1. An American… Read Full Bio ↴There are several artists by the name Robert Johnson:
1. An American blues singer, guitarist and songwriter (1911-1938) amongst the most famous of Delta blues musicians; ranked fifth in Rolling Stone's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time; considered by some to be the "Grandfather of Rock 'n' Roll"
2. An English lutenist and composer of the late Tudorian and early Jacobean eras (c.1580-c.1634)
3. A 1970s Memphis-based American guitarist
4. A former drummer for KC and the Sunshine Band
1. Robert Johnson (Robert Leroy Johnson, Hazlehurst, Mississippi, May 8, 1911- Greenwood, Mississippi, August 16, 1938) was an American blues singer, guitarist and songwriter, among the most famous of Delta blues musicians.
His landmark recordings from 1936â1937 display a remarkable combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that have influenced generations of musicians. Johnson's shadowy, poorly documented life and death at age 27 have given rise to much legend.
The first songs to appear were Terraplane Blues and Last Fair Deal Gone Down, Terraplane Blues became a moderate regional hit, selling 5,000 copies.
Other songs Johnson recorded were Come On In My Kitchen, Kind Hearted Woman Blues, I Believe I'll Dust My Broom, and Cross Road Blues.
Come on in My Kitchen included the lines:
"The woman I love took from my best friend / Some joker got lucky, stole her back again / You better come on in my kitchen, it's going to be rainin' outdoors."
In Crossroad Blues, another of his songs, he sang:
"I went to the crossroads, fell down on my knees / I went to the crossroads, fell down on my knees / I asked the Lord above, have mercy, save poor Bob if you please / Uumb, standing at the crossroads I tried to flag a ride / Standing at the crossroads I tried to flag a ride / Ain't nobody seem to know me, everybody pass me by."
Stones In My Passway and Me And The Devil are both about betrayal, a recurrent theme in country blues. Hell Hound On My Trail utilises another common theme: fear of the Devil. Other themes in Johnson's music include impotence (Dead Shrimp Blues and Phonograph Blues) and infidelity (Terraplane Blues, If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day and Love in Vain).
The most widely-known legend surrounding Robert Johnson says that he sold his soul to the Devil at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 61 and U.S. Highway 49 in Clarksdale, Mississippi in exchange for prowess in playing the guitar. Actually, the location Johnson made reference to is a short distance away from that intersection. The Faustian legend was told mainly by Son House, but finds no corroboration in any of Johnson's work, despite titles like Me and the Devil Blues and Hellhound on My Trail. With this said, the song Cross Road Blues is both widely and loosely interpreted by many as a descriptive encounter of Johnson selling his soul.
The older Tommy Johnson (no relation, although it is speculated that they were cousins), by contrast, also claimed to have sold his soul to the Devil. The story goes that if one would go to the crossroads a little before midnight and begin to play the guitar, a large black man would come up to the aspiring guitarist, retune his guitar and then hand it back. At this point (so the legend goes) the guitarist had sold his soul to become a virtuoso (A similar legend even surrounded virtuoso violinist NiccolĂČ Paganini a century before.
His death remains a matter of controversy. Some accounts state that he was given poisoned whiskey at a dance by the husband of a woman he had been secretly seeing. Others claim that it was just The Devil collecting his debt after the old legend of Robert Johnson dealing with the devil.
However, the latest, and unfortunately less dramatic and more plausible theory (published by David Connell in the British Medical Journal) is that Robert Johnson suffered from Marfan's Syndrome. Marfan's is a genetic disorder characterized by disproportionately long limbs, long thin fingers, a tall stature â all of which can be seen in the two photos that exist of Robert Johnson. Marfan's Syndrome is a cause of heart defects, and a complication such as an aortic dissection could lead to Robert Johnson's excruciatingly painful death.
Eleven 78s were released on the Vocalion label during his lifetime, with a twelfth issued posthumously. All songs are copyrighted to Robert Johnson, and his estate.
