On January 10, 2010, Dick Johnson, the multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, and favorite son of Brockton, Mass. died at age 84. Although his band Swing Shift was quite popular locally, Johnson was better known to the national audience as “Artie’s choice.” He was the clarinetist picked by Artie Shaw to lead his revived orchestra in 1983. Said Shaw of Johnson’s clarinet playing in 1980: “He’s the best I’ve ever heard. Bar nobody. And you can quote me on that, anywhere, anytime!”

Dick Johnson with Swing Shift in 1988. Photo by Richard Vacca.

When I first started writing The Boston Jazz Chronicles, Johnson was one of the first jazz artists to take me under his wing. I knew very little about the history of Boston jazz when I embarked on this project, and I needed help. Johnson’s music is one of the reasons I became a jazz fan in the first place, and it was a pleasure to get to know him. He was affable and down-to-earth as well as knowledgeable, and we talked often.

I’ve written other Dick Johnson posts over the years. There was one on Dick’s first album as a leader, Music for Swinging Moderns, in 1956. There’s another on his becoming leader and featured soloist in the reborn Artie Shaw Orchestra in 1983. There’s a long standalone article I wrote at the time of his death and have revised several times since, “Dick Johnson: Never on the Ragged Edge.” Finally, there is a short post in which pianist Hal Galper remembers Dick, a shady character named Guido, and “Moonlight in Vermont.”

Dick Johnson spent six years on the road with the big bands of Charlie Spivak and Buddy Morrow. Later he enjoyed lengthy musical associations with fellow New Englanders Lou Colombo, Herb Pomeroy, and Dave McKenna; and released recordings on Emarcy, Riverside, and Concord. His final recording was Star Dust and Beyond: A Tribute to Artie Shaw, in 2006. Not once, but twice, his hometown of Brockton declared “Dick Johnson Day” in his honor, on September 6, 1984 and May 1, 1999.

It’s good to remember Dick Johnson as much more than a Shaw acolyte. Wilder Hobson reviewed Johnson’s Riverside recording Most Likely in Saturday Review in 1958, on which Dick played only alto. The others in his quartet were Dave McKenna, Wilbur Ware, and Philly Joe Jones. Wrote Hobson: “Johnson, who like all modern altos has listened to Charlie Parker, and who is especially fond of Lee Konitz, plays himself with irresistible verve and invention; he composes intricately jaunty tunes; and his rapport with the other three players is perfection. A good deal of the briskness of a New England October has gotten into this music, but Johnson can also suggest the summer shore.”

Star Dust & Beyond, Johnson’s 2006 tribute to Artie Shaw.

Most Likely was early days for Johnson, but it would be a long time before he returned to the studio. He recorded eight albums as a leader, and most are unavailable, at least on CD or vinyl. You have to hunt for them.

• Music for Swinging Moderns, EmArcy MG 36081, 1956
• Most Likely, Riverside RLP 12-253, 1957
  (These albums were reissued in Europe as Music for Swinging Moderns: Dick Johnson Quartet Sessions 1956-57, Fresh Sounds Records FSR CD 528, 2008. This reissue is not for sale in the U.S. in 2023)
• Dick Johnson Plays, Concord CJ-107, 1979
• Spider’s Blues, Concord Jazz CJ-135, 1980
• Swing Shift, Concord Jazz CJ-167, 1981
• Broadway Openings, North Star Records NS0061, 1994
• Artie’s Choice!, Self-produced, 2004
• Star Dust & Beyond: A Tribute to Artie Shaw, Crazy Scot Records 20061, 2006 (still available through some online vendors in 2023)

I uploaded the opening track from Swing Shift to my YouTube channel. It’s Clark Terry’s tune “Jones,” and it’s a favorite of mine. This is Dick Johnson’s conception of the small big band at its best! This version of Swing Shift was a hard-working joy to behold. It featured Dick and Jimmy Derba on the woodwinds, and Kenny Wenzel and Rick Hammett playing the brass. The rhythm section included pianist Paul Schmeling, bassist Paul Del Nero, and drummer Gary Johnson.

I’d put the whole album on YouTube, but that might annoy the suits who now own the Concord catalog.