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EspañolCALVIN JOHNSON (MUSICIAN)
:''For the American football wide receiver, see Calvin Johnson (football player).''
'Calvin Johnson' (born November 1, 1962) is a guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, music producer, and disc jockey born in Olympia, Washington. Known for his uniquely deep, droning singing voice, Johnson was a founding member of the bands Cool Rays, Beat Happening, The Go Team, Dub Narcotic Sound System, and The Halo Benders.
Calvin Johnson is also the founder and owner of the influential indie label K Records, and has been cited as a major player in the beginning of the modern independent music movement.[1] As a prominent figure in the Olympia music scene, he was one of the major organizers of the seminal International Pop Underground Festival.
Calvin's first introduction to underground culture was in 1977 when he became a volunteer at Olympia's community radio station, KAOS-FM, at the age of fifteen. The station's uniquely progressive programming policy mandated a focus on music available through independent and artist owned labels, rather than centralized corporate media. This independent, do-it-yourself ethos has been an important influence on Johnson's career. Johnson soon began writing for fanzines, such as Sub/Pop (later to become Sub Pop Records) and Op, and also organized music and film events. Johnson attended the Evergreen State College in Olympia, where his first band, a short-lived group called Cool Rays, made their debut recordings with Steve Fisk in 1981. Calvin established K in the summer of 1982.
His first solo album, ''What Was Me'', is an introspective album about love, loss, and death. While some songs employ simple nylon-string guitar accompaniment, many feature only Johnson's haunting baritone.
His second album, ''Before the Dream Faded...'', is more varied. It includes collaborations with a variety of northwest indie luminaries. The songs cover an odd range of subjects, such as the size and color of hearts, Lucifer, and falling in love.
The most recent album ''Calvin Johnson & The Sons of the Soil'' is a career-spanning collection of re-recorded songs with a band consisting of Kyle Field, Adam Forkner, and Jason Anderson.
Johnson has worked with Modest Mouse, Beck, Heavenly, The Microphones, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Blow, The Gossip and Built to Spill among others. Since founding his Dub Narcotic recording studio in 1993, he has produced and engineered recordings by many bands and artists.
Friends of Kurt Cobain such as Ian Dickson of Earth, Mark Arm of Mudhoney, Bruce Pavitt and Slim Moon have all acknowledged Johnson's significant influence on the late musician. Cobain cited Beat Happening's ''Jamboree'' as one of his favorite records,[2] and even got the K Records logo (a small "K" in a shield) tattooed on his arm to "try and remind [''him''] to stay a child."[3] They were friends in the late 80s/early 90s when Cobain lived in Olympia; he'd been a guest with The Go Team, and on September 25, 1990, Cobain appeared on a KAOS (FM) show hosted by Johnson and performed a number of songs acoustically, including a duet with Johnson on the Wipers song, "D-7."
★ ''What Was Me'' (2002, K Records)
★ ''Before the Dream Faded...'' (2005, K Records)
★ ''Calvin Johnson & The Sons of the Soil'' (2007, K records)
★ KittenPants.org interview
★ Present! interview
'Calvin Johnson' (born November 1, 1962) is a guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, music producer, and disc jockey born in Olympia, Washington. Known for his uniquely deep, droning singing voice, Johnson was a founding member of the bands Cool Rays, Beat Happening, The Go Team, Dub Narcotic Sound System, and The Halo Benders.
Calvin Johnson is also the founder and owner of the influential indie label K Records, and has been cited as a major player in the beginning of the modern independent music movement.[1] As a prominent figure in the Olympia music scene, he was one of the major organizers of the seminal International Pop Underground Festival.
| Contents |
| Biography |
| The Early Years |
| Solo career |
| Relationship with other musicians |
| Solo Discography: |
| References |
| External links |
Biography
The Early Years
Calvin's first introduction to underground culture was in 1977 when he became a volunteer at Olympia's community radio station, KAOS-FM, at the age of fifteen. The station's uniquely progressive programming policy mandated a focus on music available through independent and artist owned labels, rather than centralized corporate media. This independent, do-it-yourself ethos has been an important influence on Johnson's career. Johnson soon began writing for fanzines, such as Sub/Pop (later to become Sub Pop Records) and Op, and also organized music and film events. Johnson attended the Evergreen State College in Olympia, where his first band, a short-lived group called Cool Rays, made their debut recordings with Steve Fisk in 1981. Calvin established K in the summer of 1982.
Solo career
His first solo album, ''What Was Me'', is an introspective album about love, loss, and death. While some songs employ simple nylon-string guitar accompaniment, many feature only Johnson's haunting baritone.
His second album, ''Before the Dream Faded...'', is more varied. It includes collaborations with a variety of northwest indie luminaries. The songs cover an odd range of subjects, such as the size and color of hearts, Lucifer, and falling in love.
The most recent album ''Calvin Johnson & The Sons of the Soil'' is a career-spanning collection of re-recorded songs with a band consisting of Kyle Field, Adam Forkner, and Jason Anderson.
Relationship with other musicians
Johnson has worked with Modest Mouse, Beck, Heavenly, The Microphones, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Blow, The Gossip and Built to Spill among others. Since founding his Dub Narcotic recording studio in 1993, he has produced and engineered recordings by many bands and artists.
Friends of Kurt Cobain such as Ian Dickson of Earth, Mark Arm of Mudhoney, Bruce Pavitt and Slim Moon have all acknowledged Johnson's significant influence on the late musician. Cobain cited Beat Happening's ''Jamboree'' as one of his favorite records,[2] and even got the K Records logo (a small "K" in a shield) tattooed on his arm to "try and remind [''him''] to stay a child."[3] They were friends in the late 80s/early 90s when Cobain lived in Olympia; he'd been a guest with The Go Team, and on September 25, 1990, Cobain appeared on a KAOS (FM) show hosted by Johnson and performed a number of songs acoustically, including a duet with Johnson on the Wipers song, "D-7."
Solo Discography:
★ ''What Was Me'' (2002, K Records)
★ ''Before the Dream Faded...'' (2005, K Records)
★ ''Calvin Johnson & The Sons of the Soil'' (2007, K records)
References
External links
★ KittenPants.org interview
★ Present! interview
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