Get ready for a musical revelation! Bob Weir, the legendary guitarist, has a surprising favorite musician to play with, and it's a story that will make you rethink rock and roll's origins.
In a 2016 interview with Sammy Hagar on Rock & Roll Road Show, Weir revealed his most enjoyable musical collaboration outside of The Grateful Dead. And here's where it gets interesting: it wasn't with a fellow guitar hero, but with a piano player, Johnnie Johnson.
Johnson, best known as Chuck Berry's longtime piano player, taught Weir and his band RatDog a valuable lesson in the late 1990s. Weir explained, "Johnny taught us how to play real rock and roll." But here's the controversial part: Weir claimed he didn't truly understand rock and roll until then.
Johnson's unique style, a combination of shuffle and straight rhythms, created a tension with Berry's straight guitar playing, resulting in the authentic rock and roll sound. This musical innovation, often attributed solely to Berry, was actually pioneered by Johnson.
And this is the part most people miss: Johnson's influence extended beyond Berry. He played on most of Berry's classic songs and even inspired Berry's signature song, "Johnny B. Goode." Johnson's legacy continued into the late 1980s when he was invited by Keith Richards to perform at Berry's 60th birthday concert, which led to his own solo album and induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
So, why did Weir choose Johnson as his favorite? Because, as Weir put it, "Johnnie was the guy who invented that [shuffle rhythm], and then Little Richard picked up on it."
What do you think? Is Johnnie Johnson the unsung hero of rock and roll? Should his contributions be more widely recognized? Let us know in the comments!
