Photo: JerryFitzpatrick · CC BY-SA 3.0 · credits
Tier 2 · legacy legend
Johnny Shines
Person · male · United States · Frayser · born 1915 · died 1992 · recording since 1971
American blues singer and guitarist (1915-1992)
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Also known as Johnny Shines And Robert Lockwood · Johny Shines · Jonny Shines · Shoe Shine Johnny (Shines) · Shoeshine Johnny (Johnny Shines) · ジョニー・シャインズ
Timeline
14 events▣ Album 11◦ Birth 1★ Debut release 1† Death 1
1910s
1970s
· Debut release
Debut release: Standing at the Crossroads
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
1990s
2000s
Biography
English biography549 words · 2 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1371006207
Biography
John Ned Shines (April 25, 1915 – April 20, 1992) was an American blues singer and guitarist.
Biography
Shines was born in Frayser, Tennessee, today a neighborhood of Memphis. He was taught to play the guitar by his mother and spent most of his childhood in Memphis, playing slide guitar at an early age in juke joints and on the street. He moved to Hughes, Arkansas, in 1932 and worked on farms for three years, putting aside his music career. A chance meeting with Robert Johnson, his greatest influence, gave him the inspiration to return to music. In 1935, Shines began traveling with Johnson, touring in the United States and Canada. They parted in 1937, one year before Johnson's death.
Shines played throughout the southern United States until 1941, when he settled in Chicago. There he found work in the construction industry but continued to play in local bars.
He made his first recording in 1946 for Columbia Records, but the takes were never released. He recorded for Chess Records in 1950, but again no records were released. He kept playing with blues musicians in the Chicago area for several more years. In 1952, Shines recorded what is considered his best work, for J.O.B. Records. The recordings were a commercial failure, and Shines, frustrated with the music industry, sold his equipment and returned to working in construction.
In 1966, Vanguard Records found Shines taking photographs in a Chicago blues club, and he recorded tracks for the third volume of Chicago/The Blues/Today!. The album became a blues classic, and it brought Shines into the mainstream music scene. Shines toured with the Chicago All Stars alongside Lee Jackson, Big Walter Horton and Willie Dixon.
Shines moved to Holt, Alabama, in Tuscaloosa County, in 1969. Natalie Mattson, a student at the University of Alabama, learned that he was living in the area and invited him to play at a campus coffee house, the Down Under, which she ran. Shines played there on several occasions and brought his friend, blues artist Mississippi Fred McDowell, to perform with him. These were some of his earliest appearances in Alabama after his move there. He continued to play the international blues circuit while living in Holt.
In the late 1960s and 1970s, Shines toured with Robert Lockwood, Jr., Robert Johnson's stepson, another one of the last living original Delta blues musicians. In 1980, Shines's career was brought to a standstill when he suffered a stroke. He later appeared and played in the 1991 documentary The Search for Robert Johnson. His final album, Back to the Country
Back to the CountrySpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Trouble in Mind3:542Corrine Corrina2:233Cool Driver3:064They’re Red Hot2:225Crossroads3:116Lost a Good Woman4:207Evening Sun2:598Peace in Hell2:299Send Your Man to War3:0910Come On In My Kitchen3:0111Blues Come to Texas3:2312Moon Is Rising3:3913Hey Bobba Re Bop3:1714Terraplane3:4415I Make You Happy3:11, with accompaniment by Snooky Pryor and Johnny Nicholas, won a W. C. Handy Award.
In 1989, Shines met Kent DuChaine, and the two of them toured for the next several years, until Shines's death.
Shines died on April 20, 1992, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame later the same year.
According to the music journalist Tony Russell,
Shines was that rare being, a blues artist who overcame age and rustiness to make music that stood up beside the work of his youth. When Shines came back to the blues in 1965 he was 50, yet his voice had the leonine power of a dozen years before, when he made records his reputation was based on.
