John Mayall
1933–2024
The “godfather of British blues” — a bandleader whose Bluesbreakers worked less like a group than a school for guitarists.
was born in Cheshire in 1933 and taught himself piano, guitar, and harmonica on his father's jazz and blues records. talked him into moving to London, where he formed the Bluesbreakers; from 1963 the band held down a Marquee Club residency, and between 1965 and 1969 its revolving line-ups launched Eric Clapton (who left for Cream), Peter Green, John McVie, and Mick Fleetwood (who formed Fleetwood Mac), and Mick Taylor (who joined ). The 1966 album Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton is usually credited with lighting the electric blues boom on both sides of the Atlantic. He was awarded an OBE in 2005, toured until 2022, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024. He died in California that July.