Bobby Johnston
Bobby Johnston (born 1967) is a Los Angeles based film composer, multi-instrumentalist and author. He has composed original music scores for several films, including King of the Ants, Wristcutters: A Love Story, Edmond, Stuck, Mother's Day, Marfa Girl, Bleed Out and City of Gold. He often worked with director Stuart Gordon.
Bobby Johnston
- Name
- Bobby Johnston
- Born
- 1967
- Birthplace
- Olean, New York, U.S.
- Occupation
- * Film composer
- Nationality
- United States
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Bobby Johnston. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
The documentary record
Statements marked “Documentary record” are set in the article beside the passage they confirm. Each is read from the authority records of the institutions named here; select “Prove” to see the record it was read from, where in that record, and when.
Institutions cited
Bibliothèque nationale de France · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Complete reading chain (JSON)In this article
Biography
Biography
Johnston became known for an unusual approach to film composition, using only acoustic instruments and usually performing every instrument himself. Over his career, he has also brought in many instrumental soloists to accent his sound. Most notable are his scores to Edmond, which featured trumpet player Asdru Sierra from Ozomatli and Crazy Eyes, featuring Big Sir vocalist Lisa Papineau. He also worked with percussionist Greg Ellis on the scores to A New York Heartbeat, Mother's Day and The Barrens. Johnston was a performer at the Sundance Music Café as part of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, where Wristcutters: A Love Story had its world premiere. Johnston's composition I'm Leaving You was featured on the soundtrack to the 2013 film The Lone Ranger. His music has often been heard on the popular radio program This American Life and has been included on two of the show's greatest hits CDs. Johnston's first book, "The Saint I Ain't: Stories from Sycamore Street" was published by Fomite Press on February 9, 2021. It is a collection of fictional short stories presented in a hybrid style of poetry and personal narrative.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Bobby Johnston • Born — 1967 • Birthplace — Olean, New York, U.S. • Occupation — * Film composer • musician • author • Years Active — 2001–present • Website — http: www.bobbyjohnston.com/
Documentary record
Bobby Johnston, a composer, was born in 1967 in New York. The birth is recorded by the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.
Television
Television
• How and Why (2014 pilot) • Fear Itself (2008) TV Series (Episode "Eater")
Books
• The Saint I Ain't: Stories from Sycamore Street (2021, Fomite Press)
Feature films
Feature films
• Death & Taxes (2024) • Obsession (2019) • She's Just a Shadow (2019) • Bleed Out (2018) • Fallen Star: Finding Home (2016) • City of Gold (2015) • Tales of Halloween (2015) • A New York Heartbeat (2013) • Marfa Girl (2013) • The Barrens (2012) • Crazy Eyes (2012) • Let Go (2011) • Mother's Day (2010) • Cherry (2010) • Spooner (2009) • No Impact Man: The Documentary (2009) • Hotel California (2008) • Stuck (2007) • Humble Pie (2007) • Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006) • Edmond (2005) • Guns Before Butter (2005) • Dead Doll (2004) • Greener Mountains (2004) • Scorched (2003) • King of the Ants (2003) • A Little Crazy (2003) • Unprecedented: The 2000 Presidential Election (2002) • Extra: in The Background of a Dream (2001)
Short films
Short films
• Shopping Cart People (2022) • YO! An Introduction to the US Youth Observer at the UN (2013) • What Do We Have In Our Pockets? (2013) • Forward (2007) • We Are Phamaly (2003) • Boiler Maker (2003)
Soundtrack releases
• Wristcutters: A Love Story (2026, Complete original score MovieScore Media) • Death & Taxes (2025, MovieScore Media) • King of the Ants (2024, limited-edition vinyl LP release, Treasured Films [UK]) • Bleed Out (2019, Milan Records) • Tales of Halloween (2019, limited-edition vinyl LP release, Burning Witches Records) • Fallen Star: Finding Home (2018, Milan Records) • City of Gold (2016, Lakeshore Records) • Tales of Halloween (2015, Aleph Records) • No Impact Man: The Documentary (2012, Lakeshore Records) • Crazy Eyes (2012, Lakeshore Records) • Mother's Day (2012, Lakeshore Records) • Fear Itself: Original Score from the Series (2009, Lionsgate Records) • Wristcutters: A Love Story (2007, Lakeshore Records) • Extra: in the Background of a Dream/Dead Doll (2007, Citadel Records) • Edmond (2007, Lakeshore Records) • King of the Ants (2004, La-La Land Records)
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Bobby Johnston, revision 1357983032 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1."Internet Movie Database: Bobby Johnston".
- 2."Main Titles.net: City of Gold/Bobby Johnston".
- 3."ASCAP: Past Sundance ASCAP Music Café Performers".
- 4."Soundtrack.net: The Lone Ranger".
- 5."This American Life: Music".
- 6."Fomite Press: The Saint I Ain't".
- 7."Moviescore Media: Wristcutters: A Love Story".
- 8."Moviescore Media: Death & Taxes".
- 9."Treasured Films: King of the Ants".
- 10."Burning Witches Records: Tales of Halloween".
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 27 September 2026.
Elsewhere in Music memorabilia
43,975 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Bobby HutchersonPerson
- Bobby JacobsPerson
- Bobby JamesonPerson
- Bobby JasparPerson
- Bobby JonesPerson
- Bobby KeysPerson
- Bobby KimballPerson
- Bobby LewisPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Bobby Johnston?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.