Musicians - Blind Willie Johnson

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	Musicians - Blind Willie Johnson

"Blind" Willie Johnson (c. 1902-1945), was an African-American singer and guitarist whose music straddled the border between blues and spirituals. While the lyrics of most of his songs were religious, his music drew from both sacred and blues traditions. Among musicians, he is considered one of the greatest slide or bottleneck guitar artists who ever lived, as well as one of the most revered figures of depression-era gospel music. His music is distinguishable by his powerful bass strumming and gravelly false-bass voice, with occasional use of a tenor voice.

While 1902 is most frequently given as his year of birth, earlier dates or estimates are also given; he may have been born as early as 1897. According to different sources, Johnson was either born in Marlin, Texas or at least spent part of his childhood there. Johnson was not born blind, and, although it is not specifically known how his condition came about, it is widely believed that his stepmother, in a fit of rage, blinded him when he was 7 years old by throwing lye in his face.

Like many destitute people with physical disabilities at the time, Blind Willie Johnson earned his living from music. His father would often leave him on street corners to sing for money, where his powerful voice left an indelible impression on passersby (legend has it that he was arrested for nearly starting a riot at a New Orleans courthouse with a powerful rendition of "If I Had My Way I'd Tear the Building Down", a song about Samson and Delilah).

Johnson remained poor until the end, preaching and singing in the streets of Beaumont, Texas to anyone who would listen. In 1945, his home inexplicably burned to the ground. With nowhere else to go, Johnson lived in the burned ruins of his home until, two weeks later, he contracted pneumonia and died. Although there is some dispute as to where his actual gravesite is, concerned members of the Beaumont community have committed to finding the site, and preserving it.

He made some 30 commercial recording studio record sides for Columbia Records from 1927 through 1930. His records have kept his music tremendously influential and his songs have been covered by several popular artists, including Led Zeppelin, The 77s, Beck, Phil Keaggy and The White Stripes who have covered 'John the Revelator'. Some of his most famous recordings include his rendition of the famous gospel song "Let Your Light Shine On Me", as well as the raw, powerful "Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground", about the crucifixion of Jesus. "If I Had My Way I'd Tear the Building Down," retitled as "Samson and Delilah," was most famously covered by the Grateful Dead over the course of hundreds of performances.

Johnson's recording of "Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground" was included on the Voyager Golden Record, sent into space with the Voyager spacecraft in 1977, and for this reason was used in the widely seen science show Cosmos: A Personal Voyage by Carl Sagan in 1980. This recording also got Johnson mentioned on an episode of the fictional television series The West Wing (see "The Warfare of Genghis Khan"); the fictional Assistant White House Chief of Staff Josh Lyman using Johnson's recording to show the depth and soul behind the space program. The song is also used in Walk the Line, a biopic of country singer Johnny Cash; and The Devil's Rejects, a serial killer film by rocker Rob Zombie. Ry Cooder, who based his desolate soundtrack to Paris, Texas on "Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground," described it as "the most soulful, transcendent piece in all American music."

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Musicians - Blind Willie Johnson

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