Johnny and the Deep Rollers

Johnny Strasser and The Deep Rollers are all members of the ARIZONA BLUES HALL of FAME.  The band is: Larry Lee Lerma on bass, Marx Loeb on drums, Blake Matthies on guitar and Johnny Strasser on vocals, guitar and harmonica. 

John, “Juke Joint Johnny” Strasser was born in Lakewood, Ohio. He joined the harmonica club when he was in sixth grade and has been playing ever since. In his junior high years he taught himself to play slide guitar and saxophone. While he was still in high school, he formed several folk and rock groups and also became interested in blues and jazz.

In the late sixties he put together a group of young musicians named the Erector Set. One of the first bands to revive the horn section back into rock and blues, the Erector Set became a major musical force in northern Ohio. The band made several television appearances and played at legendary clubs in the Cleveland area such as LaCave and The Heritage House. They opened for many national acts including Blood, Sweat and Tears and War.

In 1972 Johnny moved to Tucson, where he rapidly became well known in the Arizona music scene. While based in Tucson he toured throughout the southwest playing nightclubs, roadhouses and beer joints from California to Louisiana. He has appeared several times at the nationally known Tucson Blues Festival as well as the June Bug Blues Festival in Payson Arizona and the Silver City Blues Festival in New Mexico. In 2001 he was inducted into the Arizona Blues Hall Of Fame and the Tucson Musicians Museum in 2007.

His musical style ranges from gut bucket rock and Chicago style blues to ‘40s & ‘50s jump and cool west coast swing. His recordings have received airplay in The Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Brazil, Slovenia, Macedonia and Australia. Throughout his career he has shared the stage with many blues greats including, Bo Diddley, Luther Allison and Charlie Musselwhite. In 2005 he founded The Juke Joint All Stars. The group toured Europe in 2006 and in 2007 Johnny repeated the trip with Grams and Krieger. While in Europe he appeared at the world famous Banana Peel blues and jazz club in Ruiselede Belgium.