James Johnson

James Johnson created one of music’s great guitar
licks. He plays lead in Slim Harpo’s biggest hit,
“Baby Scratch My Back.” The song, which went No. 1 R&B and No. 16 pop in early 1966, features Johnson’s much-imitated “chicken scratch.”

“I started that mess,” the just-turned-66 guitarist said
last week at Main Street Studio. “So many people do it now.”

Slim Harpo, a.k.a. James Moore, Johnson, drummer Sammy K. Brown, bassist August Ransom (Johnson’s brother-in-law)
and percussionist Lazy Lester cut “Baby Scratch My Back” in one take. The song already was a staple in the band’s stage act.

But J.D. Miller — owner of the Crowley recording studio where Slim Harpo, Lightnin’ Slim and others
laid the foundation for Louisiana swamp blues — never was satisfied with “Baby Scratch My Back.”“J.D.,” Johnson recalled, “he always said that we should of had more into it, that he could have
made it sound better and all this. But original is original. A lot of people have tried to do it over
since, but you can’t beat original.”

Johnson is heard in many more Slim Harpo classics, including “Rainin’ In My Heart,” a national anthem
of sorts for south Louisiana that reached the upper ends of the pop and R&B charts in 1961. When the
song was recorded at Miller’s studio, however, it was just another track. 
“Yeah, we didn’t know exactly which one was going to make it,” Johnson, who played bass for that particular session, said. “But Slim hit the right spot at the right time. Got lucky. Because they had better musicians
out there than we were. Joe Tex, Joe Valentine, they had good bands. We just an old blues band, and I
didn’t never think something like that would go that far.”

Johnson also backed Slim Harpo on the novelty number, “Blues Hangover,” the lashing
“Shake Your Hips” (covered by the Rolling Stones), “Got Love If You Want It” (covered by the
Kinks), “Strange Love,” “What A Dream,” “I’m Gonna Miss You (Like The Devil)” and others. 

College gigs throughout the South kept Slim Harpo and his King Bees on the road through
much of the 1960s. The college dates, usually on Saturdays, were followed by Sunday shows
back home.

“Me and Rudy used to be so mad,” Johnson recalled. “Slim would leave 1 and 2 o’clock in the morning
to make it to the gig the next night. And we had to get out of bed, man, and hit the road. That took a toll
on me.”

The most unusual gig Johnson played with Slim Harpo was a 1966 show at New York’s Madison Square
Garden with soul star James Brown. 
“Believe it not, it was just me and Slim and the orchestra,” he said. “I was worried about how
we was going to sound.”

But lugging his Vox amp over New York streets, not performing with an orchestra, proved the toughest
part of the gig.

“I said, ‘Man, Slim, you big time now. Why you ain’t got no valet?’ ‘Aw, you can do it. Come on,
let’s go.’ And he’s gone with his little harmonica case and I’m fussing with this amp and a guitar.”

The two of them rehearsed with the orchestra that afternoon at the Garden.

“You know Slim had his music wrote out,” Johnson said. “He handed them the music. They
played the hell out of it. We did a good show with the orchestra, but I’m just glad we came on
before James Brown. First time I had played with an orchestra. Last time, too.”
Johnson worked with Slim Harpo until shortly before the singer-harmonica player’s death in
1970. But the death of his mother the previous year had already dampened his interest in
music.

“That kind of slowed me down. And then they came out with this disco stuff. So the blues just dropped.
I didn’t play for about 14 years. I just hung myself up.”

Pawn shop guitar
The son of sharecroppers in Pointe Coupe Parish, Johnson bought his first guitar from a
pawnshop on Baton Rouge’s Main Street. He was about 15. His inspiration was a performance
at his high school by the Texas blues singer and guitarist Albert Collins. 
By JOHN WIRT, Music critic     
Published: Apr 21, 2006