Known for his uniquely deep and droning singing voice, Johnson was a founding member of the bands Cool Rays, Beat Happening, Dub Narcotic Sound System, The Go Team and The Halo Benders.

Calvin Johnson is also the founder and owner of the influential indie label K Records and has been cited as a major player in the beginning of the modern independent music movement.

Johnson attended The Evergreen State College in Olympia, where his first band, a short-lived group called Cool Rays, made their debut recordings with Steve Fisk in 1981.

Beat Happening were early leaders in the American indie rock and lo-fi movements, noted for their use of primitive recording techniques, disregard for the technical aspects of musicianship, and songs with subject matters of a childish or coy nature.

The group released several cassettes and 9 singles on K, with a rotating cast of collaborators that included Kurt Cobain, Rich Jensen, David Nichols, and Donna Dresch.

Dub Narcotic Sound System, named after Calvin's famed analog recording studio, was a project that explored funkier, more dance-party-oriented material in the tradition of the Stax/Volt house bands.

Calvin's solo material was a marked contrast to the upbeat rock of Halo Benders and the funk-soul of DNSS, as it allowed him to explore mournful blues, folk, & gospel elements.

His third album Calvin Johnson & The Sons of the Soil is a career-spanning collection of re-recorded songs with a band consisting of Kyle Field, Adam Forkner, and Jason Anderson, documenting that ensemble's 2003 West Coast touring lineup.

His fourth album A Wonderful Beast, is true to Johnson's long established vocal and poetic style with a more contemporary production value created in part by the records producer Patrick Carney of The Black Keys who also worked as a one-man backing band of guitars, drums, bass, and keyboards.

[5] His fifth album, Gallows Wine, is an eclectic collection of songs reflecting this singular environment including “Pink Cadillac” written by Calvin when he was 16 (held in reserve for just the right session).

Johnson has worked with Modest Mouse, Beck, Heavenly, The Microphones, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Blow, Jens Lekman, Mecca Normal, The Gossip, Built to Spill, and Fifth Column, among many others.

Friends of Kurt Cobain such as Ian Dickson of Earth, Mark Arm of Mudhoney, Bruce Pavitt and Slim Moon have all acknowledged Johnson's significant influence on the musician.

The band's lead singer, Courtney Love has the line: 'I went to school with Calvin,' a reference to Johnson's influence within the burgeoning Olympia indie music scene.