Ollie "Dink" Johnson (1892 – November 29, 1954) was an American

Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

pianist, clarinetist, and drummer.

Background

Johnson was born in 1892, most likely in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, although the date is disputed and some sources have cited the place of birth as

Biloxi, Mississippi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It lies on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi, bordering the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfport to its west. The adjacent cities ar ...

. His mother, Hattie, was unmarried and his father's name is unknown. His elder half-brother was

double bassist The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched chordophone in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions such as the octobass). It has ...

William Manuel "Bill" Johnson. He worked around Mississippi and New Orleans before moving to the western United States in the early 1910s. He played around Nevada and California, often with his brother Bill. He played with the Original Creole Orchestra, mostly on drums. Johnson made his first recordings in 1922 on clarinet with

Kid Ory Edward "Kid" Ory (December 25, 1886 – January 23, 1973) was an American jazz composer, Trombone, trombonist and bandleader. One of the early users of the glissando technique, he helped establish it as a central element of Music of New Orle ...

's Band. He made more recordings in the 1940s and 1950s, mostly on piano, although also doing some one-man band recordings, playing all three of his instruments through over dubbing. Johnson's piano style was influenced by

Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe ( Lemott, later Morton; c. September 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American blues and jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer of Louisiana Creole descent. Morton was jazz ...

(the common-law husband of Johnson's half-sister, Bessie, known as Anita Gonzales). Dink's clarinet playing was influenced by Larry Shields. Johnson wrote tunes, including "The Krooked Blues" (recorded by

King Oliver Joseph Nathan "King" Oliver (December 19, 1881 – April 10, 1938) was an American jazz cornet player and bandleader. He was particularly recognized for his playing style and his pioneering use of mutes in jazz. Also a notable composer, he wro ...

) and "So Different Blues".

Allmusic biography AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

Accessed November 10, 2022. Johnson died in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

in 1954, aged 62.

References

1892 births 1954 deaths Date of birth unknown African-American pianists American male jazz pianists American jazz clarinetists American jazz drummers American jazz pianists Dixieland clarinetists Dixieland drummers Dixieland pianists 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists 20th-century African-American musicians {{US-clarinetist-stub