The Complete Recordings: A double-disc box set was released on August 28, 1990, containing almost everything Robert Johnson ever recorded, with all 29 recordings, and 12 alternate takes. (There is one further alternate, of
Traveling Riverside Blues which was released on Sony's King of the Delta Blues Singers CD and also as an extra in early printings of the paperback edition of Elijah Wald's "Escaping the Delta."
Grammy Awards:
1990 â Best Historical Album The Complete Recordings (Sony/Columbia) Legacy Winner
Grammy Hall of Fame:
1998 â Cross Road Blues (Single) (1936, Vocalion)
National Recording Registry:
The Complete Recordings of Robert Johnson (1936-1937) was included by the National Recording Preservation Board in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2003.
The board selects songs in an annual basis that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame included four songs by Robert Johnson in the 500 songs that shaped rock and roll:
Sweet Home Chicago (1936),
Cross Road Blues (1936),
Hellhound on My Trail (1937),
Love in Vain (1937)
The Blues Foundation Awards:
Robert Johnson: Blues Music Awards
1991 Vintage or Reissue Album The Complete Recordings Winner
Honors and inductions
On September 17, 1994 the U.S. Post Office issues a Robert Johnson 29-cent commemorative postage stamp.
2006 â Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award Winner accepted by son Claud Johnson
2000 â Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame Inducted
1986 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inducted Early Influences
1980 â Blues Hall of Fame Inducted
He was also ranked fifth in Rolling Stone's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.
Considered by some to be the "Grandfather of Rock 'n' Roll", his vocal phrasing, original songs, and guitar style have influenced a broad range of musicians, including Muddy Waters, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Johnny Winter, Jeff Beck, and Eric Clapton.
2. Robert Johnson (c.1580-c.1634) was an English lutenist and composer of the late Tudorian and early Jacobean eras. He was the son of John Johnson.
3. Memphis-based Robert Johnson has been recording since the early '70s. Some early appearances were on recordings by the Hot Dogs, a band that featured Jack Holder and Greg Reding, later to cross the Mississippi River and become members of the raunchy hard-rocking Black Oak Arkansas.
By the late '70s, Johnson had recorded a single with the Bell Heirs and had established a somewhat regular playing relationship with a rhythm section featuring bassist Dave Cochran and drummer Blair Cunningham. The Infinity label released the premier Johnson effort as a leader, an album entitled Close Personal Friend, yet a collection entitled The Memphis Demos, which came out the following year, is considered to be a much better representation of his work, not the first time a musician's more casual performances beat out a supposedly more serious album project.
4) Robert Johnson was a former drummer for KC and the Sunshine Band
If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day
Robert Johnson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I had possession, over judgment day
Lord, the little woman I'm lovin' wouldn't, have no right to pray
And I went to the mountain, lookin' as far as my eyes could see
And I went to the mountain, lookin' as far as my eyes would see
Some other man got my woman, and these lonesome blues got me
And I rolled and I tumbled and I, cried the whole night long
Boy, I woke up this mornin', my biscuit roller gone
Had to fold my arms and I, slowly walked away
(spoken: I didn't like the way she done)
Had to fold my arms and I, slowly walked away
I said in my mind, "Yo' trouble gon' come some day one"
Now run here, baby, set down on my knee
Now run here, baby, set down on my knee
I wanna tell you all about the way they treated me
The lyrics to Robert Johnson's song "If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day" are layered with meaning and themes of heartbreak, revenge, and despair. The song is steeped in the folklore of African-American blues culture and is a testament to Johnson's early and influential contribution to the genre. The song opens with Johnson wishing for power over judgement day, indicating that he has been wronged by someone, and he seeks retribution. He believes that if he had control over judgement day, he would prevent the woman he loves from praying, as he considers her actions hypocritical.
As the song progresses, Johnson describes his journey to the mountain, where he hoped to find solace and answers as he looks out to the vast horizon. However, he discovers that someone else has taken his lover, leaving him alone and full of sorrow. Johnson's fear of losing his loved one is palpable, and he cries out in pain as he recounts his experience of rolling and tumbling in despair, feeling a profound sense of loss.
