Page 29 - the NOISE June 2016

INTERVIEW BY
MIKE WILLIAMS
JOHN MAYALL
82 & HARPIN’ LIKE A MUTHA PHOTO BY
CRISTINA ARRIGONI
I don’t really think of as a rough start. It was ’64 and we’d just recorded a live album. But it didn’t sell very well, so there was that gap there of just about a year, so it wasn’t really too much. Mike Bird, who worked with Decca talked them into recording another album because the band had been doing very well in the clubs.
Over the years, you’ve played with some of the most respected names in the blues. What do you think draws talent like Eric Clapton, Mick Fleetwood, and Mick Taylor to you?
Well, they’re not drawn to me unless I make an offer. As a band leader, it’s my job to choose musicians who I think will be compatible. I make an offer to whomever, if they accept, that’s fine and it’s always worked out. It’s great.
There’s been a brand new album in the works for some time now; can you give us any sneak peaks into how it’s been coming together?
It’s finished, but it probably won’t be coming out until the end of this year or the beginning of next. I’m not really sure; it’s up to Eric Corne, whose label it’s on. It’s another studio album and this time we had a guest named Joe Walsh who played on a couple songs. He called up wanting to play and it worked out really well. We’re looking forward to that getting out there.
There was a story about a house fire that completely destroyed your entire musical instrument and record collection in the late 70s, which must have been devastating. As it didn’t seem to slow down your recording schedule, we were wondering what the first guitar you picked up afterwards was and if you still have it.
I can’t really remember ... When you lose absolutely everything and have to start completely over from scratch, not even just with musical instruments, but with everything else in your life, I don’t know. It’s a long ago now and life moves on though.
You’re most recent release was a follow-up to the iconic Live in ’67 album that featured Peter Green, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood before the creation of the equally important Fleetwood Mac. What can we expect from the Live in ’67 Volume 2 album?
It’s the same five clubs that the first album was drawn from, but there was too much music to fit on one CD, so that’s why we’ve got the Volume 1 and Volume 2. Same line-up, same round of clubs, just different tunes in most cases. I think there are three songs that are on Volume 1, but played on different nights so you have a whole new slot on them. There’s no repetition.
On the Q&A page on your website, which had some great supplement information straight from the source, a fan asked about the location of the treehouse that you used to live in... How did that happen?
It was just a piece of history, really. The house was really crowded, so I just got my own room in a tree.
Ha! You’ve recorded and toured prolifically since 1965, with 63 live and studio albums out to date. What’s next for John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers?
Well, the next album is already done, so we’re just waiting on a release date for the end of the year and that’s as far as we’ve gotten. Really, we’re ahead of the game on that one. And any of the dates we’ve got coming up are always listed on the website,
Awesome, thanks so much for taking the time to chat with us, Flagstaff is stoked to see you!
Thank you very much! More at johnmayall.com
| Mike Williams might not have the blues, but always appreciates an encouraging high-five. mike@thenoise.us
It’s nearly impossible to put into words the importance of a musician like John Mayall. Born on th
the 29 of November in 1933 just outside of Manchester, England, the blues guitarist, organist, singer, songwriter, drummer, keyboardist, and harmonica player has been in the limelight for over 50 years and has rightfully been described as the Godfather of British Blues. The earliest incarnation of his band, the Bluesbreakers were the jumping-off point for the careers of the likes of Peter Green, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood before the creation of Fleetwood Mac, as well as a stop-over for Eric Clapton after he left the yardbirds and before he formed Cream. Paul McCartney cited Mr. Mayall as an essential instructor in his blues education, intoducing him to American blues icons like BB King and Muddy Waters during late night listening sessions in his apartment. His trademark Vox amp, Epiphone guitar, and feedback were a direct result of Mr. Mayall’s tutelage. BB King thanked him for turning the world onto his music, saying, “He was the master of it. If it wasn’t for the British musicians, a lot of us black musicians in America would still be catchin’ the Hell that we caught long before.”
Mick Taylor got his professional start with him, too, before joining the Rolling Stones in 1969. When any of the American blues giants like John Lee Hooker, T-Bone Walker, and Sonny Boy Williamson came over on their first English club tours, it was Mr. Mayall that backed them. A pioneer right out of the gate, he cut his teeth on then-unheard American icons like Leadbelly, Lonnie Johnson, Brownie McGhee, and Josh White. At the tender age of 14, he began playing piano at Manchester’s School of Art where, in addition to the blues, he became
infatuated with the boogie woogie style of playing.
His style was honed until when, in 1962, local promoters Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies
opened the first blues club in Ealing, England. It also signified the metaphorical end of the country’s decade long jazz scene as youth were drawn to the blues finally filtering its way across the pond. At 30 years old, John quit his job as a graphic designer and moved from Manchester to London where he formed the Bluebreakers. Waves were made immediately as he was joined by some of the period’s best musicians. He stayed in England cultivating his unique sound until, upon moving to Los Angeles in the late 60s, he further cemented his status as a star-maker working with acts like Blue Mitchell, Red Holloway, Larry Taylor, and Harvey Mandel.
During the 70s, 80s, and 90s, he recorded and toured constantly, performing with greats like John McVie, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Steve Miller, Billy Preston, Steve Cropper, Otis Rush, Gary Moore and Jeff Healey. The list of talent he’s worked with over the years seems limitless. The 2000’s saw yet another renaissance for him as well. After celebrating his 70th birthday with a benefit concert for Britain’s UNICEF in 2003, he released a double CD and DVD that again saw him reunited with Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, and Chris Barber. Further highlighting his contribution to the English blues explosion, the BBC released an hour long documentary on him that same year entitled the Godfather of British Blues and Mr. Mayall was presented with an Order of the British Empire award by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005.
Now 82, Mr. Mayall shows no signs of slowing down. He’s currently releasing album #63 to the delight of both fans and critics worldwide with another on the way, all the while touring constantly. The current incarnation of The Bluesbreakers features Rocky Athas, described by Guitar Player Magazine as “a veteran Texas gunslinger with a wicked tone and a thriving solo career of his own.” On drums is Jay Davenport, whose accomplishments in jazz, blues, doo wop, jazz fusion, and 60s and 70s R&B, as well as his improvisational skills makes the percussive section an absolute marvel. Finally, on bass is Greg Rzab, a twelve-year veteran of Buddy Guy’s backing band. Like all proper blues, there will undoubtedly be a masterful mix of improv and pre-planned riffs executed with a master’s touch.
Mr. Mayall & the Bluesbreakers with be performing at the Orpheum Theater on Saturday, June 18th courtesy of Greenhouse Productions. Tickets are running between $35-$65 per seat; worth every penny. Doors open at 7:30 and will undoubtedly sell out early. This writer was
lucky enough to catch him during the opening legs of his most recent coast to coast tour and this is what he had to say.
We’d like to start off with at the beginning of your musical career. In 1964, the Bluebreakers had just formed and you lost your contract with Decca records, which most bands would find detrimental to their momentum; however, you persevered and a year later they resigned you. What happened and how did you keep things going despite the rough start?
INTERVIEW
thenoise.us • the NOISE arts & news • JUNE 2016 • 29