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Johnny Shines Shouldn’t Be Mistaken For A Robert Johnson Clone

Johnny Shines has been misjudged by many as a mere imitation of Robert Johnson, but I don't hear it that way. I think it is easy to make out the originality of Shines in most all of his music and especially in his slide guitar work.

John Ned "Johnny" Shines was born in Frayser, Tennessee, near Memphis in 1915 and was moved into the city at age 6. He learned guitar from his mother and was soon earning a living with it, mostly on the streets. Early inspirations included Charlie Patton, Lonnie Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson.

The streets of Memphis were a tough go and Shines gave up and moved to Arkansas, spending three years there working as a farm hand.

Shines first met Robert Johnson in 1934. Later in 1935, he started traveling and working with Johnson and Robert Jr. Lockwood, finding gigs where ever they could through the South and even as far afield as Windsor, Ontario.

In 1941, Johnny Shines planned a trip that was to take him to Chicago briefly to see family but he found a fair amount of work and stayed there, recording his first sides there in 1946. Associations with several different labels resulted in a number of recordings, but few were released and it was live performance that mainly paid his bills. It wasn't until 1952 and 1953 that he did some very powerful recordings with Blues harp player Big Walter Horton that caused a stir.

Not enamored with the business side of music, Shines quit playing in 1958 and worked in construction. That might have been the end, except for the Blues revival of the 1960s resulted in Shines being sought out mid-decade. This time around the public was far more receptive and his relationship with Robert Johnson led many young fans to be interested in him.

Through the 1970s and 1980s Johnny Shines recorded a number of times, toured with a number of top artists and became a common feature in clubs and festivals until his health declined. He passed way in 1992, shortly after receiving a W. C. Handy award for the album Back to the Country that he did with Snooky Pryor, who he had first teamed with in the early 1950s.

Johnny Shines deserves to be celebrated for his powerful slide guitar style and songwriting and not just for being a link to that other great slide and Delta guitar player.

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