Hailing from the Morrisania section of the Bronx, tenor vocalist and guitarist Harold Johnson was the senior member of a doo wop group that would eventually acquire the name of the Crickets, courtesy of producer Joe Davis. It was the early '50s and at about 21-years-old, Johnson had the cheerful job of maintaining decorum in an ensemble in which some members were as young as 15. Singing hauntingly in the tenor range and providing useful accompaniment on guitar, Johnson developed a combination of old standards and original material which served to both train the group and provide a repertoire when the members were deemed ready to begin performing in public at the Forest House Community Center in the Bronx.

These shows took place circa 1951; not much more than a year later, the group was in the studio recording material such as the possessive You're Mine, the stomach-churning Milk and Gin, the highly visualized For You I Have Eyes, and the cheerful I'll Cry No More. Johnson and company certainly had plenty of hits, the Crickets chirping contently until producer Davis decided to hijack lead singer Dean Barlow for a solo career. Inevitably there were copycat and simultaneous ensembles with the name on tour, not to mention Buddy Holly's backup band, which actually got booked at The Apollo in Harlem because the management thought it was the Johnson gang. For doo wop fans who love cats, the highlight of the group's career is the fact that Johnson's particular pet feline is visible in one of the Crickets' best-known publicity shots.

Not to be confused with the funky Los Angeles pianist of the same name, Johnson went on to sing with several other vocal groups based out of New York City once he finally left the Crickets. Having outlasted all other original members, he performed and recorded with groups such as the Mellows, the Halos and the Astors. Johnson's original songs, including the apologetic

Sorry Bout That, continued to appeal to performers from the Motown era including Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, Rovi