John Mayall, the Godfather of British Blues, Influenced Such Mainstream Musicians as Eric Clapton and Mick Fleetwood

John Mayall's influence extended to such notable musicians of the 1960s and '70s as Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Peter Green, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie and Mick Taylor. In October 2024, he was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a musical influencer.

Mayall was known as the godfather of British blues. His music was not mainstream popular, though his albums performed better than his singles. To hear "Sitting in the Rain," which showcases his songwriting skills and emotional depth in music, you can go to this video, which features Mayall on guitar and vocals, and McVie on bass guitar.

For Mayall's complete discography and to learn more about the man and his music, visit the official website. On the site, there's an announcement that the John Mayall box set "The Second Generation (LIVE, 1968-1993)" is coming in summer 2025.

The photo in this episode's thumbnail is of Mayall performing in Seattle in 2019. It's attributed to Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 4.0 and is available on Wikimedia Commons. In the chapter's closing remarks, there's an image of the cover of Mayall's autobiography, "Blues from Laurel Canyon: My Life as a Bluesman," which he wrote with Joel McIver. The book is available on Amazon.

This tribute is one of 41 stories that Sheldon Zoldan, a longtime journalist, has written and recorded in honor of the music notables who passed away in 2024. He's written tributes for other years as well. You can listen to the ones from 2023 on Everyday Creation. We'll have the 2022 tributes available later this year.

Sheldon also is the creator of Song of the Day, a story that he sends by email to a list of subscribers. To get on his subscriber list, email [e-mail] with the subject line ADD ME TO SOTD.

This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation, available on YouTube and in podcast directories including Apple, Audible, iHeart and Spotify.