Song:Roll 'Em Pete
Album:Alan Lomax Blues Songbook
Along with Albert Ammons & Meade Lux Lewis, Pete Johnson popularized boogie woogie piano in the late 30s. He was born Mar. 24, 1904 in Kansas City, MO. He began as a drummer in 1922 but was pianist for Big Joe Turner from 1926-38. Producer John Hammond discovered Johnson and took him to New York to perform in the legendary 1938 Carnegie Hall concert From Spirituals To Swing. He frequently toured and recorded with fellow boogie woogie pianists Meade Lux Lewis & Albert Ammons. This 1939 recording of Roll 'Em Pete is available on a CD called The Boogie Woogie Boys on Document Records. Document is a British label specializing in unearthing long lost jazz & blues recordings. Rounder included it on this 2CD Alan Lomax various artists comp because it is in the Library Of Congress catalog though I don't think Johnson has any connection to the legendary musicologist. Rounder has released several Lomax themed various artists comps that beginners might want to check out. Johnson continued to record in the 40s. He moved to Buffalo in 1950 and continued to tour until he suffered a stroke in 1958 and retired. He made one final appearance at the 1967 From Spirituals To Swing concert. He could only play with one hand. Pete Johnson died on Mar. 23, 1967 at age 62. Boogie woogie fans should check him out. Here's Pete Johnson's only film appearance in the 1944 short film Boogie Woogie Dream with Lena Horne, Albert Ammons & Teddy Wilson.
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