Johnny Mathis

Background

Johnny Mathis, the fourth of seven children, was born on September 10, 1935, to Clem Mathis and Mildred Boyd. When he was young, his family moved from Gilmer, Texas, to San Francisco’s Richmond District. After witnessing Mathis’ musical prowess at a young age, his father bought him a piano. Upon bringing it home, they quickly discovered that it didn’t fit through the front door. Clem then spent the night taking the piano apart before his eager son. The two spent much time bonding over their shared love of music, and the father later took his son to voice teacher Connie Cox, who offered to mentor him in exchange for work around her house. After six years of working together, Mathis had learned the vocal scales, classical and operatic singing, and voice production.

At George Washington High School, Mathis formed his first band alongside his friend Merl Saunders, who would later become a well-respected musician in his own right. Mathis was the star of his school’s basketball team and referred to as “the best all-around athlete to come out of the San Francisco Bay Area.” Following his graduation, Mathis began singing at the Black Hawk Club in San Francisco. He attracted the attention of Helen Noga, the club’s cofounder, who offered to become his music manager. Noga connected Mathis to George Avakian, the head of popular music artists and repertoire at Columbia Records, who was impressed with Mathis’ voice and decided to sign him.

Mathis embarked on a professional singing career and released his first long-playing record album, “Johnny Mathis: A New Sound in Popular Song.” He has since released numerous records throughout his six-decade career.