Drummer Smokey Johnson was one of the great unsung figures of New Orleans R&B — a powerful, swinging player who worked as a session musician at Cosimo Matassa's studio, played with nearly every significant artist in the city, and left behind recordings that document a master of the New Orleans groove.
Biography
Johnson was born Charles Johnson in New Orleans in 1935 and developed into one of the city's most sought-after session drummers, playing on records by Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, and dozens of others. His own recording 'It Ain't My Fault,' released on Nola Records in 1964, became a New Orleans classic — a showcase for his powerful, loose-limbed playing that captured everything great about the city's rhythmic tradition. He continued performing in New Orleans clubs for decades, a reliable and deeply musical presence on the city's scene, until his death in 2015.
Discography
More New Orleans Artists
