Johnnie Johnson (musician)

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Johnnie Johnson (July 8, 1924 – April 13, 2005) was a piano player and blues musician whose work as Chuck Berry's piano sideman led to his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He was born in Fairmont, West Virginia near Pittsburgh and began playing piano in 1928. He joined the United States Marine Corps during World War II. After his return, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he performed as a session musician for many notable artists, including Chuck Berry, who joined Johnson's band after a stint in jail, The Sir John Trio in 1953. Some sources claim Berry later wrote "Johnny B. Goode" as a tribute to Johnson (although Lafayette Leake, a Chess staff pianist, actually played piano on the session instead of Johnson), and the two collaborated in the arrangements of many of Berry's songs including Berry's first hit "Maybelline" and the Blues B-Side "Wee Wee Hours". They played and toured together until 1973.

Johnson was known to have a serious drinking problem. In Chuck Berry's autobiography, Berry tells of how he declared there would be no drinking in the car, while on the road. Johnson and band-mates complied with the request by putting their heads out the window.

Johnson received very little recognition until the Chuck Berry concert/documentary Chuck Berry Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll in 1987. That attention helped Johnson, who was a bus driver in St. Louis, Missouri at the time, return to music. He recorded his first solo album, Blue Hand Johnnie, that same year. He later performed with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker and Bo Diddley. In 1996 and 1997, Johnson toured with Bob Weir's (of the Grateful Dead) Ratdog, playing 67 shows.

In November 2000, Johnson sued Berry, alleging he deserved co-composer credits (and royalties) for dozens of songs, including ""No Particular Place To Go", "Sweet Little Sixteen", and "Roll Over Beethoven", that credit Berry alone. The case was dismissed in less than a year because too many years had passed since the songs in dispute were written.

In 2001, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He also has his on star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame.