Robert Johnson was probably born on May 8, 1911 in Hazlehurst, Mississippi. He was passionate about music as a child, playing the harmonica. His dream was to become a guitarist, but attempts to learn how to use this instrument were very difficult for him. His mentor Son House even claimed that he was a complete “talentless” in this matter.
They said he couldn’t play the guitar. Then he would sell his soul to the devil
At the age of 19, Johnson married for the first time, but his wife died just a year later in childbirth. Many said at the time that it was “punishment from God” for not stopping singing songs about a pact with the devil. When history repeated itself soon after, another of his wife also died prematurely, many had no doubts about this theory. Shortly after these tragedies, the musician left his homeland, and the official reason was the search for his father, who disappeared shortly after his birth. However, the surprise was not his disappearance, but his return, because he was completely changed and delighted with his guitar virtuosity.
According to many, the absence was related to learning to play the guitar. It was then that the legend was created, whose supporters were convinced that in exchange for this skill he sold his soul to the devil, which Johnson himself fueled, among others “Me and the Devil Blues” or “Hell Hound On My Train”. After delighting the local audience, he embarked on a tour of the USA, playing in various local clubs. At that time, he surrounded himself with many women, he also did not avoid alcohol, until he finally brought misfortune on himself. He allegedly seduced a married woman. Her partner wanted revenge and poisoned him by pouring poison into his whiskey. It is not known how much of this is true and how much of it is rumor, but the fact is that Robert Johnson died on August 16, 1938 at the age of only 27, joining the .
His music was discovered in the late 1960s. Today it is a blues classic
During his lifetime, Johnson could not count on fame, much less recognition. His work was known to few, he was treated more like a common musician than a great artist. Everything changed only after nearly 30 years after his death. Historian and record producer Samuel Chartera accidentally discovered recordings of his works. He probably created the first 16 and the same number of alternative versions at the end of November 1936, and the next 11 in two different versions, he recorded on tape in mid-June 1937. The expert liked the unique sound so much that he decided to persuade Columbia to put it together and release it in the form of an album.
It didn’t take long from idea to implementation. Johnson’s music quickly gained popularity, becoming an inspiration for many great musicians, including Eric Clapton, Peter Green and Brian Jones. To this day, his songs such as “Love in vain” or “Kindehearted woman blues” are considered blues classics. In the early 1980s, Johnson was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, and six years later into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and was ranked No. 5 on Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time” list.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
