Biography
12 December 1954, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. At the age of nine Johnson was given an acoustic guitar and promptly began teaching himself to play. His early influences included the Beatles, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones. Later, he began listening to jazz guitarists, in particular Wes Montgomery, and also to jazz players on other instruments, among them John Coltrane and Miles Davis. He moved from acoustic to electric guitar but then switched to electric bass guitar, eventually completing the transition to acoustic bass. Based in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, when he was 17 he began playing a regular nightly gig in a band led by saxophonist Irv Williams. This job lasted for more than two years and then, at the age of 20, Philly Joe Jones hired him. This engagement took him to Philadelphia and New York and established his reputation. Thereafter, he moved around America, spending some intensive study time playing in...
Read the Full Biography of Jeff Johnson (Jazz)
|
|
