Reginald Volney Johnson (December 13, 1940 – September 11, 2020) was an American jazz double-bassist.

Johnson in Hungary

Johnson was born in Owensboro, Kentucky. After playing trombone with school orchestras and army bands, he switched to double bass, and started working with musicians such as Bill Barron and recording with Archie Shepp in the mid-1960s, before joining Art Blakey's band for a month-long residency at the Five Spot Café in December 1965, and then going on to The Lighthouse nightclub in Hermosa Beach, California, where they recorded the live album, Buttercorn Lady, at the beginning of 1966,[1] with a line-up, comprising Blakey, Frank Mitchell, Chuck Mangione, Keith Jarrett, and Johnson.[2][3]

He has also played and/or recorded with Bill Dixon, Sun Ra, and Burton Greene, Lonnie Liston Smith,[3] Stanley Cowell,[4] Bobby Hutcherson, Harold Land, Blue Mitchell, Walter Bishop Jr.,[5] Sonny Rollins, Sonny Stitt, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Art Pepper, Kenny Burrell, Clark Terry, The Crusaders, Johnny Coles, and Frank Wess.

In the mid-1980s he moved to Europe, where he has worked with Johnny Griffin, Horace Parlan, Monty Alexander, Kenny Barron, Tom Harrell,[6] Phil Woods, Cedar Walton, Alvin Queen, Jesse Davis, Freddie Redd and Clark Terry.[7]

Reggie Johnson reportedly died in Bern, Switzerland on Sept. 11, 2020. Two sources for his death include: https://www.jazzinstitut.de/jazznews/?lang=en and https://www.derbund.ch/der-jazz-gigant-der-bern-beehrte-924411489586

Discography

As leader/co-leader
  • 1985: First Edition – JR Records
As sideman

References

  1. Keith Jarrett's official website Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  2. McMillan, Jeffery S. (2008) DelightfuLee: The Life and Music of Lee Morgan, pp. 168–184. University of Michigan Press At Google Books. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Chronology of Art Blakey (and the Jazz Messengers)" Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  4. Davis, John S. (2012) Historical Dictionary of Jazz, p. 192. Scarecrow Press. At Google Books. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  5. Bogdanov, Vladimir et al. (2002) All Music Guide to Jazz: The Definitive Guide to Jazz Music, p. 111. Backbeat Books. At Google Books. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  6. The Penguin Jazz Guide: The History of the Music in the 1000 Best Albums. Morton, Brian and Richard Cook (2010). Penguin UK. At Google Books. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  7. Biography International Jazz Productions. Retrieved August 9, 2013.

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