ted burke
989 posts
Jul 23, 2024
5:29 PM
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A giant is gone.Along with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, which highlighted the virtuosity and brashness of guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop, John Mayall and his Blues Breakers on the British side of things created , more or less, the whole guitar hero mania that lingers even to this day. Mayall introduced the world to Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor. Mayall himself was only sporadically amazing through the decades, but he was an amazing band leader and at times his work gelled to the degree that he was actually doing something fresh with the blues. You can hear this on The early Blues Breakers records, The Turning Point , USA Union,. He was a at times an stunning vocalist in the Mose Allison -Al Wilson style--laid back, high-pitched, no hint of any imitation of his heros--and though not a Butterfield/Musselwhite harmonica virtuoso , his harmonica work was appealingly breathy, endearingly folksy, with full chords and splendid slurs and splintery bends that caught the emotion he expressed vocally. There isn't a modern blues harmonica player alive who hasn't gone to school on this man's playing.
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www.ted-burke.com
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TetonJohn
433 posts
Jul 24, 2024
3:07 PM
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I listened to "Room to Move" many times in a sound cubicle in my high school library. No question a huge inspiration -- took me a bit longer to find others.
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Gabriel.Harmonic
105 posts
Jul 25, 2024
1:16 PM
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Well written synopsis by Ted. When I started playing in 1974 John Mayall's album with "Room to Move" may have been the first harmonica LP I owned. (close to the same time came Charlie McCoy records from a family member who introduced me to his recordings) and I was fortunate enough to see John Mayall in 1974/75 in Florida with a great band. I spent many hours with "Room to Move"....at that time I would record LP's to a Teac Reel-to-Reel for ease of repeated playbacks when practicing. John Mayall seemed like a good person who certainly had the gift of bringing talented musicians together. Grateful for his music and wish him well.
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Spderyak
433 posts
Jul 28, 2024
2:03 PM
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I also loved his "Room to Move " song a lot.
It was a huge inspiration to play harp way back when.
I just played a small portion of it today at a gig. It's still well received. I think it one of those songs that people stop in their tracks to give it a listen.
That whole vocal percussion part just blows people away when he seamlessly fades it in and then out and back to harp.
Glad he made it to age 90.
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SuperBee
7123 posts
Jul 29, 2024
6:42 PM
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I had the turning point and USA Union but they are not the important records in terms of what John Mayall meant for me.
I first saw John’s band live when i was 16, and I went to see him again the following year when he returned with his Bluesbreakers reunion tour. That one was a pub gig and I was still underage but somehow I managed to get my folks to allow me to travel 300 miles from home with a carload of young blokes to attend this show.
I saw John and band again a few years later but I don’t remember much of that as security refused to allow me back in after I’d stepped outside briefly.
I didn’t see John again until i was in my mid 40s. He was in his late 70s by then and it was a sit down theatre show. Not quite the same experience but an excellent band.
For me, John’s records made through the second half of the 60s will always be the ones I think of first. They were the records which I really tuned into as a young teenager and which led me to learn about other blues music. I’m grateful to him for introducing me to that world. The first album I had from him was called ‘The world of John Mayall’. It was a compilation drawn from Bluesbreakers to Laurel Canyon and I believe I still enjoy it the most. I’d seen it in my high school library, and I recall it was the fringed jacket he was pictured in that probably caught my attention. What a striking image
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snowman
854 posts
Jul 30, 2024
6:31 AM
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Room to move was one of the songs I worked hard on , at beginning of my playing. Its Still one of those songs people recognize when u play it.
Bluesbreakers cd is still one of my favorites. I also suggest "Blues For The Lost days". I love that cd.
My buddy 'a longtime harp player', got to see him in So. Cal. I think he was in his later 80's then. My friend was impressed, he still carried his own amp. No roadie.
Im so grateful to him for playing all these years. I've enjoyed it a lot. Most adults discourage younger people, who want to play music. It takes a lot of courage to do 'what your heart tells u to do'.
Im so glad him and many others followed their heart and kept playing. They did this through thick n thin.
u will be missed.
Thank you for all the happy hours I've had listening to and studying your music.
I love the 'Blues' and I'am grateful to all the artists, old and new who play it. Listening too, playing and studying the blues is a big part of my happy life.
Thanks to u all.
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bandini
28 posts
Jul 30, 2024
10:20 AM
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I encountered all the British blues stuff after I'd already been pretty heavily into the original stuff (rather than the other way around as seems to have been the case for many) so at the time I never really took the British stuff super seriously, but the Turning Point record was an early favorite and holds up well to my ears, even today.
"The Laws Must Change" in particular made a big impression on me, harp-wise at the time - it wasn't the Chicago stuff I was obsessed by, but Mayall had his own kind of soul and a pretty deep groove that is actually not super easy to imitate.
Interestingly, I put on the Bluesbreakers record last night and found that it has actually aged pretty well. It has real sincerity and passion and Mayall's voice is a good example of how singing *yourself* - whatever your vocal shortcomings - will always be more effective than trying to imitate someone else.
RIP, brother.
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