Johnny Otis

This week, the "Juke In The Back" is proud to honor the late, great Johnny
Otis, who passed away at the age of 90 on January 17, 2012.  Johnny Otis was
a true renaissance man.  He was a singer, songwriter, drummer, bandleader,
talent scout, record label owner and radio / TV show host and that's not
everything he did.  He was the son of Greek immigrants, growing up in a
mostly Black section of Vallejo, CA during the 1920s and '30s.  He not only
absorbed Black Culture, he became a part of it, changing his last name to
Otis in order to sound more Black.  He went from playing drums at the Club
Alabam on Central Ave. in LA to opening his own Barrelhouse Club in Watts in
1947, creating a scene of his own.  His first records were made just as the
big bands were dying off and the jump combos were rising.  Johnny Otis did
not interpret rhythm and blues, Johnny Otis WAS rhythm & blues.  From his
first recordings for Leon Rene's Excelsior Label in 1945 to his commercial
breakthrough in 1949-50 for Herman Lubinsky's Savoy Label to his great rock
n' roll success with "Willie And The Hand Jive" for Capitol in 1958, Johnny
Otis did more than almost anyone to push Black Music into the mainstream,
creating rock n' roll.  "Juke In The Back" highlights the early part of
Otis' amazing career from 1945-1958.  It's not an overstatement to say that
the music we enjoy today is here because of what Johnny Otis recorded,
played and produced in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  This "Juke" is truly
The Johnny Otis Show.

Johnny Otis

This week, the "Juke In The Back" is proud to honor the late, great Johnny
Otis, who passed away at the age of 90 on January 17, 2012.  Johnny Otis was
a true renaissance man.  He was a singer, songwriter, drummer, bandleader,
talent scout, record label owner and radio / TV show host and that's not
everything he did.  He was the son of Greek immigrants, growing up in a
mostly Black section of Vallejo, CA during the 1920s and '30s.  He not only
absorbed Black Culture, he became a part of it, changing his last name to
Otis in order to sound more Black.  He went from playing drums at the Club
Alabam on Central Ave. in LA to opening his own Barrelhouse Club in Watts in
1947, creating a scene of his own.  His first records were made just as the
big bands were dying off and the jump combos were rising.  Johnny Otis did
not interpret rhythm and blues, Johnny Otis WAS rhythm & blues.  From his
first recordings for Leon Rene's Excelsior Label in 1945 to his commercial
breakthrough in 1949-50 for Herman Lubinsky's Savoy Label to his great rock
n' roll success with "Willie And The Hand Jive" for Capitol in 1958, Johnny
Otis did more than almost anyone to push Black Music into the mainstream,
creating rock n' roll.  "Juke In The Back" highlights the early part of
Otis' amazing career from 1945-1958.  It's not an overstatement to say that
the music we enjoy today is here because of what Johnny Otis recorded,
played and produced in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  This "Juke" is truly
The Johnny Otis Show.