New Orleans native
Lonnie Johnson first appeared on record in 1925 with
Charlie Creath and participated in a series of outstanding classic jazz and blues sessions at the close of the tumultuous '20s in the company of
Eddie Lang,
Louis Armstrong, and
Duke Ellington. Over the years
Johnson waxed an enormous number of records for the OKeh, Bluebird, Decca, Disc, and Aladdin labels, finally establishing himself as a smooth blues crooner with the King record company in Cincinnati from 1947 to 1952. While many of his OKeh blues recordings are almost indistinguishable from each other,
Johnson's more mature performances for King used a small but sturdy set of stylistic variables that are demonstrated on this interesting compilation of recordings he made between November 1949 and June 1952.
Lonnie Johnson sang sweetly with just the right amount of vibrato and a touch of grit. His "Little Rockin' Chair" brings to mind the noble integrity of Kansas City's
Big Joe Turner. "Nothin' Clickin' Chicken" taps into a lighthearted jump groove worthy of
Tampa Red or
Washboard Sam. Many of the slower tunes, including "Old Fashioned Love," have a rich and creamy quality that owes something to
Johnson's sweet slow dance sensation of 1948, "Tomorrow Night." Many of his King performances in fact open with the same measured strumming chords that characterized that number one R&B hit.
Johnson's 1951 recordings are pleasantly fortified by tenor saxophonists
Ray Felder,
Eddie Smith, and
Wilbur "Red" Prysock, complementing
Johnson's vocal most effectively. Some of
Johnson's material from this period crosses over into country music territory, represented here by a pair of tunes by
the Delmore Brothers, "Troubles Ain't Nothing But the Blues" and the haunting "Blues Stay Away from Me." This tasty survey closes with the unusually full-bodied session of June 3, 1952. Here
Johnson is backed by trumpet, three tough saxes, and a kicking rhythm section headed by pianist
Todd Rhodes. Among the many
Lonnie Johnson retrospectives on various reissue labels, this volume in the Classics
Chronological Series stands with the very best.