The saxophone that defined an era just went silent. According to Rolling Stone, Plas Johnson—the saxophonist whose wailing riff on 'The Pink Panther Theme' became one of cinema's most instantly recognizable melodies—has died at 94.
Johnson recorded that 1963 take with composer Henry Mancini in just two takes. "When we finished, everyone applauded, even the string players," Johnson recalled of the moment, per the Donaldsonville Chief. Two takes created a piece that would win three Grammys and earn an Oscar nomination.
But Johnson was far more than a one-hit wonder. The Louisiana-born musician worked as a session saxophonist on recordings by Frank Sinatra, B.B. King, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, the Beach Boys, Nat King Cole, Joni Mitchell, Bette Midler, Linda Ronstadt, and Rod Stewart, among many others.
What made Johnson indispensable was his instinct for arrangement. "My solos always seemed to bring the record up another notch," Johnson once said. Whether he was laying down eight bars or twelve, filling space behind a vocalist or taking the spotlight, his tone cut through. Session musicians rarely receive recognition while alive. They are the architects of platinum albums and Oscar winners, yet the music industry often forgets their names by the time the vinyl ships.
Johnson began singing with his family in Donaldsonville before his father handed him a saxophone. By 1950, he'd made his recording debut. After moving to Los Angeles in 1954 following his Army service, he became a fixture in Henry Mancini's orchestra and later a regular on the Merv Griffin Show's studio band. For decades, he worked across jazz, rock, and pop—never confined by genre, always in demand.
His final major credit came in 2002, when he played on Joni Mitchell's Travelogue. That is a career spanning five decades across nearly every corner of American popular music.
