Gary Nicholson is a multiple number one
hit songwriter, a two time Grammy winning producer, a world traveling
performer, recording artist, and session guitarist. In 2006 he was nominated
to the Nashville Songwriter's Hall of Fame. Over four hundred of his songs
have been recorded in various genres including country, rock, blues, folk,
bluegrass, and pop by such diverse artists as BB
King, Garth Brooks, Fleetwood Mac, Bonnie
Raitt, Ringo Starr, Willie Nelson, Etta James,
John Prine, Dixie Chicks, Stevie Nicks, Emmylou Harris,
Keb Mo, George Jones, the Neville Brothers,
Waylon Jennings, Del McCoury, Guy Clark and so many more. In addition to his
Grammy winning records with Delbert McClinton, who has recorded twenty five
of his songs, he has produced records for The Judds, Wynonna, Pam Tillis, T
Graham Brown, Chris Knight, and others. His songs have been included in many
major motion pictures and television. Gary and his wife Barbara live in
Nashville, Tennessee and have four sons.
“Whitey Johnson” is Gary’s otro-persona, and is a recently discovered blues
singer/songwriter/guitarist from Texas, now living in Tennessee and
performing worldwide. There are various stories about Whitey's past, he has
made his living making music for well over thirty years, yet has remained
relatively unknown, having only recently recorded his debut album. Whitey
describes his style as " Feel Better Blues" with songs such as "Use the
Blues(to make you feel better)", "Worry Be Gone", "Leap of Faith", and
"Better off with the Blues". He learned to play guitar watching Texas
legends Freddy King,
Lightnin Hopkins,
Mance Lipscomb, then fell in love with
Robert Johnson, Muddy and Wolf and the songs of Willie Dixon. He brings a
deep respect for all his heroes to his own style. His band includes Colin
Linden, Tom Hambridge, and Dave Roe who all have many credits having worked
with artists such as Chuck Berry,
Johnny Winter, Lynryd Skynrd, Johnny Cash,
and many others. Why Whitey? Whitey Johnson was born when Gary Nicholson
wrote a short story about an amazing guitar player he saw perform at a fair
in his hometown Garland, Texas. This guitarist, who covered everyone from
BB King to Jimi
Hendrix, was a black albino and his family called him Whitey. At the end
of the story Whitey dies when a church is burned by the Klan. Now when
Nicholson performs as Whitey he invokes the spirit of the blues music he has
loved all his life. With deepest respect for all the great founding fathers
of the blues, and songs that reflect his own unique point of view, Whitey
Johnson lives on.
