Sammy Reginald Johns (February 7, 1946 – January 4, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter known for his 1975 hit song " Chevy Van", which was originally released in 1973. The song was

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gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

on May 5, 1975.

Career

Johns was born in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

. Johns' father gave him a guitar when he was nine, and he founded his first band (the Devilles) in his teenage years. The group performed locally and made a few records for Dixie Records. Johns moved to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, where he signed with General Recording in 1973. His first solo recording was "Early Morning Love" (1973). "Chevy Van" (1975) reached No. 5 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100

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and remained on the chart for 17 weeks. The song had been recorded in 1973, but was initially shelved and only released after 18 months with the album. The song sold three million copies, and is credited for an increase in van sales the following year. In Canada, the song reached No. 7 on the

RPM Magazine ''RPM'' ( and later ) was a Canadian music-industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. ''RP ...

charts. The song and an album led to a contract with

Warner Curb Records Warner Curb Records was a joint venture between Warner Bros. Records and producer Mike Curb to release his productions. The label was active between 1972 and 1983. In 1983, it folded into Curb Records. See also *List of record labels File:Alvi ...

to produce a

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

for the 1977 film '' The Van'' at the height of the

Vansploitation Vansploitation is a term and film genre used to describe American independent films from the 1970s, in which a van or vans are the main key element to the plot, and feature comedic stories about young adults. History The short-lived genre emerg ...

genre. In an interview with WBT radio personality Keith Larson, Johns was paraphrased as saying ''"''the song wasn't about a specific woman he met – but a compilation of events''."'' Johns switched to

Elektra Electra, also spelt Elektra, was a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra in Greek mythology. Electra or Elektra may also refer to: Animals * ''Electra'' (bryozoan), a genus of aquatic invertebrates * ''Elektra'' (bug), a genus of insects in the ...

, where he issued singles such as " Common Man" and "Love Me off the Road". In his later career, he was mainly known as a composer rather than as a performer, as many covered versions of his songs became successful.

John Conlee John Wayne Conlee (born August 11, 1946) is an American country music singer. Between 1978 and 2004, Conlee charted a total of 32 singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, and recorded 11 studio albums. His singles include seven ...

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "Common Man" reached number 1. Conlee made the song his theme song. Johns' songs have also been covered by

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

Sammy Kershaw Samuel Paul Cashat (born February 24, 1958), known professionally as Sammy Kershaw, is an American country music singer. He has released 16 studio albums, with three RIAA platinum certifications and two gold certifications among them. More than 2 ...

Conway Twitty Harold Lloyd Jenkins (September 1, 1933 – June 5, 1993), better known by his stage name Conway Twitty, was an American singer and songwriter. Initially a part of the 1950s rockabilly scene, Twitty was best known as a country music performer. ...

(his final Billboard No. 1, " Desperado Love") and

Fu Manchu Dr. Fu Manchu ( zh, t=傅滿洲/福滿洲, p=Fú Mǎnzhōu) is a supervillain who was introduced in a series of novels by the English author Sax Rohmer beginning shortly before World War I and continuing for another forty years. The character f ...

. After Jennings sang Johns' song "America" at a celebration of the restoration of the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of French Thir ...

in 1985, the single was nominated for country song of the year.

Death

Johns died on January 4, 2013, at Gaston Memorial Hospital in Gastonia, North Carolina, at the age of 66.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Notes

Quotes

References

External links

Interview with Sammy Johns
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johns, Sammy 1946 births 2013 deaths American male singer-songwriters American country singer-songwriters Writers from Charlotte, North Carolina Musicians from Charlotte, North Carolina Country musicians from North Carolina Singer-songwriters from North Carolina