The song concludes with Johnson recalling the infamous incident where his lover betrayed him by stealing his biscuit roller, a symbol of their shared love and life together. Johnson admits that he had to walk slowly away, indicating his desire for the woman he loves, but is aware of the trouble that will come her way eventually. In total, the lyrics of "If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day" form a narrative of betrayal, loss, and heartbreak that has a profound impact on anyone who listens to Johnson's powerful voice.
Line by Line Meaning
If I had possession, over judgment day
If I had control over my fate and the consequences of my actions
Lord, the little woman I'm lovin' wouldn't, have no right to pray
If I had such control, I wouldn't worry about the prayers or opinions of the woman I love
And I went to the mountain, lookin' as far as my eyes could see
I searched high and low for my woman
Some other man got my woman, and these lonesome blues got me
I am heartbroken and lonely because another man has stolen my woman
And I rolled and I tumbled and I, cried the whole night long
I suffered and wept throughout the night with no relief
Boy, I woke up this mornin', my biscuit roller gone
I woke up to find that the one thing that brings me comfort and joy is missing
Had to fold my arms and I, slowly walked away
I had to accept the situation and leave it behind, regardless of how much it hurt me
I said in my mind, "Yo' trouble gon' come some day one"
I know that eventually the person who hurt me will have their own troubles and face consequences
Now run here, baby, set down on my knee
Come sit with me and listen to what I have to say
I wanna tell you all about the way they treated me
I want to share my struggles and how I was mistreated with you
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: ROBERT JOHNSON, WOODY PAYNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@undertaker9336
If I had possession over Judgement Day
If I had possession over Judgment Day
Lord, the little woman I'm lovin' wouldn't have no right to pray
And I went to the mountain lookin' far as my eyes could see
And I went to the mountain lookin' far as my eyes could see
Some other man got my woman and the lonesome blues got me
And I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
And I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
Boy, I woke up this mornin' my biscuit roller gone
Had to fold my arms and I slowly walked away
I didn't like the way she'd run
Had to fold my arms and I slowly walked away
I said in my mind, "You're trouble gone come someday"
Now run here, baby set down on my knee
Now run here, baby set down on my knee
I wanna tell you all about the way they treated me
@tyezillaOG
I love my culture and all the contributions that helped shape this great country.... which still stands today
@undertaker9336
If I had possession over Judgement Day
If I had possession over Judgment Day
Lord, the little woman I'm lovin' wouldn't have no right to pray
And I went to the mountain lookin' far as my eyes could see
And I went to the mountain lookin' far as my eyes could see
Some other man got my woman and the lonesome blues got me
And I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
And I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
Boy, I woke up this mornin' my biscuit roller gone
Had to fold my arms and I slowly walked away
I didn't like the way she'd run
Had to fold my arms and I slowly walked away
I said in my mind, "You're trouble gone come someday"
Now run here, baby set down on my knee
Now run here, baby set down on my knee
I wanna tell you all about the way they treated me
@shagadelic4210
Hahaha I love how he mentions the biscuit roller just because nobody really rolls their biscuits anymore ya just pop em in the oven if they're those ready to go store onesđ really captures differences in our times just in less than a hundred years, crazy.
@kaecake9575
"My biscuit roller gone"
I felt that
@vigadotibrand1677
â@@shagadelic4210he's talking about his woman lol
@shagadelic4210
Obviously lmao, The comment was about the specific antique item used for the metaphorđ
@musfutmuj
This song hits me dude...really hits me.
@Streetwalker216
Likewise!!! It's even more powerful slowed down.
@shagadelic4210
Great taste brođ€his guitar work is ALWAYS just so sexy!! and the vocals are so surprisingly amazing too when ya first catch it but it makes ya wish he lived longer so that audio recording technology could do his work justice huhđ€đ
@rojkoffs
The only possession is Love