson (biography and a detailed look at his songs and legacy)

3. The Blues Roll On (how the blues developed after Johnson's death and how the history was reshaped by a generally white audience)

Very interesting read and highly recommended.

Escaping The Delta, Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues

Fret

[crawdad]

Love RJ. His music is important to me. Like my Hank Williams collection, RJ takes me back to a time when the world was totally different. I admit that I "backed into" his music through the work of white guys, but there is no comparison between the covers and the real deal. Clapton's "Me and Mr. Johnson," though inspired, just doesn't matter. RJ's recordings are so good, it is impossible to top them.

I agree that a big part of it is the songs themselves. I've played and sang many of them, always aware that I would never equal or surpass the original performances. I don't know if he fathered rock and roll and I don't care. He remains a lightning rod in a history full of forgettable music.

His music helped to propel the likes of Muddy Waters and all those incredible Chess recordings. Muddy will always be my favorite, but RJ's bare bones recordings remain very deal to my heart and soul.

[WallyArms]

The big difference in Robert Johnson and todays performers is that he sold his soul to the devil for musical ability that made him a well known performer (in a limited area) in the popular musical form of his day (blues) during his lifetime, and a legend after his death. Todays performers, on the other hand, have sold their souls to the devil for widespread popularity and success (not musical ability) in the popular musical form of the day (pop-rock/pop-country/rap, hip-hop, etc) during their lifetime, and will be forgotten in the future.....


Sorry, I couldn't resist now back to the serious discussion already in progress

[Alex W]

I've been enjoying early delta blues courtesy of www.pandora.com which is sort of like internet radio but you can create custom stations. Basically you start with one artist and they play that artist and other similar music you might like. (sorry to sound like a spokesperson for them -- I'm not). I just recently created my own "Robert Johnson" station last week and it's been playing all sorts of other early Delta Blues music for me by the likes of Charley Patton, etc. It's a great way to learn about new music for free, and the stuff I like I can go out and buy.

I wish more recordings were made like those early ones, which seem more like field recordings than studio efforts. Especially with CD's, artists could offer additional versions of the same 12 songs on the main album. I've often wished I could produce some records using something like a Neumann K-100 dummy head mic, and have the performers just sit around it with either acoustic or low-volume electric instruments. There's a quality to music that's rarely encountered nowadays that, when it happens, gives you goosebumps because it touches you and moves you so deeply, and I just don't think it can truly be captured by multi-take, multi-track recordings. It's mostly a live music thing but some one-take recordings have a bit of it, like some of those early delta blues recordings do.

[reverberocket2]

Dude certianly had it goin on, both the songs and the guitar stylings. It's easy to see why he's a major influence.

It definitely can be hard to digest. Actually a lot of it is down right eerie sounding, the kinda high cracklin whiney voice, the scratchy guitar tone, the kinda loose off kilter tempo.

One of the coolest things about RJ is the amount of space he filled on those records. He covered a lot for just one guy and a guitar.

I listen to RJ but I prefer the more polished stylings of the Chicago guys like Muddy or Elmore James