by Bill DahlSome folks still get them mixed up, so to get it straight from the outset, Little Johnny Taylor was best known for his scorching slow blues smashes Part Time Love (for Bay Area-based Galaxy Records in 1963) and 1971s Everybody Knows About My Good Thing for Ronn Records in Shreveport, LA. This Johnny Taylor was definitely not the suave Sam Cooke protégé who blitzed the charts with Whos Making Love for Stax in 1968; thats Johnnie Taylor, who added to the confusion by covering Part Time Love for Stax. Another similarity between the two Taylors: both hailed from strong gospel backgrounds. Little Johnny came to Los Angeles in 1950 and did a stint with the Mighty Clouds of Joy before going secular. Influenced by Little Willie John, he debuted as an R&B artist with a pair of 45s for Hunter Hancocks Swingin logo, but his career didnt soar until he inked a pact with Fantasys Galaxy subsidiary in 1963 (where he benefited from crisp production by Cliff Goldsmith and Ray Shanklins arrangements).The gliding mid-tempo blues Youll Need Another Favor, firmly in a Bobby Bland mode, was Taylors first chart item. He followed it up with the tortured R&B chart-topper Part Time Love, which found him testifying in gospel-fired style over Arthur Wrights biting guitar and a grinding, horn-leavened downbeat groove. The singer also did fairly well with Since I Found a New Love in 1964 and Zig Zag Lightning in 1966.Taylors tenure at Stan Lewis Ronn imprint elicited the slow blues smash Everybody Knows About My Good Thing in 1971, and a similarly witty hit follow-up, Open House at My House, the next year (both were covered later by Z.Z. Hill for Malaco). While at Ronn, Little Johnny cut some duets with yet another Taylor, this one named Ted (no, they werent related either). Though he recorded only sparingly during the 1980s and 1990s, he remained an active performer until his death in 2002.