Blues and rock musician John Mayall — the “godfather of British blues” — died at age 90 on Monday.
“It is with heavy hearts that we bear the news that John Mayall passed away peacefully in his California home yesterday, July 22, 2024, surrounded by his loving family,” his family confirmed in a statement Tuesday. “Health issues that forced John to end his epic touring career have finally led to peace for one of this world’s greatest road warriors.” A cause of death was not immediately revealed.
“John Mayall gave us ninety years of tireless efforts to educate, inspire and entertain,” the statement continued, sharing that he was “surrounded with love” by his ex-wives Pamela and Maggie, his secretary Jane, and his close friends. “Keep on playing the blues somewhere, John. We love you,” his family wrote.
Mayall is credited as being a blues pioneer in England in the late Sixties. His band, The Bluesbreakers, once included the likes of Eric Clapton, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, and Mick Taylor. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is set to induct Mayall in October, after the organization’s committee granted him the Musical Influence Award, alongside Alexis Korner and Big Mama Thornton.
Mayall told Rolling Stone in 2021, as he turned 88, that he had decided to “hang up my road shoes,” though he promised to release another album, The Sun Is Shining Down.
The obituary post pointed to an interview Mayall did with The Guardian, sharing how he connected with blues because of its “raw honesty, connection, and community.” The statement also shared a quote from Mayall about the future of blues that read, “To be honest, I don’t think anyone really knows exactly what it is. I just can’t stop playing it.”
