At the age of 90

British blues legend John Mayall passes away

Blues legend John Mayall performing in Hamburg in 2017.

(Bild: Frank Schwichtenberg)

Throughout his life, British-born John Mayall was considered one of the most influential blues and rock musicians in the western hemisphere. Even in his old age, he set up the merchandise stand himself at his last concert in Vienna at the Porgy & Bess - now he has died at the age of 90 in his adopted home of California.

The British blues pioneer John Mayall is dead. The musician, who played numerous instruments and sang, died "peacefully at his home in California", Mayall's family said in a post on Facebook on Tuesday. No details were given as to the cause of death. It was merely stated that "health problems" had now "brought peace" to the 90-year-old.

Enormous influence on the music world
Mayall had an enormous influence on rock in the 1960s and beyond. His Bluesbreakers collective brought musicians such as guitarist Eric Clapton to the public eye. Former members founded or played in bands such as Fleetwood Mac and the Rolling Stones.

In 1963, at the age of 30, Mayall moved from the north of England to London. He gave up his job as a graphic designer to pursue a career in blues music and teamed up with a number of young guitarists - alongside Clapton, for example, with the later Fleetwood Mac musician Peter Green. The blues music that Mayall played was "a novelty for white England", he told the AFP news agency in 1997.

Late career
In 1966, the album "Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton" was released, on which Mayall fascinated with a mixture of soulful rock and powerful, guitar-driven US blues. The album was a hit and made Clapton a star. Mayall moved to California in 1968. He recorded a whole series of groundbreaking albums such as "Blues From Laurel Canyon". His last album "The Sun is Shining Down" was released in 2022.