Suppose you happen to stumble upon a showing of Blues Brothers 2000 (1998) while switching channels on a Sunday lazy afternoon, and you happen to watch a bit of it. In that case, you might find that while the story seems derivative and the intent seems like a money-grab after the classic original Blues Brothers (1980), the movie does present a surprising number of very good blues treatments, along with capturing blues icons that passed away soon afterward.
The movie includes 18 musical numbers and establishes a new record for the most cars in a pile-up (63). But one of the surprising performances you’ll find is during a number for Wilson Pickett’s and Eddie Floyd’s classic “634-5789 (Soulsville, USA)”. In it, you’ll spy a very young-looking guitarist wheeled across the set on a small cart to provide a screaming blues solo and some impressive vocals. That 17-year-old would be Jonny Lang. And you might be forgiven for not having heard of him because he started young, released five noteworthy albums over about 20 years that all charted in the top 50 of the Billboard 200, and then was forced to stop performing.
Lang was born in Fargo, North Dakota, and took up guitar only 5 years before Blues Brothers 2000. He cut his teeth on Jimi Hendrix standards and had formal lessons from the lead guitarist of a local blues band, the Bad Medicine Blues Band. That band eventually invited him to join them and renamed itself “Kid Jonny Lang and the Big Bang.” They would ultimately release an independent album called Smokin’ and then sign with A&M Records.
Jonny released several back-to-back albums including Lie to Me (1997), which hit #44 on the Billboard 200: Wander this World (1998), which rose to #28, and Long Time Coming (2003), which peaked at #17. But it was his gospel-influenced album Turn Around (2006) that finally earned him a Grammy.
He achieved his first platinum record at age 15. And he toured with such acclaimed acts as B.B. King, Jeff, Beck, Aerosmith, Buddy Guy, and the Rolling Stones.
In 2013 he released Fight for My Soul, followed by Signs in 2017. Since then, there’s been no new material from Jonny Lang and in 2021 he announced that he would stop touring and cancelled all dates due to a health issue that impacted his singing.
Listening to great cuts like “Lie to Me” it’s clear that Lang’s influences of Albert Collins, B.B. King, and Buddy Guy show up in his music. His voice is more weathered and scratchy than his age belies, and his blues guitar licks are both classic and modern.
Compare that performance to the more subtle vocals and simpler playing in “Breakin’ Me.” “Walking Away”, which speaks of the loss during a breakup, features another example of his fluid soloing abilities.
Or take a listen to his work on Buddy Guys’ “Midnight Train” from Buddy’s Baddest: The Best of Buddy Guy.
It’s not difficult to compare him to Stevie Ray Vaughan in terms of phrasing and style. That Lang seems to be able to imitate a variety of blues styles without sounding stale speaks to his virtuosity.
If you love your blues, your best bet is to search for ‘Jonny Lang’ on Apple Music (or Spotify or YouTube) and just listen – while we all wait for him to recover and perform again.
-Will Wills
Photo: Jonny Lang, 2010 (alaina buzas via Wikimedia Commons)
I was utterly unfamiliar with this gentleman & am now eager to do a deep dive. Many thanks!!
Same for me – a friend was discussing Blues Brothers 2000 and mentioned him and he was shocked I had not heard of him. Tremendous talent that I hope goes back to performing soon.
I was a bug fan of The Lamont Cranston Band out if Minneapolis in about the year 2000. I went to see them in a club Des Moines. About halfway through their set, someone opens the side door just off stage and lets this kid in. But he has a guitar. Pat Hazell introduces him as Johnny the Kid. The kid blazes through a few numbers and then sneaks back out the side door. Later that year, the piano player, Bruce McCabe, leaves Cranston to back up or shepherd an album that has a favorite Cranston song on it, The Darker Side. Jonny Lang
That’s fantastic, the fact that he sneaks in and plays – ! Great guitarist and seems to be a decent fella, too. Thank you for the comment.
I also come from the Minneapolis area, and saw Johnny Lang at a local bar just before he hit it big — about 1996 I think. He was so young, yet he scorched every song he played (and I mean that in a very good way). It was unbelievable.