Johnny Jenkins RIP

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Johnny Jenkins, left-handed guitar ace, close friend of Otis Redding, and inspiration to Jimi Hendrix died on the 30th of June. 

Obit, from bluebytes :


"Jenkins' band, the Pinetoppers, was the stuff of local legend during the late 50s and early 60s and featured a young Otis Redding as lead vocalist. Otis, who was also serving as Johnny's valet, recorded his first hit, "These Arms of Mine" (with Jenkins on guitar), using the remainder of a Jenkins session for Stax Records in 1962.

Stax first envisioned Redding and Jenkins as a duo (Otis on vocals, Johnny on guitar), but Jenkins declined, ironically, because he didn't like air travel.Jenkins' guitar work and showmanship also left a lasting impression on a young Jimi Hendrix, who caught his act while visiting relatives in the Macon area.

In 1970, Jenkins recorded Ton Ton Macoute, accompanied by assorted members of the Allman Brothers (some of the tracks were originally intended for a Duane Allman solo effort). It received rave reviews, but Capricorn was shifting it's focus to the suddenly successful Allmans. Jenkins recorded another album in 1975 which was never released and, frustrated by the music business, he returned to Macon to be with his family. In 1996, Jenkins resurfaced to record Blessed Blues on the newly reformed Capricorn label. This effort, more blues-based than his first, was nominated for a Handy Award. Several other albums followed."

I Walk on Gilded Splinters, his dark voodoo funk from the afore-mentioned Ton Ton Macoute features the heavy slide guitar from a young Duane Allman, and is his masterpiece. Memorably covered by Paul Weller, and sampled for Beck's breakout hit "Loser". RIP