Johnny Otis with Marie Adams and the Three Tons of Joy Ma ( Hes Making Eyes At Me)

Johnny Otis BiographyJohnny Otis has modeled an amazing number of contrasting musical hats over a career spanning more than half a century. Bandleader, record producer, talent scout, label owner, nightclub impresario, disc jockey, TV variety show host, author, R B pioneer, rock roll star Otis has answered to all those descriptions and quite a few more. Not bad for a GreekAmerican who loved jazz and R B so fervently that he adopted the AfricanAmerican culture as his own. Californiaborn John Veliotes changed his name to the blackersounding Otis when he was in his teens. Drums were his first passion he spent time behind the traps with the Oaklandbased orchestra of Count Otis Matthews and kept time for various Midwestern swing outfits before settling in Los Angeles during the mid 40s and joining Harlan Leonard s Rockets, then resident at the Club Alabam. It wasn t long before the Alabam s owner entreated Otis to assemble his own orchestra for houseband du