Brother Robert: Growing Up with Robert Johnson

Brother Robert is clearly not a biography of Robert Johnson in any manner of speaking. It is largely recollection, often questionable, that seems to be linked to the release of the new photo. It gives some insight into some of Robert's favorite things: hair pomade, tobacco, movie stars, etc.. but there are glaring errors and omissions in it that are proven to be so because of facts, not opinion:1) Mrs. Anderson is wrong about the house she claims Robert was born in.On page 17 of her book she says Robert was born in the house Charles Dodds/ Spencer built. On pages 145-147 she repeats the claim that she went to Hazlehurst to visit the house Robert was born in. She may have visited the house that Hazlehurst was going to claim was Robert's birthplace and use as the center for a tourist attraction, but they quickly gave up on that idea as local historians proved that it could not be Robert's birthplace. It is a matter of record, as found in the Copiah County Chancery Office, that in 1906, five years before Robert’s birth and twenty years before Mrs. Anderson’s birth, Charles Dodds defaulted on indebtedness and the house was lost. Julia was evicted from that house for non-payment of taxes, before Robert was even conceived, let alone born, and the house was turned over to one L. E. Matthews. There is no conceivable way that Robert Johnson was born in the house identified by Mrs. Anderson.And that's not even counting Rosa Redman's recollection of Noah Johnson's shack on the Mangold Plantation, where she lived as a child, as Robert’s actual birthplace.2) Mrs. Anderson is wrong about when Robert left the Spencer family in Memphis to live with his mother and stepfather Dusty Willis.On pages 25-26 of her book Mrs. Anderson says that “Brother Robert was becoming… mannish… In his teens, Brother Robert learned that my father wasn’t his real father. This is how I interpret them sending him back to his mother. My father sent him there.” And on page 157 she states: “He (Robert) was a teenager when he left my father.” “He was fourteen when he left my father. Then he went to his mother’s house.”This is completely wrong and again was something that took place almost 10 years before Mrs. Anderson was born.Robert was not sent away for being an unruly teenager. He wasn't a teenager and he was "collected" by his mother Julia to come work on her new husband's farm BEFORE he was a teenager. The 1920 census record shows Robert living with Julia and Dusty in Arkansas. He would have been 9. How does Mrs. Anderson account for that? The 1920 census DOES NOT show Robert living in Memphis with the Spencers. How does Mrs. Anderson account for R. L. Windum, Wink Clark and other childhood friends of Robert recalling playing with him and going to school in Commerce as a child? Or the Indian Creek school records in Commerce, Mississippi that show Robert attending school there when he was 12 and 14?3) Mrs. Anderson is wrong that Charles (the father) taught Robert the rudiments of music and guitar.Robert’s half sister Carrie was on record as saying it was the son (who Mrs. Anderson calls "Son") Charles who taught Robert some music. That's a simple mistake I think. Mrs. Anderson mistook one Charles for another since she wasn't alive to actually see it, only hear stories. She even admits (p. 24) that “When he was teaching Brother Robert, I hadn’t been born. I got that from Sister Carrie. Evidently my father quit music when he married my mother.” Carrie, on the other hand, described the son Charles as teaching Robert some music, and that she helped Robert make his first cigar box guitar, and then, in 1927 she helped him buy a cheap guitar with only 4 strings. Wink Clark recalled that Robert’s earliest musical endeavors were on a diddley bow he built on the side of the Willis shack.4) Mrs. Anderson is wrong about Robert's height.Robert may have looked tall to a child but he wasn't. On page 66 of her book Mrs. Anderson says that Robert "was tall." Every adult who knew him, including his girlfriends, said he was little. All accounts make it clear that Robert was "at most" 5'8" and weighed 140 pounds.5) Mrs. Anderson is wrong that both Julia and Dusty used to visit them in Memphis.Carrie said that Julia after taking Robert, was not welcome in the home.6) Mrs. Anderson supports the idea that Robert actually wrote a deathbed confession.Yet she offers no real evidence other than it was supposed to be part of Robert's belongings. According to who? Not very convincing.7) Mrs. Anderson makes no mention of Callie Craft, Robert's second wife.Mrs. Anderson would have been 7 years old when Callie died, certainly old enough to remember her. If she knew Robert so well why is there absolutely no mention of her?8) Mrs. Anderson makes no mention of Robert performing on Rev. C. L. Morton's gospel radio show nor his trip to New York to try to appear on the Major Bowes Amateur Hour. He did this in 1938 so she certainly would have been old enough to remember these important events in his life if she knew him that well.9) Mrs. Anderson makes no mention of Robert having any illness that caused Carrie to force him into going to see the doctor before he went to Greenwood.Carrie told many people (including Mack McCormick and Steven LaVere) that Robert was sick prior to leaving for Greenwood and that she forced him to go to the John Gaston Hospital to see a doctor where he was diagnosed with severe ulcers being ultimately responsible for his death. Mrs. Anderson would have been 11 at the time and this would have been a big event: Robert was ill. Why is there no mention of that?10) Mrs. Anderson makes no mention of Carrie and the family having Robert exhumed and reburied in a proper coffin.The undertaker who was hired to exhume and rebury Robert was interviewed and his records found. Why is there no mention of this?11) Mrs. Anderson claims she never knew Robert to be a drinker or blasphemer.Every other single person who knew Robert as an adult (Johnny Shines, Robert Lockwood, Honey boy Edwards, Calvin Frazier, Henry Townsend, Memphis Slim, etc) all said that Robert drank more than he was sober. When asked as to whether Robert drank Shines laughed and said "Don't ask IF he drank, ask what he drank! " Likewise no one who knew him as an adult ever knew him to go to church and many said that he blasphemed so badly that when he would start cursing God everyone would leave for fear of being struck down. Her stories are sweet recollections of a little girl who only saw Robert when he visited family and was probably on his best behavior.There are numerous other errors and omissions, and Mrs. Anderson was absolutely correct when she said "I don't know, I didn't have him in my pocket" as a way of explaining that she really didn't have many facts about what Robert did or didn't do apart from the few times she saw him.It's also unfortunate that she spends so much time trying to refute the Johnson family's claim to the estate. Her frustration and anger over what Steve LaVere did to Carrie and how he basically defrauded her of a fortune is understandable, but her attacks on the Johnson family are simply crude and unwarranted.It's a reminiscence that tells us what this woman thought about Robert, but the key is what she "thought," what she might have been told, and simply what she got wrong.There are just too many factual errors (not opinion, but provable, empirical facts). It's shocking that neither her co-author nor publisher fact checked any of the innumerable things she got wrong. They could have easily done so and this would have been a better book.

