John Marshall Alexander Jr. (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), known by the stage name Johnny Ace, was an American rhythm-and-blues singer.

[2] After he was discharged,[2] Alexander joined Adolph Duncan's Band as a pianist, playing around Beale Street in Memphis.

[6] Ace signed to Duke in 1952 and released his first recording, "My Song", an urbane "heart ballad" which topped the R&B chart for nine weeks beginning in September.

In the next two years, Ace had eight hits in a row, including "Cross My Heart", "Please Forgive Me", "The Clock", "Yes, Baby", "Saving My Love for You", and "Never Let Me Go".

[9] After Ace had success as a solo artist, the Biharis brothers at Modern released the single "Mid Night Hours Journey" on their subsidiary label Flair Records in September 1953.

[11] In December 1954, he was named the Most Programmed Artist of 1954, according to the results of a national poll of disc jockeys conducted by the U.S. trade weekly Cash Box.

Ace met Lois Jean Palmer, a freshman at Booker T. Washington High School, in 1949.

He had another child with his wife, daughter Janet Alexander, but the couple were rarely together due to his womanizing lifestyle, and by 1953 he had abandoned his family.

[16] After touring for a year, Ace had been performing at the City Auditorium in Houston, Texas, on Christmas Day 1954.

According to his biographer Nick Tosches, Ace shot himself with a .32 pistol, not a .22, and it happened little more than an hour after he had bought a new 1955 Oldsmobile.

[28] Bob Dylan and Joan Baez performed "Never Let Me Go" on tour with the Rolling Thunder Revue in 1975.

Elvis Presley recorded "Pledging My Love" in his last studio session, in 1976; the song appeared on the album Moody Blue in 1977.

David Allan Coe covered "Pledging My Love", introducing the song with his own recollections of hearing the news of Ace's death.

The Swiss singer Polo Hofer and the Schmetterband wrote the song "Johnny Ace" in 1985; it was released on the album Giggerig.

Will Oldham noted Ace's death in the lyrics of his song "Let the Wires Ring", on his 2000 album Guarapero/Lost Blues 2.