Syl Johnson

Syl Johnson (born July 1, 1936) is an American blues and soul singer and record producer.

Born Sylvester Thompson in Holly Springs, Mississippi, he moved with his family to Chicago in 1950, where blues guitarist Magic Sam was his next-door neighbor. Johnson sang and played with blues artists Magic Sam, Billy Boy Arnold, Junior Wells and Howlin' Wolf in the 1950s. He recorded with Jimmy Reed for Vee-Jay in 1959. He made his solo debut that same year with Federal, a subsidiary of King Records of Cincinnati, backed by Freddie King on guitar.

Johnson began recording for Twinight Records of Chicago in the mid-1960s. Beginning with his first hit, "Come On Sock It to Me", in 1967, he dominated the label as both a hit-maker and a producer. His song "Different Strokes", also from 1967, is included on the breakbeat compilation album Ultimate Breaks and Beats.

Like other black songwriters of the period, he wrote songs at this time exploring themes of African-American identity and social problems, such as "Is It Because I'm Black", which reached number 11 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1969.

In 1971, the producer Willie Mitchell brought Johnson to Hi Records, for which the two recorded three albums, which generated a number of singles. Produced in Memphis with the Hi house band, these albums contained the hits "We Did It", "Back for a Taste of Your Love" and "Take Me to the River", his biggest success, reaching number 7 on the R&B chart in 1975. However, at Hi Records, Johnson was always to some extent in the shadow of Al Green, commercially if not artistically. Mitchell also chose to use mainly in-house compositions rather than Johnson's original songs.

After his years with Hi ended, Johnson produced two LPs for his own Shama label, the second of which (Ms. Fine Brown Frame, 1982) was picked up for distribution by Boardwalk Records. The title track of that album was Johnson's last hit record.

Around the mid-1980s, Johnson started a fast-food fish restaurant and mostly retired from performing, making only occasional appearances at blues clubs.

In 1992, Johnson found out that his song "Different Strokes" had been sampled by several rappers, including Wu-Tang Clan, Public Enemy, Kool G Rap, Hammer, and the Geto Boys. This stimulated his interest in making comeback in the music industry. He recorded the album Back in the Game, released by Delmark Records in 1994, which featured the Hi rhythm section and his youngest daughter, Syleena Johnson.

Johnson has been one of the most sampled artists, largely from "Different Strokes" and "Is It Because I'm Black". He feels passionately that taking music from an original artist without proper compensation constitutes theft and has sued other artists for copyright infringement.

He is a brother of the blues guitarist and singer Jimmy Johnson and the bassist Mack Thompson.

Johnson appeared in an episode of the TV One reality series R&B Divas: Atlanta, in which he offers advice and encouragement to his daughter Syleena before she gives a live performances.

Albums

Singles and EPs

Compilations

• 2000: The Complete Syl Johnson on Hi Records (Demon, UK)
• 2010: Syl Johnson: Complete Mythology (Numero Group)
• 2012: Backbeats Artists Series: Syl Johnson: Mississippi Mainman (Backbeats)

Chart singles

The 2015 documentary Any Way the Wind Blows, directed by Rob Hatch-Miller, premiered at the Chicago International Film Festival. It takes its inspiration from events in the life of this mostly forgotten soul singer from the 1970s seeking a second attempt at a career. While his records were being sampled by artists from Wu Tang Clan to Kid Rock to Jay-Z and Kanye West, Johnson often found himself with no credit and no money.