Robert Leroy Johnson (Might 8, 1911– August 16, 1938) was an American singer-songwriter and artist. His landmark recordings in 1936 and 1937 display a combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting skill that has actually affected later on generations of musicians. Johnson’s shadowy and poorly documented life and death at age 27 have offered increase to much legend, consisting of the Faustian myth that he sold his soul to the devil at a crossroads to achieve success. As a travelling performer who played primarily on street corners, in juke joints, and at Saturday night dances, Johnson had little commercial success or public recognition in his life time.

It was just after the reissue of his recordings in 1961, on the LP King of the Delta Blues Singers that his work reached a larger audience. Johnson is now acknowledged as a master of the blues, particularly of the Mississippi Delta blues style. He is credited by lots of rock artists as an essential impact; Eric Clapton has called Johnson “the most essential blues singer that ever lived.” [1] [2] Johnson was inducted into the Rock-and-roll Hall of Popularity as an early Impact in their first induction ceremony in 1986. [3] In 2010, David Fricke ranked Johnson 5th in Wanderer ′ s list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time