[Lowfer] Question about decade counters

[Andy - KU4XR]

Would someone explain the difference in a Decade Counter, and a Johnson Decade Counter ( 4017 series ), such as, how it performs its job in the circuit. I am gathering the parts to build a Kohler special, and he uses the 4017 series. Will any type of decade counter work, or does it really NEED to be the 4017 or equivalent chip ?? Thanks for the info; 
Andy - KU4XR