British blues legend John Mayall died at the age of 90 on July 22, 2024. A road warrior and torchbearer for the blues music that he loved all his life, he was for so long invincible and irreducible. As a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and interpreter of the deep blues repertoire, he was a powerhouse of knowledge and musical passion. As a bandleader, he was a man of exceptional vision and managerial ingenuity who provided an early platform for some of the greatest talents the rock world has known.
Mayall’s 1966 album Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton – aka the Beano album – shaped the sound of modern guitar music and could arguably be called the first ‘rock’ album. Subsequent releases A Hard Road and Crusade introduced Peter Green and Mick Taylor respectively to the international stage, alongside a small army of musicians who gained early recognition thanks to their association in Mayall’s bands, including John McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Andy Fraser, Jack Bruce, Aynsley Dunbar, Jon Hiseman, Dick Heckstall-Smith and, later on, Walter Trout, Coco Montoya, Buddy Whittington and many others.
