Andy Warhol, Johnny Griffin and Me...

Jazz is music made by and for people who have chosen to feel good in spite of conditions.

Johnny Griffin

***The Congregation*** (1957) signed by Griffin, art by Warhol

Before Andy Warhol was the acclaimed and influential icon Andy Warhol, he was a young artist who drew and designed album covers. One of his earliest commercial works was Carlos Chavez's A Program Of Mexican Music completed in 1949 when Andy was only 21. When Andy became famous, he designed album covers for The Velvet Underground in 1967 (probably the only album cover that highlights the artist and not the band), the Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers in 1971 (with working zipper!) and Love You Live in 1977, Diana Ross' Silk Electric in 1982, and Aretha Franklin's Aretha in 1986. Earlier album covers were illustrated for artists as diverse as Vladimir Horowitz, The Boston Pops, Count Basie, Kenny Burrell, Thelonious Monk and Johnny Griffin.

***The Velvet Underground*** (1967) signed by Lou Reed

Johnny Griffin, a tenor saxophonist from Chicago, diminutive in stature, was nicknamed "The Little Giant." Despite his lack of physical presence, Johnny was a hard blowing tenor giant, and the winner of many cutting sessions with his fellow peers and collaborators. A Blowin’ Session (released in 1957) is considered the greatest hard bop jam session ever, and features Griffin, John Coltrane and Hank Mobley furiously trading tenor solos, while pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Art Blakey supply impeccable rhythm. As Johnny once remarked, "I like to play fast. I get excited, and I have to sort of control myself, restrain myself. But when the rhythm section gets cooking, I want to explode." Johnny released other important jazz albums, and like many of his jazz brethren, he relocated to Europe from the mid-1960s through 2008 when he died.

***The Little Giant*** (1959) signed by Griffin, Julian Priester

***Little Giant*** (compilation 1959 recordings) signed by Griffin

I saw Johnny several times through the years when he visited from his safe European home. He was a riveting performer and I was always struck by his big, fat, warm, wonderful sound. At the times, the tenor saxophone looked bigger than he, as it had swallowed him whole, but Johnny had such skill and ferocity when he was playing. One of my favorite songs was a blues vamp that he wrote, "The JAMFs Are Coming." He explained that it was an acronym for "the jive ass motherfuckers" are coming. No lyrics, just a blues groove propelled by his searing hard bop tenor. When Johnny signed The Congregation, with the cover drawn by Andy Warhol, I asked Johnny if he had the original Warhol drawing. "No. I don't have it. I wish I did and I'm not sure where it ended up," came his modest reply. Well, I told him, I know where the Hawaiian shirt is, it's hanging in my closet.

The JAMFs are coming indeed.