Ella Johnson (June 22, 1919 – February 16, 2004) was an
American jazz and rhythm and blues vocalist who spent her entire professional
career of almost two decades as a featured singer with the orchestra led by her
brother Buddy. Her singing drew
comparisons to Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. Her sweet, soulful voice
features on many of the band's finest recordings.
While some sources list her birth year as 1923, most cite
1917. Like her older brother Buddy, Ella had an early interest in music. By
1939, Buddy, who had left South Carolina for New York City, had made his first
record for Decca, a major label that handled popular artists of the 1930s and
1940s including Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong, and the Andrews Sisters. Buddy's
first single, "Stop Pretending (So Hep You See)," was a success.
While still a teenager, Ella followed her brother's footsteps to New York City,
where Buddy immediately found a place for her in his band, which also included
singers Arthur Prysock, Nolan Lewis, and Floyd Ryland.
Buddy Johnson and His Orchestra became a mainstay act in
New York City, where they regularly performed at Harlem's Savoy Ballroom, and
they also became a popular national touring band. Ella earned praise for her
ability to sing uptempo, jazzy blues tunes called "jump blues" as
well as luscious ballads. In 1940 she recorded her first hit single with
"Please, Mr. Johnson," a song written by Buddy. With this hit, Ella
stood out among the numerous female vocalists of the era.
For the rest of the 1940s, and into the 1950s, the
Johnsons were a leading act in black music. The orchestra was popular not only
in New York, where it caught the ear of dancers at the Savoy ballroom with its
enticing walk 'em rhythm, but up and down the east coast and across the south,
winning a trade award in 1949 as Kings of the One-Nighter Circuit.
Ella's contribution to its success can be gauged by its
hit-list: several of the band's most popular numbers were vocal features for
her, such as When My Man Comes Home (No 1 in the R&B chart in 1944) and
That's The Stuff You Gotta Watch (No 2 in 1945). She also gave a gorgeous
reading of Buddy's song Since I Fell For You, now a standard.
Like many black bandleaders, Buddy Johnson was threatened
by rock'n'roll in the mid-1950s, but he had a rare skill of adapting to
changing styles and made a number of rock'n'roll-oriented recordings that were
quite well received at the time and are not embarrassing today. Ella showed
some of the same versatility, and had a further chart entry in 1956 with I
Don't Want Nobody. It was their nonstop touring, however, that kept the band
fresh.
By the 1960s, the era of the big band became
over-shadowed by the popularity of rock and roll, and the Johnsons could no
longer book shows on the dance-hall circuit because that venue was
disappearing. Buddy broke up the band, and with this move Ella's singing career
effectively ended. Many have speculated why Ella Johnson never achieved the
celebrity status of other female singers of her time period. Some critics have
felt that she may not have had the confidence to perform without Buddy.
In the 1960s, Ella Johnson retired from music to take
care of Buddy, who was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia. After Buddy died in
1977, Ella lost a legal battle over her brother's copyrighted material and
gained very little from his estate. And a short time later, her only son became
the victim of murder.
Admirers tried to persuade Ella to make a comeback, at
least on record, but, as the R&B historian Peter Grendysa wrote in 1978,
"the changes that have come about in studio techniques since her last
session are bewildering to her, especially without Buddy's reassuring presence
and direction".
Ella never did return to the studio, and, by the
mid-1980s, researchers who visited her Harlem apartment found her memory
failing. Ella's condition declined in her later years as her memory lapsed.
Despite fading from the public eye, her work was not forgotten. In 1992 the
Rhythm & Blues Foundation honored Ella with a Pioneer Award and $15,000, in
recognition of her singing career during the 1940s.
Ella Johnson died in New York of Alzheimer's in February,
2004; she was 84 years old.
(Info edited from
Gale musician profiles & The Guardian)
6 comments:
For “Buddy & Ella Johnson - The Rock'n'Roll Years 1953-55” go here:
https://www.sendspace.com/file/kl3kbg
1. Mush Mouth (3:03)
2. That's How I Feel About You (3:12)
3. Hittin' On Me (3:07)
4. I'm Just Your Fool (2:53)
5. Aint'cha Got Me (Where You Want Me) (2:50)
6. My Old Man (2:27)
7. A12 (2:44)
8. One More Time (2:52)
9. Shut Your Big Mouth, Girl! (2:57)
10. Any Day Now (2:37)
11. Ain't But One (3:04)
12. Crazy 'bout A Saxaphone (2:33)
13. Jit Jit (3:08)
14. A Pretty Girl (A Cadillac And Some Money) (3:07)
15. Well Do It! (2:24)
16. Thinking It Over (2:42)
17. Someday (2:36)
18. It Used To Hurt Me (2:43)
19. Gotta Go Upside Your Head (2:43)
20. If You Would Only Say You're Sorry (3:03)
21. Alright, Okay, You Win! (2:46)
22. It's About To Break My Heart In Two (2:49)
23. Gone Walkin' (3:00)
24. So Good (2:30)
25. I Don’t Want Nobody Baby (To Have My Love But You) (2:41)
26. Bring It Home To Me (2:29)
27. It's Obdacious (2:36)
28. Doot Doot Dow (2:51)
This generous 28-track set from Rev-Ola Records features several of Ella's vocals on Buddy Johnson sides originally released by Mercury Records between 1953 and 1955, including Ella's perfectly nuanced (she sounds positively annoyed) "Hittin' on Me," the dubiously trusting "My Old Man," the gorgeous hitting-the-road threat "Any Day Now," the defiant "Well Do It!," and the aching "It's About to Break My Heart in Two," all of which are essentially jump numbers but they edge very close to the feel of rock & roll, particularly given Ella's playful vocal phrasing.
Another great post and notes. Thank you Bob.
Thanks for an excellent post on a forgotten talent. That Rev-Ola collection of Mercury sides is very hard to find nowadays. The earlier Buddy Johnson Decca sides featuring Ella are tremendous and well worth tracking down.
BW
Any chance at getting a re-up on this Buddy & Ella post? Thank you so much. I love your Blog! Fantastic job.
Hello Leegib, Here's the re-post
https://krakenfiles.com/view/d6rkXbqOp3/file.html
Thank you Bob! Awesome!
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