Jsck Johnson

Considered by many to be the finest jazz trombonist of all time, J.J. Johnson somehow transferred the innovations of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie to his more awkward instrument, playing with such speed and deceptive ease that at one time some listeners assumed he was playing valve (rather than slide) trombone. Johnson toured with the territory bands of Clarence Love and Snookum Russell during 1941-1942, and then spent 1942-1945 with Benny Carter's big band. He made his recording debut with Carter (taking a solo on "Love for Sale" in 1943), and played at the first JATP concert (1944)…

After four years off records and in obscurity, Lonnie Johnson launched his final comeback with this release, which has been reissued on CD. Teamed with tenor saxophonist Hal Singer, pianist Claude Hopkins, bassist Wendell Marshall and drummer Bobby Donaldson, Johnson sings and plays guitar on a variety of blues, showing that the layoff (he was working at the time as a janitor) had not hurt his abilities in the slightest.

After four years off records and in obscurity, Lonnie Johnson launched his final comeback with this release, which has been reissued on CD. Teamed with tenor saxophonist Hal Singer, pianist Claude Hopkins, bassist Wendell Marshall and drummer Bobby Donaldson, Johnson sings and plays guitar on a variety of blues, showing that the layoff (he was working at the time as a janitor) had not hurt his abilities in the slightest.

Going back to 1987's Classics, Vol. 11, there has been a handful of decent single-disc Brothers Johnson anthologies. Through 2012, the group still lacked a double-disc compilation to do proper justice to its catalog. A couple minor issues aside, Stomp: The Best of the Brothers Johnson – released through Universal U.K.'s Spectrum division in 2013 – is an ideal overview. The discs are filled to near capacity, and all but one of the Brothers Johnson's charting R&B singles (the minor hit "Dancin' Free") are included. So, all the hit essentials – including the number ones "I'll Be Good to You," "Strawberry Letter 23," and "Stomp!" – are here, as are some excellent album cuts, such as the low-key sweet soul gem "Closer to the One That You Love." There's still some greatness that remains bound to the albums; "Caught Up" and "In the Way," from Winners, surpass some of the other album cuts here, but neither one is included.

Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson's third album for Telarc is the sonic equivalent of the sun coming out from behind the clouds, from the opening notes of the upbeat, cheerful title track to the energetic, swing-y "I'm Gone." Even songs like "Why Are People Like That" and "Suffer So Hard with the Blues" can't bring this album down; they'll elicit more empathy than depression. This is a soul-injected, high-quality collection of Chicago-style blues in the best West Side tradition, and it's every bit as good as you'd expect from someone who's played with such luminaries as Muddy Waters and Magic Sam. Whether he's covering Sam Cooke's "Somebody Have Mercy" or heading more for traditional blues with "Ramblin' Blues," there's no question that Johnson is one of the best there is at melding musical traditions to create something distinctive, keeping things exciting all the way.