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 13 | 67.6th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 19 | 86.7th |
| Studio albums | 12 | 92.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 14 | 90.5th |
| Recording span (years) | 21 | 47.7th |
| Genres | 3 | 80.4th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (19 release groups · 12 studio albums)
Albums · 12
1971 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 11 tracks · 37:07
A1Standing at the Crossroads2:54A2Milk Cow's Troubles2:55A3Death Hearse Blues3:27A4Drunken Man's Prayer3:25A5Hoo-Doo Snake Doctor Blues3:08A6It's a Lowdown Dirty Shame4:30B1Your Troubles Can't Be Like Mine4:21B2Kind-Hearted Woman3:09B3Baby Sister Blues3:19B4My Rat2:54B5Don't Take a Country Woman3:051972 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks
1Delta Pine2Pony Blues3Milk Cow Blues4Dynaflow Blues5Glad Rags6Pet Rabbit7Ramblin' Blues8Tell Me Mama9Bumble Bee Blues10It Ain't Nobody's Fault but Mine11Arguing and Boodling12Sittin' on Top of the World1974 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 11 tracks · 35:48
1Give My Heart a Break2:432Too Lazy2:553Moaning & Groaning3:204Just a Little Tenderness3:435I Know the Winds Are Blowing2:496Just Call Me3:417My Love Can't Hide3:338Skull & Crossbones Blues2:499Vallie Lee3:1010Can't Get Along With You2:4811Have to Pay the Cost4:171974 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 10 tracks · 37:59
1Little Wolf3:452Mr. Cover Shaker3:053Shotgun Whupin'3:174Lost Love Letter Blues3:205Stand by Me4:346Blood Ran Like Wine4:237Chief Tuscaloosa2:558I'm Getting Old2:159Mother's Place4:2010Jim String6:051974 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 13 tracks · 46:41
A1Slavery Time Breakdown5:12A2This Morning3:18A3Country Blues2:32A4Deep Freeze2:30A5Devil's Daughter3:00A6You're the One I Love5:43B1About My Wish5:33B2Went to the River to Drown2:41B3I Thought I Heard a Tone3:40B4Down in Spirit2:40B5Worried Blues Ain't Bad3:32B6Stop Cryin'1:50B7Goodbye4:301991 · studio album
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Tracklist · 8 tracks
A1Dust My BroomA2You're the Only I LoveA3Rock MeA4So Glad I Found YouB1Brutal Hearted WomanB2Down the HighwayB3The Delta PinesB4Hello Central1991 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 15 tracks · 48:08
1Trouble in Mind3:542Corrine Corrina2:233Cool Driver3:064They’re Red Hot2:225Crossroads3:116Lost a Good Woman4:207Evening Sun2:598Peace in Hell2:299Send Your Man to War3:0910Come On In My Kitchen3:0111Blues Come to Texas3:2312Moon Is Rising3:3913Hey Bobba Re Bop3:1714Terraplane3:4415I Make You Happy3:111991 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 14 tracks · 48:30
1Sitting On Top Of The World3:342Ramblin' Blues2:553Tell Me Mama3:564Bumble Bee Blues3:035It Ain't Nobody's Fault But Mine3:086Arguing And Boodling3:107Delta Pine2:328Pony Blues3:089Milk Cow Blues4:0010Dynaflow Blues2:2011Glad Rags4:1912Pet Rabbit2:3513Little Wolf3:4514Jim String6:051992 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 13 tracks · 43:21
1The Devil's Daughter3:152Look Behind the Door2:543Two Steps to Hell4:134The Face in the Courthouse2:075Blood Ran Like Wine #12:496May I Apologize3:217Blood Ran Like Wine #24:268I'm Getting Old2:149Mother's Place4:2610Mr. Cover Shaker3:0911Shotgun Whupin'2:2112Lost Love Letter Blues3:3013Stand by Me4:361993 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 10 tracks · 34:27
A1Solid Gold3:14A2From Dark ’til Dawn4:08A3I Will Be Kind to You4:05A4Last Night’s Dream3:51A5Baby Don’t You Think I Know2:56B1Pipeline Blues3:02B2I Don’t Know3:33B3Black Panther2:55B4I Had a Good Home3:17B5Mean Fisherman3:262000 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 51:01
1I Believe I'll Make a Change3:542Nobody's Fault but Mine4:433The Devil's Daughter3:064Back to the Steel Mill3:445Blood Ran Like Wine3:356Abide My Wish4:317Mean Black Gobbler4:458Lost Letter Blues2:379Freight Train4:4810My Best Friend3:0211The Blue Horizon5:4112Mean Black Gobbler6:35— · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 13 tracks · 47:53
1Slavery Time Breakdown5:142This Morning3:253Country Blues2:364Deep Freeze2:355Devil's Daughter3:066You're The One I Love5:507About My Wish5:428Went To The River To Drown2:469I Thought I Heard A Tone3:4510Down In Spirit2:4611Worried Blues Ain't Bad3:3812Stop Cryin'1:5713Goodbye4:33
Album · 7
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Hey Ba-Ba-Re-BopSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 13 tracks · 44:241Sweet Home Chicago2:47 2Delta Pines2:56 3Kind Hearted Woman2:41 4I Will Be Kind5:24 5When Your Troubles Get Like Mine4:40 6Milk Cow Blues2:58 7Hey, Ba-Ba-Re-Bop1:51 8Saddle My Pony4:29 9I Had a Good Home3:29 10Terraplane Blues3:03 11Mean Mistreater3:37 12Going to the River3:56 13Do Like the Lord Say Do2:33 | Live | 1992 | |
