Lonnie Johnson's early recordings are the first guitar recordings that display a single-note soloing style with use of string bending and vibrato. While it cannot be proven that this contains the influence of earlier players who did not record, it is the origin of Blues and Rock solo guitar. Johnson's influence is obvious in Django Reinhardt, T-Bone Walker and virtually all electric blues guitar players.
[citation needed] Raised in a family of musicians, Johnson studied violin and guitar as a child, but concentrated on the latter throughout his professional career. A 1917 tour to England with a revue may have saved his life, for he returned to New Orleans in 1919 to find that most of his family had died in the 1918 influenza epidemic.
In the early 1920s, Johnson worked with the orchestras of Charlie Creath and Fate Marable on riverboats, but he made St. Louis his home in 1925. There he entered and won an Okeh Records blues contest that resulted in his making a series of memorable recordings for the label between 1925 and 1932, including guitar duets with Eddie Lang and vocal duets with Victoria Spivey. In the 1920s, Johnson also made guest appearances on records by Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five, the Duke Ellington orchestra, and The Chocolate Dandies, playing 12-string guitar solos in an extraordinary, pioneering single-string style that greatly influenced such future jazz guitarists as Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt, and gave the instrument new meaning as a jazz voice.
Lonnie Johnson's career was a rollercoaster ride that sometimes took him away from music. In between great musical accomplishments, he found it necessary to take menial jobs that ranged from working in a steel foundry to mopping floors as a janitor. He was working at Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin Hotel in 1959 when WHAT-FM disc jockey Chris Albertson happened upon him. Albertson succeeded in securing for Johnson a Chicago engagement at the Playboy Club, which launched yet another comeback. Johnson subsequently performed with Duke Ellington and his orchestra and with an all-star folk concert, both at Town Hall, New York City.
He also toured Europe and recorded several albums for the Prestige Bluesville label, some with Elmer Snowden, and one with his Okeh vocal partner, Victoria Spivey. To his great regret, Johnson was always tagged as a blues artist, and he found it difficult to be regarded as anything else. "I had done some singing by then," he explained when asked why he entered the Okeh contest, "but I still didn't take it as seriously as my guitar playing, and I guess I would have done anything to get recorded--it just happened to be a blues contest, so I sang the blues."
Johnson died in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, June 16, 1970 of complications resulting from a 1969 auto accident. He was posthumously inducted into the Louisiana Blues Hall of Fame in 1997.
One of Elvis Presley's earliest recordings was Johnson's blues ballad, "Tomorrow Night", which was also recorded by LaVern Baker
Bob Dylan wrote about the performing method he learned from Johnson in Chronicles, Vol. 1. Dylan thinks Robert Johnson had learned a lot from Lonnie.
Blues in G
Lonnie Johnson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can never F with this G
You can never F with this G
You can never F with this G
My life is like a movie but the plots are thicker
Got people callin' me champ like I'm a boxing figure
Became a toxic spitter from drinkin lots of liquor
Call me sensei I teach mcs how to kill
In a ceasefire I still freestyle at will
Just gimme any line In five minutes time limit
I'll give you 9 million lines that'll rhyme with I
Would it be possible to mimic me lyrically
Cuz I spit it vividly with HD imagery
Rhetoric and rhyme in perfect symmetry
I get better with time, I don't let lines limit me
Inevitably ain't nobody better than me
The best there is there was there ever will be
Listen as I effortlessly step to this beat
Definitely you can never ever F with G
You can never F with this G
You can never You can never F with this G
This is destiny, you're gonna see it eventually
It's meant to be, I'm the MC of the Century
Schizophrenic with a Messianic Complex
It's a euphemism for may sayad ng konte
Satanic Santa with his bad little elves
A black Sabbath fanatic who needs Sabbatical help
The Vatican knelt to nobody but the baddest himself
The new Lucifer, Loonie with a capital L
It ain't easy bein me but I handle it well
I'm so bad that I've got my own bathroom in hell
Like a nuclear warplane I travel with stealth
If I wanted a real challenge, I'll just battle myself
Inevitably ain't nobody better than me
The best there is there was there ever will be
Listen as I effortlessly step to this beat
Definitely you can never ever F with G
You can never F with this G
You can never You can never F with this G
The song "Blues in G" by Lonnie Johnson appears to be a departure from the traditional blues style in terms of both music and lyrics. The lyrics depict the rapper's high level of confidence and self-assuredness: "You can never F with this G," "My life is like a movie but the plots are thicker," "The MC of the Century." The rapper, whoever he might be, refers to himself in many conflicting ways, including Sensei, Messianic, Schizophrenic, Satanic Santa, Black Sabbath fanatic, new Lucifer, and Loonie with a capital L. The lyrics speak to the fact that the rapper is a powerful and influential figure in the world of rap, with many people calling him a champ like he's a boxing figure. The rapper asserts his superiority over all others, claiming that there is nobody better than him, effortlessly stepping to the beat of his own powerful drum.
