> > > ST YL E L ES S ON

The Father of British Blues

A Tribute to the great John Mayall,
Then and Now: 1967 & 2017 BY JESSE GR ESS

Ex. 1a MUCH HAS BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT THE

 = ca. 132

dozens of musicians that John Mayall has
3 E 7 9(I) fostered over the course of the past half-
 
 
 
= 4 tacet on centuryEric Clapton, Peter Green, Mick
 4    
3
1
repeat
Taylor, Harvey Mandel, Jack Bruce, John

 4

           McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Aynsley Dunbar,
2
and Keef Hartley among thembut theres

sim.
been relatively little discussion about the
Father of British Blues own unique guitar
T  7
6
7
6
 style. Well, its time to remedy that situ-
A 5 5 ation, so this month, rather than revisit-
B 6 6 6 6 6 6 ing the classic Clapton, Green, and Taylor
albums, we pay homage to and commem-
 (to E  7 9)
Ex. 1b
orate the 50th anniversary of a long over-
 = ca. 132 A 7 9(IV)
  looked gem from 1967, entitled The Blues



4

   4 Alone, where Mayall plays every instrument

 4   
   
1
except drums (provided by Keef Hartley)
 4 
   on the albums 12 original compositions,
2 2 predating D.I.Y. records by Todd Rund-
gren and Paul McCartney by several years.
7 7 (Mayall even designed the albums art-
T
7 7 work and shot the cover photo.) In addi-
A
5 5
B
6 6 6 tion, well take a quick peek at Mayalls
6 6 6
playing 50 years on with his current trio,
Ex. 1c in which he is the lone guitarist.
 = ca. 132  A  7 9(IV)
(to E  7 9)
B 7 9(V)
O SOLO MIO

 
 4     

4
4
4 Its amazing in itself that Mayall was able
4

   
1 1 to record The Blues Alone between nishing
 4

2 2
  the Bluesbreakers A Hard Road with Peter
Green and breaking in Greens replace-
2
etc. ment, Mick Taylor, but what really puts it
9 7 over the top is the fact that the entire self-
T
9 7 penned package was completed in just one
A
7 5
B
6 8 8 6 day. Geez! Who does that?! Sure, Mayall
6 6
only plays guitarboth 6- and 9-string

70 G U I TA R P L A Y E R . C O M / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7
 electricson half of the album, and his solos OMINOUS AMBIENCE creates a melancholy vibe via an Eb7#9-
are few and far between, but his rhythm For instance, the albums opening track, based rhythm figure like that shown in
playing, spooky atmospherics created with Brand New Start, features Mayall on Ex. 1a. (Apparently, Mayall has a penchant
and without slide, and even a bit of studio vocals, harmonica, and piano while his for at keys.) Play the two-bar gure twice
sleight-of-hand all merit investigation. heavily reverberated 6-string electric as written, omitting the last beat as indi-
cated, and then insert Ex. 1bs IV-chord
Ex. 2a transposition to Ab7#9. Tack on another
 = ca. 140 A m(Im) (to D m)  two bars of Ex. 1a before adding the V-to-


3 IV gure (Bb7#9-Ab7#9) illustrated in Ex. 1c

          
1
3

   4    

1 3 and two more bars of Ex. 1a to complete
1

 4    
3 1 the 12-bar progression. Its notable that
  
1
1
4 the entire drum track consists of Hartley
  3
hitting a lone side-stick snare click on the
 fourth beat of every measure, providing

 446 4 X X 
the perfect complement to Mayalls lonely
4 X X 
T
X 4 X 6 7 6 4 6
A
X 4 X 6 7 6 4 6 blues harp and plaintive vocal.
B
X 6 X X X
6 6 6 X X
THE K E Y OF WHAT?
Ex. 2b Next up is Please Dont Tell, constructed
 = ca. 140 D  m(IVm) (to A m) from a I-minor figure similar to Ex. 2a,

         1 a two-bar call-and-response phrase that

      
1 1

            

3 contrasts broken chordal stabs with slip-
 44    
3 1
1 3 3
1 pery double-stopped slides. Were in the

 4
3
 dreaded key of Ab minor, with seven ats
(relative to Cb major), but thats just the
way it is, folks! Like Brand New Start,
the songs I-minor gure is played four
9 X 9 X 11 12 11 9 11 9 X X
T 9 X 9 X 11 12 11 9 11 9 X X times as shown, transposed verbatim up
A 11 X 11 X X X
B 11 11 11 X X a fourth to cover the IVm chord (Dbm),
la Ex. 2b, before rst moving back to Abm
Ex. 2c for two bars, and then to Ex. 2cs Vm chord
 = ca. 140 E m(V)  (to A m) (Ebm), followed by two more bars of Ex.


