Wilko Johnson: Master of the Chop

I’ll admit it: I arrived at the Dr. Feelgood party a bit late.

Chalk it up to my growing up in the sticks or the band having existing before my time. Or to their flying just enough below the radar to avoid massive fame — but high enough to exert an undeniable impact on an endless list of better-known musical acts. Whichever the case, it was about 12-13 years ago when the band came up in a boozy conversation with a musician friend who — knowing my tastes and electric guitar-playing style pretty well — expressed shock over my ignorance: something along the lines of “wait… what?!? How could YOU of all people not know this band?!?”

Sometimes you miss important things until late in the game. That said, I started in on a deep dive the next day, and was immediately snagged by the choppy pub rock hooks. Not unlike other influential-but-not-quite-famous bands I’d loved for decades but still managed to discover later than some (Big Star, Velvet Underground, Nick Drake, etc.), Dr. Feelgood’s sound latched onto my soul and never let go.

At the epicenter of the Dr. Feelgood sound was the aggressively fluid fingerstyle playing of guitarist Wilko Johnson. Persistently percussive, confrontationally angular, and yet fascinatingly fluid, his deceptively simple-sounding style was a complex blend of rhythm and solo playing, which — with the use of fingers alone — permitted him to execute both elements simultaneously. All while avoiding all of the predictable “guitar god” trappings: unlike many of his better-known 70’s peers, there was ample pan to go with the flash.

Look out Ned… the guitar isn’t the only thing Wilko can expertly chop

The musical styles of Jack White, Gang of Four, Sex Pistols, Billy Bragg, and practically the entire punk movement can be traced back to the Johnson’s right hand.

Second admission of the day: as a pretty big Game of Thrones fan, I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I was today years old when I discovered that it was he — in his sideline hustle as actor — was the one who liberated Ned Stark’s head from his body. Wilko’s fierce onstage thousand-yard stare onstage, it appears, made for a natural transition to the screen.

Wilko Johnson his left this life at age 75. I regret never getting to see him perform, but I’ll remain thankful for the music he left behind for us all.

Oh, and fuck cancer. RIP.