St Louis' multi-instrumentalist Alonzo "Lonnie" Johnson used the violin in Falling Rain Blues (1925), and occasionally played the piano, but made his name with the "singing" guitar lines that accompanied most of his blues numbers, such as Dark Was The Night Cold Was The Ground (1925), Woman Changed My Life (1926), You Don't See Into the Blues Like Me (1926), I Have No Sweet Woman Now (1926), You Drove A Good Man Away (1926), Nile of Genago (1926), Lonesome Jail Blues (1926), There's No Use Of Lovin' (1926), Love Story Blues (1926), Blue Ghost Blues (1927), Life Saver Blues (1927), Why Should I Grieve After You're Gone (1927), Away Down In The Alley Blues (1928), Blues In G (1928), When You Fall For Some One That's Not Your Own (1928), Wrong Woman Blues (1928), You Can't Give A Woman Everything She Needs (1929), Death Valley Is Just Half Way To My Home (1930), Steppin' On The Blues (1930), She's Making Whoopee In Hell Tonight (1930), Don't Drive Me From Your Door (1930), Low Down St Louis Blues (1931), Men Get Wise To Yourself (1932), Sam You're Just A Rat (1932), Racketeer Blues (1932), plus Blue Blood Blues (1929) and Jet Black Blues (1929) recorded with Eddie Lang. His style (and his collaborations with jazz guitarist Eddie Lang) was instrumental in bringing together blues, jazz and pop.

He also played with jazz greats Louis Armstrong (1927) and Duke Ellington (1928). Between 1932 and 1937 he did not record. Then he launched a new career as a balladeer (Tomorrow Night, 1947).