What an unexpected surprise to find this wonderful book. My nephews asked if I had seen the new picture or Robert Johnson and I thought they meant the one from a couple years ago that probably is not him. When I googled it, I saw the new picture on the cover of the book and knew, of course, that it was Johnson.Mrs. Anderson’s book about her Brother Robert is remarkable. As an avid fan of his music, and reader of all books I can find on him, it was a wonder to read her account.Not just a tale of Johnson’s life but also an account of her family’s life in the South during the depression and earlier. The way the story is woven paints a vivid picture of both Memphis and her family. Most interesting to me was the stories she told about Brother Robert which paint a much fuller picture of him and puts a human face on this mythological figure.I learned so much about her family’s life and experiences and was moved beyond words. Sorry that Sister Carrie was not rewarded by her brothers music after the battle for his royalties that was depicted in Robert Mugge’s documentary.I am very pleased to recommend this book wholeheartedly and I must commend Mrs Anderson on her work and remarkable life story that includes Brother Robert. I know she didn’t “have him in her pocket” but a much more well rounded picture of Robert Johnson is formed by this book.

Finally, some truth about Robert Johnson, who is now more than his brilliant recordings and a few snippets of anecdotes. It's shameful how his survivors were ripped off by EVERYONE, with no protections from the stinkin' courts and no help from the record companies and musicians who profited from his songs. Sister Carrie must have been a saint. And author Annye seems correct about the supposed illegit son, Claud: he looks about as much like Robert Johnson as I do. (DNA could clear that up in a hurry.)Overall, just a fascinating, specific, honest seeming memoir, evoking the inner workings of a complex family in the Mississippi and Memphis of the 20s/30s. And it's so great to have another photo of RJ, the BEST of the lot: youthful, open faced, smiling. And fretting that Kalamazoo! He was a much sweeter guy than we were told. And one helluva musician.

With the release of "Brother Robert" the essential Johnson bookshelf is now down to 2 books; "Up Jumped the Devil: The Real Life of Robert Johnson" by Gayle Dean Warlow and Bruce Conforth and "Brother Robert." All other books and "documentaries" for that matter should be swept into the dustbin of history.Robert clearly compartmentalized his life between that of a professional musician and his "family" life. These 2 books flesh out that dichotomy as well as it is ever going to be done at this stage of history and these 2 books will (I suspect) remain from this point forward the only books anyone will ever have to read on Robert Johnson, and you WILL have to read both!

Thank you for your book, Mrs. Anderson. Such a rich and fascinating story! You bring your brother to life as a flesh and blood human, not a myth or legend. Being a fan and traveling the true delta blues triangle from Helena to Clarksdale to Memphis many times, your descriptions of the places and terrain paint a vivid picture of life as you saw it. All blues fans should invest the time and read your book. They won't be disappointed.

Ive been a fan of Robert Johnsons since my early 20s ,im now in my 50s and this book is probably the closest we will ever get to discover what the real man was like and a new photo as well. I was particularly interested in how he was loved by his family and some of the myths surrounding him have been dispelled,particularly about him being a loner.I found it very interesting to discover artists like Memphis Minnie and Walter Horton played with him as well.Memphis Minnie was quite famous at this time as well when Robert was younger and not recorded.Perhaps a criticism is the bitterness surrounding his estate is very sad which draws the book to its conclusion.

As someone who has read (probably) almost all of the previous biographies about Robert Johnson, I was very keen to read his story told by a living relative, and was not disappointed. The details and reminiscences that Annye Anderson is able to recall are wonderful to read, and not only fill in many of the previous gaps in Johnson's story, but also provide a real flavour of his character that previous biographers have been unable (for obvious reasons) to impart.It is sad to note, as has been mentioned in previous books, the unscrupulous behaviour of some well known Johnson biographers. But it is to her credit that Ms Anderson does not come across as bitter and indeed seems pleased to finally be able to tell the world about the previously unheard life of Robert Johnson.

I am extremely happy with the condition and content of of this book, and am looking forward to reading it; just as soon as I get chance too. Also it came before the delivery date, which as you can imagine I felt over joyed about.

Good

This book is a real find! It gives details about the life of Robert Johnson from his half sister that tell the human story behind the myth and legends surrounding his often elusive life. It provides anecdotes of someone who, while being the loner that the legend supports, had rich family roots in the South and was close to many of his family members, including his mother. Spellbinding. It made me want to know more.