| 1996 | The Blues Collection: Johnny Shines, Ramblin' BluesSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 14 tracks · 43:291Ramblin’ Blues2:56 2Delta Pine2:34 3Dynaflow Blues2:22 4Milk Cow Blues4:01 5Look Behind the Door2:54 6Little Wolf2:56 7Arguing and Boodling3:09 8Lost Love Letter Blues3:30 9I’m Getting Old2:14 10Blood Ran Like Wine2:50 11Mr. Cover Shaker3:09 12Glad Rags4:20 13Shotgun Whupin’2:22 14Two Steps to Hell4:12 | Compilation | 1996 | |
| 2001 | Evening Shuffle: The Complete J.O.B. Recordings 1952-53Search SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 14 tracks · 36:551Ramblin'2:34 2Fish Tail2:31 3Cool Driver2:56 4Ain't Doin' No Good2:36 5Livin' in the White House2:29 6Please Don't (take 2)2:10 7Evening Sun (take 3 - Master)2:32 8No Name Blues2:50 9Brutal Hearted Woman2:56 10Gonna Call the Angel (take 1 - Master)3:29 11Evening Shuffle (take 1)2:38 12Gonna Call the Angel (rehearsal)3:07 13Evening Shuffle (take 2)2:16 14Please Don't (take 1)1:51 | Compilation | 19 October 2001 | |
| 2003 | Skull & Crossbones BluesSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 12 tracks · 36:411Give My Heart a Break2:43 2Johnny's Walkin' Blues3:29 3Skull & Crossbones Blues2:49 4What Kind of Little Girl Are You?2:31 5My Black Mare3:26 6Standing at the Crossroads2:52 7Rollin' & Tumblin'3:11 8Trouble Is All I See3:48 9Fat Mama2:50 10Drunken Man's Prayer3:22 11Two Trains Runnin'3:17 12You Don't Have to Go2:23 | Compilation | 2003 | |
| 2004 | Live In Europe 1975Search SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 21 tracks · 1:14:41132-20 Blues2:30 2Did You Ever Love a Woman (That Didn't Love You)4:40 3Instrumental2:02 4Stormy Monday3:15 5I Believe I'll Dust My Broom2:36 6I Don't Know3:59 7Rock Me Mama3:44 8Motherless Children4:54 9Got My Mojo Working2:23 10How Long4:00 11Kind Hearted Woman3:07 12Won't Be Your Fool No More4:03 13Roll and Tumble Blues1:50 14Why I Sing the Blues So Sad5:12 15Instrumental2:08 16Why Do You Treat Me So Mean?4:19 17St. Louis Blues4:27 18You Ain't Sugar No More5:49 19Shake Your Money Maker (instrumental)2:05 20Ramblin'3:25 21Stand by Me4:13 | Live | 2004 | |
| 2008 | The Complete Blue Horizon SessionsSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 23 tracks · 1:18:371Layin’ in My Cell, Sleepin’3:14 2I Am the Blues4:15 3Sunnyland Special3:46 4Heartache3:05 5Lowland Blues4:41 6Stepmother2:59 7Get to My Baby (take 2)2:43 8Get to My Baby (take 3)3:11 9Stella Mae3:44 10Midnight Jump (take 3)3:35 11Midnight Jump3:19 12Depression Blues2:53 13Heartache (alt)2:46 14Solid Gold3:14 15From Dark ’til Dawn4:07 16I Will Be Kind to You4:05 17Last Night’s Dream3:50 18Baby Don’t You Think I Know2:56 19Pipeline Blues3:01 20I Don’t Know3:32 21Black Panther2:53 22I Had a Good Home3:16 23Mean Fisherman3:32 | Compilation | 2008 | |
| 2019 | The Blues Came Falling Down - Live 1973Search SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 20 tracks1Big Boy Boogie 2Seems Like A Million Years 3Cold In Hand Blues 4Kind Hearted Woman Blues 5Have You Ever Loved A Woman 6Stay High All Day Long 7Stand By Me 8I'm A Steady Rollin' Man 9Happy Home 10Someday Baby Blues 11They're Red Hot (Hot Tamales) 12You're The One I Love 13Sweet Home Chicago 14The Blues Came Falling Down 15Big Star Falling 16Tell Me Mama 17Ramblin' 18It's Nobody's Fault But Mine 19Goodbye Boogie 20How You Want Your Rollin' Done | Live | 3 May 2019 |
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Johnny Shines head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 13 | 67.6th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 19 | 86.7th |
| Studio albums | 12 | 92.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 14 | 90.5th |
| Recording span (years) | 21 | 47.7th |
| Genres | 3 | 80.4th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
portrait—Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johnny_Shines%2C_Chicago_Blues_Festival_1991.jpgaliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/835a131e-e28a-4cbf-a790-180e90f3e249discography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/835a131e-e28a-4cbf-a790-180e90f3e249core—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q708110genre—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q708110seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Shinesbiography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Shines
Why this artist is in the database
- List of blues musicians — rank #183
| 1915 | 1992 | Tennessee | Chicago blues |
Tier rule: genre canon: blues
Image: JerryFitzpatrick · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Wikidata: Q708110 · MusicBrainz: 835a131e-e28a-4cbf-a790-180e90f3e249
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