Ronnie Johnson.
Guitarist Composer.
BackGround

SELECT DISCOGRAPHY
How the land lies / Ronnie Johnson & First Light, Give them enough rope / Ronnie Johnson, Too long in Exile / Van Morrison, A night in San Francisco / Van Morrison (musical director), Days like this / Van Morrison, The Healing Game / Van Morrison, The Living Sea / Sting (movie soundtrack), The Blessing / Locusts and Wild Honey, Carrying a torch / Tom Jones, Across from Midnight / Joe Cocker, Peter Green- 3 albums, Incognito, Georgie Fame, Peter Bruntnell

LIVE PERFORMANCES
Van Morrison Incognito The Blessing Bob Dylan Brian Kennedy Sting Georgie Fame Zoot Money Ritchie Havens Marianne Faithful Casandra Wilson Candy Dulpher John Lee Hooker Junior Wells Jimmy Witherspoon Jon Hendricks Michael Bolton

TELEVISION
(Guitar played on themes and incidental music)
Top Gear (BBC) Without Walls (CH4) Big Mouth (CH4) Badass TV (CH4) Dressing for Breakfast (CH4)

ADVERTS (Composer)
Posicor Technicolor Range Rover Air New Zealand


Ronnie Johnson currently has two solo albums available.

Ronnie Johnson.
Give them enough rope.(BRGCD01)

The solo debut album by guitarist Ronnie Johnson, ably assisted by JOHN EDWARDS on bass, and CHARLIE MORGAN on drums. Recorded "Studio live", `Give them enough Rope' includes "Little People","Gary Shaw" and "BBHC" - the now infamous anthem to ribald laddism.
Recorded at the MILL Studios, by John Etchells and Andrew Brel. First released in 1990


You can order a copy of the 'GIVE THEM ENOUGH ROPE' here.

How the land lies... Ronnie Johnson & First Light (BRGCD06)


"How the land lies" was first released on vinyl in 1985. The quality of the compositions and the musical abilities of various members of the band attracted considerable media interest and critical acclaim. The album was voted critics choice by influential American publication "Guitar Magazine". Constant enquires for copies since then has prompted Bridge Recordings to have it digitally re-mastered, and to make it available on CD.




You can order a copy of the 'HOW THE LAND LIES' here.


Guitarist Ronnie Johnson, well known for his work on the Van Morrison album "Too long in Exile", as well as his own solo album "Give them enough rope", reveals his extraordinary guitar playing skills, which allied to his mellifluous compositional sense, provides a rich landscape of sound textures.

"Johnson is a six string demon, whose acrobatic legato style recalls Alan Holdsworth. Yet on tunes like 'George and Betty', he excels in an airier style. He's best heard at full bore though, dancing through 'How the land lies', and 'At the old Mill'. Buzz Morrison - Guitar Magazine

Drummer Geoff Dunn, known for his work with Jimmy Page, Terence Trent d'Arby, and Van Morrison, provides the kind of drumming which prompted Modern Drummers reviewer to say of his playing on this album;

"Pick this one up to get a different angle on how drumming with a high energy, progressive Instrumental band can be approached. A five star rating."

Bassist Greg Harewood, whose credits include a period with Marvin Gaye, keeps up the low end of the album, while ROY SHIPSTON'S keyboard contributions reveal his depth of musical experience, gained from years of performing with members of The Who, The Pretenders, ELO & Yes.

The eight original compositions range from the wonderfully emotive ballad "George & Betty", through the raging barbed wire energy of "Seven", which won numerous radio play awards in the US, where it stood at number one on many radio stations.

Guitar Player magazine review 1985.

This British quartet features an exciting modern Jazz-Rock format with electric guitarist Ronnie Johnson leading the way. Greg Harewood uses his quick, muscular bass to propel the albums eight instrumentals, pounding out a solid foundation and pouring on high speed dexterity at accent points. From the opening cut of the album, Johnson is off and running with a carefully balanced mixture of legato soaring, and complex high speed lines a la Allan Holdsworth. "Seven" is truly fascinating, with it's intense alternations between 7/4 and 4/4. Throughout the album Johnson shows a balance of technique and taste. In all one of the best progressive/fusion albums in a long time.

Ronnie Johnson the architect and inspiration of First Light, first came to prominence when he was drafted into Georgie Fame's "Blue Flames" following in the footsteps of his mentor, John McLaughlin. Since then he has appeared on a number of hit songs as a session player, and currently alternates his time between working with his own band, writing, and touring & recording with Van Morrison.