Johnny and Edgar began performing as a duet in an Everly Brothers vein, winning talent contests and appearing on local television shows. When Johnny was 11 the Winter Brothers traveled to New York to audition for Ted Mack's "Original Amateur Hour." Soon after, their first exposure to rock'n'roll came through the music of Little Richard, Fats Domino, Carl Perkins and early Elvis Presley. They began soaking up the sound of rhythm & blues from DJ Clarence Garlow's Bon Ton Roulette Show on KJET radio in Beaumont. At age 14, Johnny organized his first band, Johnny and the Jammers, with brother Edgar on piano. A year later, they cut two songs at Bill Hall's Gulf Coast Recording Studios in Beaumont. The singles "School Day Blues" and "You Know I Love You" came out a month later on Houston-based Dart Records, gaining the Winter brothers some local notoriety. Around this time, Johnny began sitting in with DJ Clarence Garlow who performed around town and had a regional hit with Bon Ton Roulette. Johnny also frequented the Beaumont's all black Raven Club, where the aspiring blues guitarist got to see such heroes as Muddy Waters, B.B. King and Bobby Bland for the first time. << PREV | NEXT >>