John Mayall, Godfather of British Blues, dies at 90 amid 'health issues'
John Mayall, known as the Godfather of British Blues, has died. He was 90.
"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 loving family," his family shared on his official website 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."
The statement added: "John Mayall gave us ninety years of tireless efforts to educate, inspire and entertain."
Mayall's family did not elaborate on his health issues. USA TODAY reached out to reps for the musician.
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The Grammy-nominated artist was a quintessential pioneer of blues music in England. In the 1960s, he formed the band John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, which had over 70 members throughout its inception including Carolyn Wonderland, John McVie, Peter Green, Eric Clapton, Mick Fleetwood, Harvey Mandell and more.
"We, the Mayall family, cannot thank his fans and long-list of bandmembers enough for the support and love we were blessed to experience secondhand over the last six decades," his family noted in their statement Tuesday.
In April, Mayall was announced as a 2024 inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for the musical influence award, along with other late blues heroes Alexis Korner and Big Mama Thornton.
In a 2014 interview with The Guardian, the singer and musician spoke of his love for blues, noting the genre is about "raw honesty with which (it expresses) our experiences in life, something which all comes together in this music, in the words as well. Something that is connected to us, common to our experiences."
He later spoke about his love of touring in a 2019 interview with Rock & Blues Muse. "The interaction with the audience is really the most exciting thing about it as well as the music that we create on stage. The fact that we share it with people and we get the reaction and the feel for how it all works out–that’s always been a nice thing about live performance," he said.
Mayall is survived by his six children — Gaz, Jason, Red, Ben, Zak and Samson — in addition to seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
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