Detroit Bluesman Johnnie Bassett Dies at 76
Johnnie Bassett, Detroit's beloved "gentleman of the blues," died Saturday night at age 76.
The guitarist and singer-songwriter lost a battle with liver cancer and passed away at St. John Hospital in Grosse Pointe, in which he had been hospitalized for three weeks.
"It sounds trite, but we won't see any more like him," said publicist Matt Lee, who had worked with Johnny for many years.
Bassett accompanied a such talents as John Lee Hooker, Little Willie John, Smokey Robinson, and Nolan Strong, and Dinah Washington during Detroit's dynamic 1950s. He was also a session guitarist for Detroit's legendary Fortune Records.
It was just over a month ago that Bassett had released a new album "I Can Make That Happen," his second on Mack Avenue Records' Sly Dog sublabel.
Bassett is survived by wife Deborah, his daughter Benita, and Deborah's children Lynn, Courtney, and Kenneth.