The lyrics contain some other interesting messages, such as the fact that the rapper is always improving and never limiting himself, stating that "I get better with time, I don't let lines limit me." Additionally, the reference to the Pasig River as polluted speaks to the problems of pollution and their destructive impacts. Overall, the song's lyrics seem to express the idea that the rapper is a powerful, self-assured figure who cannot be messed with.
Line by Line Meaning
You can never F with this G
I am the greatest and no one can compete with me.
My life is like a movie but the plots are thicker
My life is full of twists and turns, making it a great story.
Got people callin' me champ like I'm a boxing figure
I am so successful that people view me as a champion athlete.
Became a toxic spitter from drinkin lots of liquor
My prolific rhyming abilities were born out of my heavy drinking.
Pollute the mainstream like Pasig River
My music is so powerful that it can alter the mainstream.
Call me sensei I teach mcs how to kill
Other rappers view me as a teacher because of my skill level.
In a ceasefire I still freestyle at will
My ability to be creative never wavers, even in a moment of peace.
Just gimme any line In five minutes time limit
I am so skilled that I can create a rhyme for any topic in a very short period of time.
I'll give you 9 million lines that'll rhyme with I
I have endless amounts of rhyming words at my disposal.
Would it be possible to mimic me lyrically
It is a difficult task to try to match my rhyming and lyrical abilities.
Cuz I spit it vividly with HD imagery
My rhymes are so vivid that they paint a picture in the listener's mind.
Rhetoric and rhyme in perfect symmetry
My words are crafted with such precision that they flow perfectly together.
I get better with time, I don't let lines limit me
I am continually improving and pushing myself to the next level.
This is destiny, you're gonna see it eventually
My success and greatness is destined and undeniable.
It's meant to be, I'm the MC of the Century
I am the greatest rapper of my era and possibly of all time.
Schizophrenic with a Messianic Complex
I have a complex personality that includes both mental illness and god-like tendencies.
It's a euphemism for may sayad ng konte
It is a subtle way of saying that I am a little bit crazy.
Satanic Santa with his bad little elves
I am like a dark, evil version of Santa Claus with a team of bad followers.
A black Sabbath fanatic who needs Sabbatical help
I am a huge fan of the band Black Sabbath but my obsession may require a break.
The Vatican knelt to nobody but the baddest himself
Even the highest power in the world would bow down to me because I am so powerful.
The new Lucifer, Loonie with a capital L
I am like a new version of the devil, and my name even starts with the same letter.
It ain't easy bein me but I handle it well
My greatness comes with a lot of pressure and difficulty, but I can handle it.
I'm so bad that I've got my own bathroom in hell
I am so evil and powerful that even hell has granted me special privileges.
Like a nuclear warplane I travel with stealth
My movements are quick and silent, like a dangerous military vehicle.
If I wanted a real challenge, I'll just battle myself
I am so skilled that the only real competition I could find is within myself.
Inevitably ain't nobody better than me
It is inevitable that I am the best and there isn't anyone who could surpass me.
The best there is there was there ever will be
I am the best rapper that has ever existed and that ever will exist.
Listen as I effortlessly step to this beat
I can conquer any instrumental with ease and confidence.
Definitely you can never ever F with G
There is no way anyone could ever come close to my level of greatness and skill.
Writer(s): Lonnie Johnson
Contributed by Savannah J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Mark Selsor
Mr. Becker, You have posted another great recording. May your life be blessed and fulfilled . Respectfully, m. (thank you)
RebelliousRedneckVlogs
This is Lonnie doing a duet with Eddie Lang (Blind Willie Dunn as he called himself on these recordings)
Mark Selsor
I can hear just one 12 string guitar. Sure is beautiful what?
Amandus
This is in Bb.