Johnny Fuller born 20 April 1929

Johnny Fuller (April 20, 1929 – May 20, 1985) was an American West Coast and electric blues singer and guitarist. 

Born in Edwards, Mississippi not far from Vicksburg, Johnny Fuller has lived there the same usual hard childhood that the other sharecroppers: no education, full work at the age of 9. He said he then started to play the guitar and sing under the influence of Country Music icons like Jimmie Rodgers, Gene Autry and later Honky Tonk singer Ernest Tubb. 

After a brief stint in New Orleans, Johnny went during the war to the Bay Area, finding work on the shipyards of Vallejo. He said that it was there that he heard the real downhome blues for the first time, a deep Texas blues carried on the West Coast by the thousands of Texans who migrated in California during the war years. 

It is in this very style that Johnny started to play and record, first three Gospel sides in 1948,on the Jaxyson label which credited him as Brother Johnny Fuller, the 19 year old wonder singer. He then he recorded for a number of independent record labels, with his distinctive singing and guitar playing sometimes those associated with Bob Geddins. 

These included Heritage, Hollywood, Flair, Specialty, Aladdin, Imperial and Checker Records. Some of these recordings contained a batch of incredible deep blues waxed in 1954. Those marvelous sides with devastating arpeggios, vibrant electric guitar licks, dying vocals and bittersweet lyrics stand as masterpieces of the downhome West Coast blues. But at the same time, Fuller is also able to record pop ballads like You Got me whistling, rocking pieces that were almost rockabilly, like Haunted house that hits the Top 100 nationwide. 

                                    

Fuller then drop his day job and leads his own band, touring the Southwestern States, recording constantly for label as prestigious as Specialty, Flair, Aladdin, Imperial or Checker numerous 45s that mix with equal ease blues (less and less frequently) with ballads, rock'n'roll numbers, doo wop, corny pop pieces. But this versatility has also his setback. During the mid-60's, Johnny Fuller is unable to gain the attention of the new mostly white and international public of the Blues Revival as well as the young African-Americans who wants Soul, a genre that Fuller tries to make a hand but with no success. 

And in 1967, Johnny is forced to stop his musical career and work as an auto mechanic in the Bay Area, largely forgotten by the blues world. In 1973, thanks to Tom Mazzolini, he is rediscovered by a group of Australian fans and record a very good album for an Ossie label with Philip Walker and his band. This album certainly illustrated what Johnny was capable of achieving. Unfortunately, it didn’t do too much for Fuller who did not record anymore. However he performed sporadically on stage and appeared at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973 and 1977. 

Fuller died of lung cancer in Oakland, California, in May 1985, at the age of 56.  

(Edited from Gerard Herzhaft’s blog Blue Eye & Wikipedia)

Johnny Fuller born 20 April 1929

                 

Johnny Fuller (April 20, 1929 – May 20, 1985) was an American West Coast and electric blues singer and guitarist.  Fuller showed musical diversity, performing in several musical genres including rhythm and blues, gospel and rock and roll. His distinctive singing and guitar playing appeared on a number of 1950s San Francisco Bay Area recordings. 

Johnny Fuller was born in Edwards, Mississippi, but moved to
Vallejo, California with his parents as a young child. As a child, he taught himself to play guitar and by his teenage years, he formed a gospel group known as the "Gold West Gospel Singers." By the early 1950's, he began recording for the Heritage Record label in Oakland, California. During this time, he taught himself to play the piano and the organ.  

Fuller recorded for a number of independent record labels, sometimes those associated with Bob Geddins. These included Hollywood, Flair, Specialty, Aladdin, Imperial and Checker Records. His debut recording was made in 1948 on the obscure Jaxyson record label, with a couple of gospel based songs. In 1954, he began a regular recording career which lasted until 1962. Fuller recorded twenty sides in 1954 alone for Geddins. 

 

 

  

Fuller had local hits with his singles "All Night Long" and the original version of "Haunted House," the latter of which was written and produced by Geddins. Fuller's ability to switch styles, saw him appear in late 1950s rock and roll package tours, performing on the same bill as Paul Anka and Frankie Avalon.

While touring with these acts, he found time to record for the Aladdin and Rhythm Record labels. However, this same factor lost his black audience, which left him neglected in the 1960s blues revival. 
 

During the 1960's, he toured Europe and continued touring throughout the United States. By the 1970's, however, Fuller was limited to performing in local venues around the Oakland, California area. In 1974, Fuller issued his debut album, Fuller's Blues which was well received, but saw little commercial success. Fuller played at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973 and 1977.

He latterly worked as a mechanic in a local garage from 1968 to 1983 yet continued performing in the Oakland area during the 1980's. He died from lung cancer in Oakland, California, in May 1985, at the age of 56. (Info edited from Wikipedia & Findagrave)