Osie Johnson


James "Osie" Johnson was a jazz drummer, arranger and singer.
He first worked with Sabby Lewis and then, after service in the United States Navy freelanced for a time in Chicago. From 1951 to 1953 he worked in Earl Hines's band.
He can be heard on albums by Paul Gonsalves, Zoot Sims, and Mose Allison and is the drummer on Bobby Darin's "Mack the Knife".. He recorded the album A Bit of the Blues as a singer and had arranged at a "hit" for singer Dinah Washington. His final recordings as a singer were on a J. J. Johnson album, now compiled as a collection called Goodies.
Osie died of kidney failure in 1966, at the age of 43.

Television appearances

In 1957, Johnson appeared with Thelonious Monk and Ahmed Abdul-Malik on The Sound of Jazz.

Discography

As leader

With Manny Albam
With Mose Allison
With Bob Brookmeyer
With Clifford Brown
With Ray Bryant
With Kenny Burrell
With Jimmy Cleveland
With Arnett Cobb
With Al Cohn
With Freddy Cole
With Art Farmer
With Curtis Fuller
With Bennie Green
With Freddie Green
With Urbie Green
With Tiny Grimes
With Gigi Gryce
With Lionel Hampton
With Johnny Hartman
With Coleman Hawkins
With Johnny Hodges
With Claude Hopkins
With Langston Hughes
With Illinois Jacquet
;With Budd Johnson
With J. J. Johnson
  • Goodies
With Hank Jones
  • The Talented Touch
  • This Is Ragtime Now!
With Quincy Jones
  • The Birth of a Band!
  • Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini
With Mundell Lowe
  • Porgy & Bess
With Junior Mance
With Gary McFarland
  • The Jazz Version of "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying"
With Howard McGhee
  • Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries
  • Music from the Connection
With Carmen McRae
  • Carmen McRae
With Helen Merrill
  • The Artistry of Helen Merrill
With Phineas Newborn, Jr.
  • Phineas Newborn, Jr. Plays Harold Arlen's Music from Jamaica
With Joe Newman
  • New Sounds in Swing with Billy Byers
  • I Feel Like a Newman
  • The Midgets
  • Locking Horns with Zoot Sims
With Oscar Pettiford
  • Basically Duke
  • Another One
  • The Oscar Pettiford Orchestra in Hi-Fi
With Bud Powell
  • Blues for Bud
With Jimmy Raney
  • Jimmy Raney featuring Bob Brookmeyer with Bob Brookmeyer
  • Two Jims and Zoot with Jim Hall and Zoot Sims
With George Russell
With Pee Wee Russell
With A. K. Salim
  • Stable Mates
With Shirley Scott
  • Great Scott!!
With Zoot Sims
  • Zoot!
With Hal Singer
With Sonny Stitt
With Sylvia Syms
;With Buddy Tate
With Billy Taylor
With Ben Webster
With Frank Wess
With Joe Wilder
With Cootie Williams
With Kai Winding
With Phil Woods