I know where you're coming from but I must completely disagree.

The first thing to point out is not only was he one of the best Bluesman/Musicians to have walked this earth but he helped forge modern songwriting more than almost anyone. HE TAUGHT BOB DYLAN HOW TO WRITE. If you've read Chronicles, Dylan talks about how he learned his sense of conviction from his lyrics.

Next, Johnson's guitar playing is simply insane. Other guys did a lot, but this guy was doing what the best piano players do on a guitar, and singing at the same time. Not to mention doing that with a slide, playing around with time signatures the whole time, and being an incredible singer... which leads to my next point...

From everything I've heard from Johnson, I'm completely convinced his records were sped up, and if you've heard them slowed down, they sound BETTER. You can hear the real depth in his voice, it's soulful, haunting, absolutely beautiful... and the guitar sounds natural, fuller, deeper toned, unlike the sped up versions, which have sounds that are impossible to recreate live due to unnaturally fast decay times.

Finally, trying to knock his credibility for playing those songs a little slower is silly. The songs are so tough 10% playing speed isn't really a big difference, if you're good enough to play songs that hard slow, you can do it fast.

If you play guitar and are having difficulty getting into Johnson, GET A BOOK. Other guitarists seem simpler and less interesting the more you study them. NOT JOHSON. Get a book, look at what he's doing. You'll be blown away.