Louis Johnson, Legendary Bassist, Dead at 60
Published on May 24, 2015, 9:55 am AST
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Bassist Louis Johnson, one half of the duo Brothers Johnson, has died.
Louis Johnson, the bassist who scored a string of hits in the 1970s and 1980s as one-half of the Brothers Johnson, passed away at the age of 60 on Thursday.
The Brothers Johnson got their start with 1976's "Look Out for #1," which lived up to its title by piquing at the top spot on the Billboard R&B chart (and going Top 10 on the pop chart). They were also spinning off the hit singles "Get the Funk Out Ma Face," "Free and Single" and especially "I'll Be Good to You," which went on to become one of the duo's defining songs, hitting No 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the R&B tally.
Other hits followed, including a 1977 cover of Shuggie Otis' "Strawberry Letter 23" and the 1980 single "Stomp", but the Brothers Johnson split just a couple years later to pursue their own individual projects.
They only reunited sporadically over the ensuing years, while both brothers briefly pursed solo recording careers before moving on to session work.
Louis went on to have a successful and prolific career as a highly regarded session musician. His distinctive slap bass technique, which earned him the nickname "Thunder Thumbs," made him an in-demand player for a wide variety of artistes during the early 1980s and put him in the studio to create a number of top-selling albums, which included Herb Alpert's Grammy-winning 1979 smash Rise as well as George Benson's Give Me the Night. His most widely heard performances, however, came through Michael Jackson, who used Johnson on his Off the Wall, Thriller and Dangerous albums.
No cause of death has been reported for Johnson, who just celebrated his 60th birthday in April, but however he left us, it was far too soon. Members of the music industry have been tweeting their thoughts on Johnson. Here are a few captures off Twitter.
Lenny Kravitz @LennyKravitz · 6h 6hours ago.
Thank you for blessing me and the world with your original #funk. RIP #LouisJohnson "Thunder Thumbs" #brothersjohnson.
Bootsy Collins @Bootsy_Collins · 4h 4 hours ago
Another Brick in our music foundation has left the building. "Mr Louis Johnson" (April 13, 1955 - May 21, 2015)...
http://fb.me/45DRMNOUC62 retweets 42 favourites
Questlove Gomez @questlove · 12h 12 hours ago
Jesus Christ Louis Johnson died?! NoNO NO no NO NO!!!!!!!!!!!
Questlove Gomez @questlove · 11h 11 hours ago
#BillieJean #BabyComeToMe #StrawberryLetter23 #100Ways #IKeepForgettin #WillItGoRoundInCircles #HangUpWithYourHangUps #LouisJohnson
#DontStopTilYouGetEnough #GiveMeTheNight #Stomp #BabyComeToMe #PYT #WeAreTheWorld #HowManyMcsMustGetDissed #LouisJohnson.