          
2a to complete the 12-bar form.
   
   
3

  4        
3 3
1 1
IF SIX WAS NINE

3

 4
1 1

 

4
3 
1
1 What could be a bigger pain than notating a
blues in Ab minor? How about C# major with
seven sharps in open-C# tuning? (Aargh!)
But dont panicits just open E tuned down
T
11 X 11 X 13 14 13 11 13 11 X X one-and-a-half steps, or open D down a half
A
11 X 11 X 13 14 13 11 13 11 X X
B
13 X 13 X X X step. No More Tears, the albums most
13 13 13 X X
prominent guitar showcase, features Mayall
on both 6-string electric and his legendary
Ex. 3 self-modied 9-string electric. According to
 = ca. 126
   C /D  B/D  C /D  F  F 6 F 7 F 6 C  C 6 C maj7 C 6 C  G 7
G /D (to C )

 
Open C Tuning

 
  

  4 
 4    
4

         
4
4 4

1

           

         
 
4 1



1 4 4
4
4 1

 
 

1
 
1 1
 3

 
1 1
 
1 1 1 1
       
1 1

   
1


1 1 1 1

 
1 1 4

 
1 1 1 3 3 2 2
2


C
 7 12 10 12 5 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
G
 T
7 12 10 12 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
E
 A
7 12 10 12 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 0 0 1 1 3 3 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
C
 B
7 7 7 7 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
G
C  7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 5 5 7 7 8 8 7 7 0 0 2 2 4 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 / G U I TA R P L A Y E R . C O M 71
 > > > J O H N M AYA L L

Ex. 4
D  7(I)
 = ca. 126

   
 
* 3


  
    
3 2 2 2 3 2

 (
) 
1 3 1

 
2


2 1 1 3 2

      
1 2 2 1
3 2

 4 
1 1 2

 
2

 4

 
3 3

B 1/2 B 1/4
13 11 9 9 13 11 9 12 12 12 12 9
T
11 9 11 (12) 11 11 11 11 11 12 11 9 11
A
12 11 9 11
B
11

*Recorded at half-speed.

 
G 9(IV)
3

  
3 2 2 1
3


                              

                 
    

 
3 2 2 1
4
1 2 2
2 1

 
 

T
12 11 11 12 11 9 11 12 11 9
A
12 11 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 11 12 11 9 9 9 9 9 11 12 11 9
B
11 9 11 9 11 9 11 9 11 9 11 9 11 9 11 11 9 11 9 11 9 11 11

 
D 7(I) 
(to A 9)

                  
7 1 1
1 1 2 1 2 2
2


1

 
 
3

T
A
B
9
9
11 9
9
11 9
9
11
9
9 11 9 9 11 
11

John Peels original liner notes, In the clubs its open-E and -D counterparts. F# -F# 6-F# 7-F# 6 boogie-woogie pattern,
the appearance of the Mayallian 9-string is Ex. 3 approximates Mayalls V-IV-I-V- which gets transposed verbatim to the I
greeted with shouts of approval. based (G#-F#-C#-G#) 9-string intro, a four- and V chords during the rst nine bars of
Mayall bought the original instrument bar gure whose last three bars also serve the songs verses, can be formed simply by
a 6-string Weldone electric archtopwhile as the last three measures during each cycle raising the C# on the fth string a whole
on leave in Japan during his three-year army of the songs 12-bar progression. Theres a step for F#6 and an additional half step for
tenure in Korea that began in 1952. For the lot going on here. First, weve got bar 1s F#7. This pattern is easily transposable to
9-string conversion, he eventually retrotted unusual (for blues) chord voicings formed by open position to accommodate the arrival
it with three additional tuning machines to barring the top ve strings (actually eight!) of the I chord in bar 3, but Mayall adds
accommodate doubling the top three strings, at the seventh fret, and then pedaling con- another twist by converting the third chord
with the rst and second strings tuned in stant D# eighth notes (the 5 of G#) punc- in the pattern from C#7 to C#maj7, creat-
unison and the third string up an octave tuated with G# root notes and three-string ing what I used to jokingly refer to as the
essentially a 12-string minus its bottom three (actually six!) pinky barres at the 12th and happy blues! Its an incredibly cool touch
octave stringsand also added his own art- 10th frets on each downbeat. This results that Ive never heard anywhere else. The
work to the top. (The guitar is pictured on in G#/D#, C#/D#, and B/D# (with an added 6) intro wraps up with a single open-C# hit on
the cover of The Blues Alone.) Mayall typically sonorities fortied with extra chime, cour- the downbeat of bar 4, followed by seven
tuned what became his signature instrument tesy of the third strings octave doubling. consecutive eighth-note hits on a nifty G#7
to an open chord. Though unconrmed, the Bar 2 drops the index-nger barre to V-chord voicing.
open-C# tuning on No More Tears makes the fifth fret to cover F#, the IV chord.
perfect sense because it decreases string ten- Because the chord is voiced with the 5 (C#) STUDIO MAG IC
sion and increases playability compared to on the bottom, the measures alternating As if the intro werent cool enough, Mayall

