James P. Johnson
Background information
Birth name	James Price Johnson
Born	February 1, 1894
Origin	New Brunswick, New Jersey
Died	November 17, 1955
Genre(s)	Jazz
Occupation(s)	Composer Musician
Instrument(s)	Piano

James Price Johnson (February 1, 1894–November 17, 1955) was an African-American pianist and composer. With Luckey Roberts, Johnson was one of the originators of the stride style of jazz piano playing. February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Nickname: Location of New Brunswick in Middlesex County Coordinates: Country United States of America State New Jersey County Middlesex Established December 30, 1730 Incorporated September 1, 1784 Government  - Type Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council)  - Mayor James Cahill Area  - City  5. ... 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Jazz is a musical art form that originated in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States around the start of the 20th century. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... “Instrumentalist” redirects here. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... A short grand piano, with the top up. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 17 November is also the name of a Marxist group in Greece, coinciding with the anniversary of the Athens Polytechnic uprising. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Languages Predominantly American English Religions Protestantism (chiefly Baptist and Methodist); Roman Catholicism; Islam Related ethnic groups Sub-Saharan Africans and other African groups, some with Native American groups. ... This article deals with those who play the piano. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Stride is a pioneering jazz piano style. ... A short grand piano, with the top up. ...

Johnson was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. His family moved to New York City in 1908. His first professional engagement was at Coney Island in 1912. In 1911, while he was "still going to school in short pants", he attended Jelly Roll Morton's performance in Harlem and was inspired by the blues. Nickname: Location of New Brunswick in Middlesex County Coordinates: Country United States of America State New Jersey County Middlesex Established December 30, 1730 Incorporated September 1, 1784 Government  - Type Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council)  - Mayor James Cahill Area  - City  5. ... “New York, NY” redirects here. ... 1908 (MCMVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... For other uses, see Coney Island (disambiguation). ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday in the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday in the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Morton in the 1920s Ferdinand Jelly Roll Morton September 20, 1890 - July 10, 1941) was an American virtuoso pianist, bandleader and composer who some call the first true composer of jazz music. ...

Beside being a jazz piano pioneer, and a most spontaneously inventive performer, Johnson penned hit tunes: "Charleston" (which debuted in his Broadway show Runnin' Wild in 1923, although by some accounts Johnson had written it years earlier) became one of the most popular tunes and arguably the definitive dance number of the Roaring 1920s. Others are "If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)," "You've Got to Be Modernistic," "Keep off the Grass," "Old Fashioned Love," "A Porter's Love Song to a Chambermaid," "Carolina Shout," and "Snowy Morning Blues". He wrote music in many styles, including waltzes, ballet, symphonic pieces, and light opera; many of these ambitious, long-form pieces are presumed lost. Broadway theatre[1] is the most prestigious form of professional theatre in the U.S., as well as the most well known to the general public and most lucrative for the performers, technicians and others involved in putting on the shows. ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... A waltz (German: , Italian: , French: , Catalan: ) is a ballroom and folk dance in   time, done primarily in closed position. ... Painting of ballet dancers by Edgar Degas, 1872. ... A symphony is an extended piece of music for orchestra, especially one in the form of a sonata. ... The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. ...

James Weldon Johnson, a pioneer of the African-American musical theater and renouned choral director, had this to say about Johnson's style of playing: "It was music of a kind I had never heard before... The barbaric harmonies, the audacious resolutions, often consisting of an abrupt jump from one key to another, the intricate rhythms in which the accents fell in the most unexpected places, but in which the beat was never lost, produced a most curious effect, and to, the player — the dexterity of his left hand in making rapid octave runs and jumps was little short of marvelous; and with his right he frequently swept half the keyboard with clean cut chromatics which he fitted in so nicely as never to fail to arouse in his listeners a sort of pleasant surprise at the accomplishment of the feat."

Jame P. Johnson taught Fats Waller and got him his first piano roll and recording assignments. He was also an influence on such other pianists as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Art Tatum, and even Thelonious Monk. He was a sensitive and facile accompanist; Johnson often recorded with Ethel Waters and Bessie Smith, and was reportedly the latter's favorite pianist. Even guitarist Chet Atkins credited Johnson and "stride piano" as a major influence on his early style; Atkins covered Johnson's compositions on an early solo album of his, as well as his 1979 collaboration "The First Nashville Guitar Quartet." This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. ... Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (April 29, 1899–May 24, 1974) was an American jazz composer, pianist, and band leader who has been one of the most influential figures in jazz, if not in all American music. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Arthur Tatum Jr. ... Thelonious Sphere Monk (October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was a jazz pianist and composer. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Chet Atkins Chester Burton Chet Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001) was an influential guitarist and record producer. ...

In the late 1930s, Johnson was intermittently incapacitated by several strokes. When he returned to active performing in the early 1940s, he demonstrated his adaptability by leading a small swing group and performing regularly with Eddie Condon. He also did some studying and composing in these last few years with Maury Deutsch. Stroke is the clinical designation for a rapidly developing loss of brain function due to an interruption in the blood supply to all or part of the brain. ... Swing music, also known as swing jazz, is a form of jazz music that developed during the 1920s and had solidified as a distinctive style by 1935 in the United States. ... Albert Edwin Condon, better known as Eddie Condon, (16 November 1905–4 August 1973) was a jazz banjoist, guitarist, and bandleader. ... Maury Deutsch (born 1918 in New York City) is a musician, from an early age playing the trumpet. ...

Johnson permanently retired from performing after a severe stroke in 1951. He died in Jamaica, New York. 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... Jamaica, now a neighborhood in Queens, New York City, was settled as a town by the English under Dutch rule in 1656 in New Netherland. ...

External link

• James P. Johnson on RedHotJazz.com Biography with RAM files of many of James P. Johnson's historic recordings

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cjas/archives/vol1num1/page8.pdf James P. Johnson: A Composer Rescued -- The story of the discovery of "Victory Stride" and James P. Johnson's other lost symphonies By Leslie Stifleman

References

• Allen Lowe. Liner notes from CD Runnin' Wild (1921–1926)', James P. Johnson (Tradition)