‘Dave Mason lived a remarkable life devoted to the music and the people he loved.’ This was the dedication from Mason’s family following the announcement of the acclaimed musician’s death at the age of 79.
Mason first came to prominence as a founder member of Traffic, the pioneering ’60s rock group fronted by Steve Winwood. It was Mason who wrote and sang Traffic’s biggest hit, Hole In My Shoe, and other key songs such as You Can All Join and In Feelin’ Alright?
After his time with Traffic, Mason, an accomplished guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, went on to collaborate with some of the most famous artists of all time – including Jimi Hendrix, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones.
As he told Guitar Player in 2024: “If you're going to learn something, you may as well try and put yourself around the best. That’s how it worked out for me.”
Perhaps his most celebrated collaboration was on Hendrix’s inspired version of Bob Dylan’s All Along The Watchtower.
Mason first saw Hendrix performing at the London venue the Scotch of St. James, of which he recalled: “This guy gets up and starts playing and I’m like, ‘Holy shit! Who the fuck is this?’”
The pair became friends after drinking together in another London club, and while Hendrix was working on his classic double album Electric Ladyland, it was briefly suggested that Mason would replace Noel Redding as Hendrix’s bassist.
In the end, both Redding and Hendrix played bass on that album, and Mason played 12-string guitar on All Along The Watchtower.
Mason told Guitar Player of this session: “Mitch Mitchell was playing drums and Jimi and I sat down facing each other, with Jimi on six-string acoustic and me on 12-string. It took me 10 or 11 takes to get the timing on the intro right, and Jimi easily could have just done it.
“I stayed and watched the whole session, with him putting bass and electric guitar on the track and it was one of the most incredible, inspiring musical experiences I’ve ever had. Absolutely inspiring to watch him work.”
Mason’s other notable recordings included playing the South Asian reed instrument the shehnai on The Rolling Stones’ 1968 single Street Fighting Man; playing guitar on a number of tracks from George Harrison’s solo classic All Things Must Pass; and also playing guitar on Paul McCartney and Wings’ Listen To What The Man Said, a No 1 hit in 1975.
Mason was briefly a member of Eric Clapton’s group Derek And The Dominos and also had a short tenure in Fleetwood Mac, with who he recorded the album Time in 1995.
Across a long career he recorded 15 solo albums – the last of which, A Shade Of Blues, was released in 2025 and featured guest appearances by Joe Bonamassa and Michael McDonald. That album also included a new interpretation of the Traffic song Dear Mr. Fantasy, from the first album he made with the band back in 1967.
