Robert Johnson was born on May eighth, 1911, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Robert was the eleventh child born to Mrs. Julia Dodds. Robert's mother described little Robert as a playful little boy, who "Always used to be listenin, listenin to the wind or the chickens cluckin in the backyard or me, when I'd be singin round the h

Much of the reason little is known about the life of Robert Johnson is due to his nomadic lifestyle, traveling from home to home and never quite settling down. Robert never quite formed any solid relationships with people, always keeping a shadowy distance.

"Some of the things that he did with that guitar effected the way everybody played" (Guralnick 37). Johnson familiarized a whole generation with his walking bass (not entirely original, Robert adapted his style from that of the great Charlie Patton) which is widely used by guitarists of several genres of music including Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Eric Clapton among others. He also introduced the boogie woogie style of guitar playing, adapted from the piano played during the time period, which was later used and adapted by several bluesmen including Muddy Waters and Howling Wolf. Thus people began to add their own bass parts to their guitar pieces, complementing their own music by mixing both lead and bass into their pieces (Jimi Hendirx is a prime example). "Terraplane Blues," which sold somewhere from four to five thousand copies, is probably the piece for which Johnson is remembered most.

As a young boy living on cotton plantations, Robert witnessed the harsh treatment of fellow black African Americans. The cruel treatment of the plantation owners continued into daily life where Johnson was received as inferior by the white general public. He received unjust segregated treatment as a result of his black skin. As a small child he watched in amazement to the powerful music of the bluesmen. In beautiful song they captured the pain of injustice which Robert, as well as most other African Americans of the time, had been forced to endure all their lives. Young Robert was intrigued by these men, and dreamed of one day singing the blues himself.

Robert's wife died at the age of sixteen during childbirth, and it is unknown exactly how this effected Robert. It is suspected that he underwent some type of emotional breakdown and as a result, Robert underwent a creative outburst. He temporarily moved back in with his mother and step but moved out again and traveled deep into the Delta.

Robert was captured by the mystery surrounding the life of the bluesmen. The women, gambling, seemingly unlimited freedom, and the amazing way they turned oppression into beautiful song, intrigued Robert. As a young boy, Robert was faced by terrible oppression of all sorts. The white community utilized terror as a means to subdue the African American families of the time. "Racism held sway over the land. Like a plague destroyed the hopes, and beliefs of the black community." (Finn, 211)

Ortle was instantly impressed by the technique and style of Johnson and offered him a recording session in November in San Antonio, Texas. Suffering from a bad case of stage fright, Robert recorded the session facing toward the wall. This coincides with accounts from Robert's friends Johnny Shines and Robert Lockwood, both of whom describe Johnson as being severely jealous over his technique, never quite willing to face an audience and allow them to view the magic of his fingers producing the music. It was almost as if Johnson had some dark secret to hide (which would coincide with the Devil theory).

Some common words found in the essay are:
Robert Johnson, Little Robert, Son House, Delta Robert, McTell Due, Johnny Shines, African Americans, Robert Robert, Robert Lockwood, Shines Finn, robert johnson, son house, blues artists, life robert johnson, robert's mother, blues artist, little robert, johnny shines, house recalls, charlie patton, blues music, son house recalls, lomax 13 robert, guralnick 15 son, 13 robert johnson,
Approximate Word count = 3029
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page double spaced)