Tom Johnston

Tom Johnston

Johnston is most well known for both his lead guitar and vocal role in the band The Doobie Brothers, as well as for his adaptation of his own acoustic guitar style, blending a unique strum and percussive accented rhythm at the same time on one instrument. This style, interwoven with melodic hammer-ons (Example Early Johnston Riff and Vocal) gave Johnston an early signature sound inside of popular 1970's rock music. All the rhythm structures behind "Long Train Runnin'" and "Listen to the Music" were formulated first for an acoustic guitar, and then re-applied in similar style on an electric guitar.

Johnston was born in Visalia, California. His favorite music as he grew up included Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Elvis Presley, James Brown, and other rhythm and blues artists featured on the radio in the 1950s. After brief school stints with the saxophone and clarinet, at the age of twelve Johnston took up guitar. Following the blues and rhythm styling of Freddie King, Jimmy Reed and Chuck Berry, he had formed his first band by age fourteen. Johnston recounted to Vintage Guitar Magazine that he was a "huge James Brown fan – still am. I saw him in 1962, after "Live at the Apollo" came out, and it was a life-altering experience."[2] In his early career he played in a variety of bands, including a Mexican wedding band that played half soul and half Latin music. His interest in rhythm and blues led to his singing in a soul group from a neighboring town and, eventually, his own blues band.

Johnston moved to San Jose to finish college and started playing in bands around town. It was there that he met Skip Spence, a former drummer with Jefferson Airplane, and founding member of a group that had a major influence on the Doobie Brothers - Moby Grape. Spence introduced Johnston to John Hartman. Johnston was a graphic design art major at San Jose State and wound up living at 285 South 12th Street, which was a musical center for San Jose at the time. "It didn’t matter if they played B-3 or drums, guitar, bass, or horns, they all ended up in our basement" Johnston recalls. Johnston and Hartman soon formed their own band, Pud, featuring Greg Murphy on bass. Pud played many clubs in and around San Jose, including the Golden Horn Lounge in Cupertino, California, (which no longer exists). John Hartman and Johnston lived in the 12th Street house for about four years; whereupon once Dave Shogren joined them to replace Greg Murphy and Pat Simmons was recruited, they had the nucleus of a new band, and Pud gave way to the Doobie Brothers.

Throughout much of an initial seven-year and six-album discography, Johnston wrote and sang many of The Doobie Brothers' early hits, including "Listen to the Music" (#11 Top 100 Billboard Hit -1972), "Jesus Is Just Alright" (written by Arthur Reynolds and covered by the Byrds)(#35 Billboard Top 100 Hit -1973), "Rockin' Down the Highway," "China Grove" (#15 Billboard Hot 100 Hit), "Long Train Runnin'" (#8 Billboard Hot 100 Hit), "Another Park, Another Sunday” (#32 Billboard Hot 100 Hit), and "Eyes of Silver" (#52 Billboard Hot 100 Hit). He also sang the hit song "Take Me in Your Arms" (#11 Billboard Hot 100 Hit -1975) (written by Holland-Dozier-Holland)