The Godfather of British Blues to Play at Long Beach Blues Festival
It was the fall of 1967, a Southern California teenager sat writing out his high school assignment. On his desk next to the text book the young man was diligently working from, was his life to another world, his radio. That particular day two men from England were on promoting their latest record. The men in question were an 18-year-old guitarist named Mick Taylor, and mid 30’s multi-instrumentalist named John Mayall. They spoke of a blues album called Crusade with Mayall’s band the Bluesbreakers. It was that day the young man found the blues or rather it found him. And that teenager was me.
Macclesfield is a small village in the Central Northwest part of England, known as Cheshire. If it weren’t for the transplantation of the blues, Chesire would be the exact opposite of the cotton fields of Mississippi or the big city of Chicago. Born to this quaint community seventy-five years ago, John Mayall would be a principle player in revitalizing the blues through the 60's and 70's.
At an early age, he learned to play the boogie-woogie style on the piano by listening to his father’s collection of jazz and blues records. He would go to a neighbor’s house to play the piano borrowing old guitars and harmonicas to play on. Influenced particularly by Leadbelly, Mayall’s playing was deeply affected by Albert Ammons and Pinetop Smith. Mayall developed his own style from this bare bones beginning of discovery and self-instruction.
When Mayall went to Korea as a solider and returned to England going to design school, he had put the Blues on the back burner for awhile.
It was during this time that Alexi Korner engineered the British blues explosion of the 60’s. Kornor himself is regarded as the father of the British blues scene, which had what would be the who‘s who of British blues and rock in the group, Blues Incorporated. Rolling Stones member Charley Watts, Cream‘s Jack Bruce, and Ginger Baker were members of this band all of which were jazz players, but Blues Incorporated was ground zero for British blues. Keith Richards, Brian Jones and Mick Jagger would play with Blues Incorporated, as would John Mayall.
It was meeting Korner and his influence on Mayall that encouraged the 30-year-old graphic designer to go back to music and move to London. Shortly there after, Mayall embarked on a full time career in the blues.
John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers was an incredible band for musicians to explore the blues, where many would find their true musical voice.
Legendary guitarist Eric Clapton said of Mayall, “John Mayall has run an incredibly great school for musicians.” That school that was the Bluesbreakers included not only Clapton, but also Green, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood, the genesis of Fleetwood Mac.
In 1966, the “Beano” album (As it is called, because of the comic Clapton is holding up on the album cover) came out, featuring Clapton doing a solo on the Freddie King song, “Stepin Out.” “When Eric joined the Bluesbreakers, Mayall explained, “he brought this instrumental to our repertoire. From the first day we began performing it live, it changed the way audiences perceived the role of the electric guitar in rock and roll.” Each guitarist to this day has brought a new element to the sound of John Mayall’s band. Mayall allowed the musicians the musical freedom to express themselves as equals not as subordinate sidemen.
Guitarist Mick Taylor, joined Mayall in 1967 on the Crusade album. By 1969, Taylor moved on to replace Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones. Bassist Andy Fraser joined the Bluesbreakers when he was 16 before moving on to help form the rock band Free. The list goes on with others, from bands like bassist Larry Taylor and guitarist Harvey Mandel from Canned Heat who would join Mayall becoming another edition of the Bluesbreakers.
His most successful album of the 58 recordings he has done since 1965 was “Turning Point.” This semi acoustic, drummer-less collection featuring Jon Mark on nylon string guitar, Johnny Almond on flute and sax in the introductory song, “Room to Move,” became a concert mainstay since it’s recording at the Fillmore East in New York City.
During Mayall’s jazz-blues fusion period in the early 1970’s, his band included at different points, the already legendary saxophonist Red Holloway, trumpeter Blue Mitchell, and guitarist Freddie Robinson.
In 2003, he celebrated his 70th Birthday with a concert from which a DVD and CD was realized. Performed in Liverpool for a benefit to aid UNICEF, the Bluesbreaker alumni came out in force featuring Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, and Chris Barber.
In 2007, he released his latest recording dedicated to the late great Freddie King, titled “In The Palace of the King,” which features his current and most long lasting group featuring guitarist Buddy Whittington (who has been in the group for 15 years). Whittington replaced the amazing Coco Montoya. Drummer Joe Yuele has been a Bluesbreaker over 21 years, and Bassist Hank Van Sickle who is the new kid in the band having been with the group since September of 2000.
We caught up with Hank Van Sickle and asked about John Mayall and being in the Bluesbreakers.
“Blues is all about creating a feeling and communicating with an audience and John is a master of that. I love seeing all those smiling happy faces in the front row. People really love John, and it's great to see and be part of it,” Van Sickle explained. “I have played probably 800 gigs with the Bluesbreakers and over that time, we have developed an almost telepathic communication onstage. What's been really cool for me is that John makes the shows as much about the Bluesbreakers as John Mayall. He values all of our contributions to the band and it's that mutual respect that we all have for each other that makes the whole greater than the sum of the parts.
Van Sickle went on to say that, “People all over the world come out to see John because he's a legendary figure, and they leave satisfied because he has a good band that always puts on a good show.”
At almost 75 years-old, Mayall shows no signs of slowing down. He does over 100 shows a year and had just returned from Europe. He will do four dates here including the Long Beach Blues Festival and the Blues by the Bay in Eureka California followed by 31 days in Europe.
John Mayall is one of a small cadre who keep the blues alive. It is his passion.
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