   shuggie otis (born johnny alexander veliotes, jr.; november 30, 1953) is an american singer-songwriter, recording artist, and multi-instrumentalist. otis' composition "strawberry letter 23" (as recorded by the brothers johnson) topped the billboard r&b chart and reached #5 of the billboard hot 100 chart in 1977. he also achieved commercial success with his 1974 single "inspiration information" (from the album of the same name), reaching #56 on the r&b chart. ==biography== born in los angeles, california, otis is the son of rhythm and blues pioneer, musician, bandleader, and impresario johnny otis and wife phyllis. the name "shuggie" (short for "sugar", according to his mother) was coined by phyllis when he was a newborn. otis began playing guitar when he was two years old and performing professionally with his father's band at the age of twelve, often disguising himself with dark glasses and a false mustache so that he could play with his father's band in after-hours nightclubs. otis, primarily known as a guitarist, also sings and plays a multitude of other instruments. while growing up with and being heavily influenced by many blues, jazz and r&b musicians in his father johnny's immediate circle, otis began to gravitate towards the popular music of his generation such as sly stone, jimi hendrix, and arthur lee of the band love. in 1969, al kooper asked otis to be the featured guest on the second installment ([[koope
1953_births African-American_guitarists African-American_musicians American_blues_guitarists American_blues_pianists American_blues_singers American_funk_bass_guitarists American_funk_drummers American_funk_guitarists American_funk_singers American_male_singers American_multi-instrumentalists American_people_of_Greek_descent American_record_producers American_rhythm_and_blues_bass_guitarists American_rhythm_and_blues_singer-songwriters American_soul_guitarists American_soul_singers American_writers_of_Greek_descent Blues_drummers Blues_rock_musicians Living_people Musicians_from_Los_Angeles,_California People_from_Sonoma_County,_California Soul_drummers