Just discovered Tommy Johnson the Mississippi blues singer from the 1920s. Supposedly he claimed to have sold his soul to the devil at a crossroads, which later became associated with Robert Johnson (no relation as far as I know). His song Canned Heat was where the 60s rock band got their name. Are there any other famous Thomas/Tommy Johnsons in music history?
7 Comments
Tommy Johnson was hugely influential! His falsetto vocal style influenced a ton of later blues and rock singers. And youre right that the crossroads myth got mixed up between him and Robert Johnson over the years. Tommy told the story first but Robert got more famous.
interesting that the myth attached to robert johnson then. i wonder if having such a common name contributed to the confusion
Theres also Tom Johnson who was a minimalist composer in New York in the 70s and 80s. Very different genre but also notable. And Tommy Johnson the bassist who played with various rock bands. The name shows up everywhere in music.
If you want to hear Tommys actual recordings, Yazoo Records put out some good compilations. Fair warning though - the audio quality from 1928 is rough. But you can still hear why he was so influential.
just ordered the yazoo compilation. thanks for the rec!
The movie O Brother Where Art Thou featured a character based partly on Tommy Johnson and the crossroads legend. Chris Thomas King played him. Great film if you havent seen it.
fun fact - tommy johnson and robert johnson werent related at all despite the shared surname and both being mississippi bluesmen. johnson was just that common a name in that era. makes researching delta blues history tricky since you have to keep track of which johnson is which in the records