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 1936–1937 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 Niccolò 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 — 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 — Best Historical Album The Complete Recordings (Sony/Columbia) Legacy Winner
Grammy Hall of Fame:
1998 — 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 — Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award Winner accepted by son Claud Johnson
2000 — Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame Inducted
1986 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inducted Early Influences
1980 — 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
Love in Vain
Robert Johnson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I followed her to the station, with a suitcase in my hand
Well, it's hard to tell, it's hard to tell, when all your love's in vain
All my love's in vain
When the train rolled up to the station, I looked her in the eye
When the train rolled up to the station, and I looked her in the eye
Well, I was lonesome, I felt so lonesome, and I could not help but cry
When the train, it left the station, with two lights on behind
When the train, it left the station, with two lights on behind
Well, the blue light was my blues, and the red light was my mind
All my love's in vain
Hoo-hoo, ooh, Willie Mae
Oh oh hey, hoo, Willie Mae
Hoo-hoo, ooh, eeh, oh woe
All my love's in vain
The lyrics to Robert Johnson's "Love in Vain" tell the story of a man who has lost the love of his life. He follows her to the train station, suitcase in hand, but knows that all his love is in vain. As the train rolls up, he looks her in the eye and can't help but cry, overcome by his loneliness. The train leaves with two lights on behind, and the blue light represents his blues while the red light represents his mind. The final lines of the song are a mournful call out to Willie Mae, a woman who is likely a symbol for the singer's lost love, as he admits that all his love is in vain.
The use of the train station as a setting adds layers of meaning to the song. The train represents movement and change, highlighting the theme of loss and the inability of the singer to stop it. The fact that he has a suitcase in his hand suggests that he may have been hoping that his love would somehow be reignited or that he could convince her to stay, but ultimately he is left with nothing. The repetition of the line "all my love's in vain" highlights the emotional depth of the singer's pain and regret.
Overall, "Love in Vain" is a hauntingly beautiful song that captures the essence of heartbreak and loss. With its melancholic melody and lyrics that read like poetry, it's no surprise that the song has become a classic in the blues canon.
Line by Line Meaning
I followed her to the station, with a suitcase in my hand
I chased after her to the train station, my belongings in my hand
Well, it's hard to tell, it's hard to tell, when all your love's in vain
It's difficult to determine what it means when love is unrequited
When the train rolled up to the station, I looked her in the eye
I gazed into her eyes as the train arrived
Well, I was lonesome, I felt so lonesome, and I could not help but cry
I felt miserable and couldn't hold back my tears
When the train, it left the station, with two lights on behind
As the train departed, two lights glowed in the background
Well, the blue light was my blues, and the red light was my mind
The blue light represented my sadness, while the red light symbolized my troubled thoughts
Hoo-hoo, ooh, Willie Mae
A mournful cry of despair
Oh oh hey, hoo, Willie Mae
Another lament for lost love
Hoo-hoo, ooh, eeh, oh woe
An additional expression of sorrow
All my love's in vain
My affection went unrecognized and unreciprocated
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: Robert Leroy Johnson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@BrianCarnevaleB26
Get over the pain and take back your power! !send her down the road, Son!!
BECAUSE, at there end of the day you really need a woman like you need a "hole in the head!
Take back your power
Take care of your own business
Don't cater to them, don't appease them because, at the end of the day, you are your 'own man!"
Today's woman WILL PLAY YOU LIKE AN OLD FIDDLE! (tell me I am wrong)
Getcha a loyal loving DOG instead!
@user-js6el7vn2r
"Love In Vain"
And I followed her to the station
With a suitcase in my hand
And I followed her to the station
With a suitcase in my hand
Well, it's hard to tell, it's hard to tell
When all your love's in vain
All my love's in vain
When the train rolled up to the station
I looked her in the eye
When the train rolled up to the station
And I looked her in the eye
Well, I was lonesome, I felt so lonesome
And I could not help but cry
All my love's in vain
When the train, it left the station
With two lights on behind
When the train, it left the station
With two lights on behind
Well, the blue light was my blues
And the red light was my mind
All my love's in vain
Ou hou ou ou ou
Hoo, Willie Mae
Oh oh oh oh oh hey
Hoo, Willie Mae
Ou ou ou ou ou ou hee vee oh woe
All my love's in vain
@larryc3860
for us blues junkies this is one of those "Holy Grail" performances of all time
@davebrokenshire1086
True!
@martinvanburen4578
it seems ok, to be honest, i prefer the rolling stones version which is more bluesy.....this seems almost quaint even though the lyrics are bleak
@larryc3860
@@martinvanburen4578 We all have our favorites, of course.......I think it's important to remember the Blues legends of the 1920's-1940's, including Johnson (R.I.P.), were mostly from rural areas......"Delta" Blues are traditionally simpler ('quaint'), played on acoustic instruments through microphones, not modern electric guitars......also, Rock and Roll and "electric" Blues were years in their future.......thanks for your comment ! ✌
@MisterNatale
The Blues: 20% chords, 80% pure magic soul
@benjaminrobinson5552
It's all in the chords, you're only limited by your imagination.
@cinnamonsinner4619
@@benjaminrobinson5552 well youre both right
@stavrospgr2009
100% black magic produced by the meeting with the devil :)
@jamiecamarillo1995
Beautiful
@simo9272
@SoftserveSodium selling your soul to the devil is just a metaphor grow up y'all