HENRY " RUFE " JOHNSON ( II)

Henry aprendió a tocar la  guitarra con su hermano mayor Roosevelt y su primo Thelmon Johnson. Empezó tocando el piano en la iglesia local. Su apodo "Rufe" , ( diminutivo o abreviatura de Rooster ) se le da desde la infancia. Algunos años despues de su  adolescencia , Rufe se presentó con dos grupos vocales: West Spring Friendly Four y Silver Star Quartet cuyas actuaciones fueron transmitidas por las radios WPSA y WBSU, respectivamente. Descubierto por Pete Lowry, que le conminó a grabar lo que fué  su único álbum, "The Union County Flash", en el que a veces se le une su amigo de la infancia, "Peg Leg" Sam, a la armónica. Por otra parte, Rufe participa en la grabación de de Sam, grabado en las mismas sesiones (Rufe canta en dos pistas en "Medicine show man"). Mezclando Blues, Folk y Ragtime, compuso  algunos títulos excelentes: , "Boogie baby", "Little Sally Jones", "My dog's blues". entre otros. 

                 

Henry "Rufe" Johnson (October 2, 1908 – February 4, 1974), was an American Piedmont blues guitarist, pianist, singer and songwriter. On occasion he played the guitar using a bottleneck. He finally found a larger audience with his 1973 album, The Union County Flash! His fame was short-lived, as he died months after its release.

Johnson was born in the small settlement of Bogansville, near to the towns of Union and Jonesville, South Carolina. His elder brother, Roosevelt, taught Johnson the rudiments of guitar playing, and he was further instructed by his cousin Thelmon Johnson. His childhood nickname, Rufe, which stayed with him throughout his life, was a shortening of Rooster. He learned to play in standard tuning and mainly played gospel songs, but his family's record collection also exposed him to secular music, such as that of Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Blake and later Blind Boy Fuller. He also got the opportunity to play alongside several white musicians. He expanded his repertoire in 1933, when he taught himself to play the piano, and he played at a local church for several years.Johnson performed with two vocal groups, the West Spring Friendly Four and the Silver Star Quartet, which were broadcast on the radio stations WPSA and WBSU, respectively.

                   



enry Johnson - The union county flash (1973)

Guitar, Vocals – Henry Johnson 
Harmonica – Peg Leg Sam (tracks: 03,11)

01 Join The Army 3:35
02 Who's Going Home With You 3:40
03 Boogie Baby 3:55
04 Rufe's Impromptu Rag 2:13
05 My Mother's Grave Will Be Found 6:32
06 My Baby's House 3:20
07 Be Glad When You're Dead 3:07
08 Little Sally Jones 4:26
09 John Henry 5:17
10 Crow Jane 5:07
11 My Dog's Blues 6:02
12 Old Home Town 3:03

13 Sign Of The Judgement 3:40

In 1952, he moved from working on a farm to a hospital job, while also making a gradual transition to playing more secular material, on a part-time basis. Discovered by blues historians, Johnson started to give solo concerts, performed on the radio, and joined up musically with his childhood friend Peg Leg Sam.

Following recording sessions in November and December 1972, his album The Union County Flash! was issued by Trix Records in 1973. He also privided guitar and vocals, along with Baby Tate, for a couple of tracks on Peg Leg Sam's album Medicine Show Man, released in the same year.

Johnson died of kidney failure in Union, South Carolina, on February 4, 1974, aged 69.

                       

Video & Info By randomandrare 

Composed by Henry Johnson

Henry Johnson was born in Union County, S.C. near the towns of Union and Jonesville on December 8, 1908. He was inspired to play guitar by a cousin by the name of Thelman Johnson as well as local man by the name of J.T. Briggs. He also was inspired by recordings on 78 RPM by Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Blake & Blind Boy Fuller. Johnson soaked up a lot of styles in his youth by local string bands as well as gospel artists that he heard in live performances. (One artist was Blind Gussie Nesbitt). Around 1933 he also took up playing the piano hearing local artists on the instrument such as "Come By" Shelton & Tommy Foster. All of these influences made him a multi-instrumentalist playing finger-picking as well as slide guitar styles, piano and he also picked up harmonica along the way. A buried treasure, he wasn't heard until early white blues enthuasists chanced upon him in the early 1970's. Johnson recorded a full-length album for Trix in 1973, and a few live recordings by him were later released on a Flyright Records LP compliation. One of many instances where an artist was captured on record just in the nick of time, Johnson passed away in Union in February of 1974. 

Henry "Rufe" Johnson:Vocals & Guitar

Peg Leg Sam:Harmonica

Recorded in Jonesville, S.C. December 11, 1972

Originally issued on and this recording taken from the 1973 album "Henry Johnson:The Union County Flash!" (Trix 3304) (LP)