72 G U I TA R P L A Y E R . C O M / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7
also indulged in some Les Paul-style studio
trickery by overdubbing standard-tuned,
6-string electric guitar lls and a solo recorded
at half speed. Played back at normal speed,
these licks sound an octave higher and twice
as fast as they were actually performed,
and create a pixie-guitar effect unheard of
in a blues context (although Eric Clapton
would nick the idea the following year for
his Deserted Cities of the Heart solo on
Creams Wheels of Fire).
Ex. 4 emulates part of Mayalls half-speed
solo. Its played in the ninth-position blues
box on a standard-tuned, 6-string electric,
thus Ive opted to notate it in the slightly
less cumbersome enharmonic key of Db.
Here call-and-response phrasing is applied
to 3-2-root 16th-note triplet pull-offs (bars
1 and 2), double stops similar to those in
Examples 2a-2c (bars 3 and 4), and an
extended 3/16 hammered-on hemiola (Cb-
Db-Fb) that begins on the fourth beat in bar
4 and continues over the IV chord (Gb9) in
bars 5 and 6, where it is twice interrupted
by quickly hammered-and-pulled double-
stops also reminiscent of Examples 2a-2c.
Bar 7 begins with three grace-hammered
double-stops, followed by a hammered-
and-pulled 16th-note triplet before shift-
ing to three single notes (5-b7-root). The
entire measure is repeated verbatim in bar
8. (Youve probably noticed by now that
Mayall rarely uses his fret-hand pinky.)
Heres the rub: Youll need a pitch trans-
poser set one octave higher to produce this
sound in a live setting.
FAST FORWARD
There are certainly more guitar goodies
worth checking out on The Blues Alone, nota-
bly the spooky, atmospheric 9-string slide
work that underpins Down the Line, and
the honking overdriven rhythm gure that
drives Dont Kick Me, but since Mayall
is still actively touring as the only guitarist
in his current band, lets investigate what
hes been up to 50 years later.
Ex. 5a begins a series of four solo

Ex. 5a

 = ca. 115

(2)
2


3 A 7 9(no 3)

1 2

  
3

1

(
=  1 3 2 2 1

        )   
1

3 1

 
3 1
 4        
2
 
2 1 2 1 2

1 1
   
2 1 1

2 2 1

 4     
  
3
3
4 (6)
T
4 4 6 4 7 6 4 4 6 4
A
4 4 4 6 4 7 6 4 4 6 4
B
6 6 4 6 4 6 6 6 6

 A  7 9(no 3)
Ex. 5b
 = ca. 115 D 9(IV)
3 4

 
3
     1

 
3 1 3 3

      
 
  
= 1 2
3 3
    
1 2 3 2 1

 4          
2 1
         
1 3 1 1

1

 
1


2 2

 
2

 4
       2 1 2 1
1
  
3 3 3 3 2 1
----- ----- ----
4 7 4 6 7 4 6 4 X
T
4 4 6 6 4 6 4 6 7 6 4
A
4 6 6 4 6 4 6 4 6 7 6 4
B
6 6 6 6 6 4 6 4 6 6
4 6

Ex.
Ex.5c
5c

 = ca. 115  D 9(IV)

E 9(V) A  7 9(no 3) (I)
4
   
3
 =
               
3 4 4


1 3 1
   
2 4

 4            
3 3

                  
3 1 2
3

 4    
 1
2     1 
2
3 3
6 6 6 6 4 4 4 4 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
T
6 6 6 6 4 4 4 4 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
A
4 6 6 6 6 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
B
6 5 5 5 5 3 3 3 3 6
6 6 6 6 4 4 4 4

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7 / G U I TA R P L A Y E R . C O M 73
 > > > J O H N M AYA L L

phrases inspired by a 2017 live performance
of Walkin on Sunset, a medium 12-bar
shufe that rst appeared on1968s Blues
from Laurel Canyon. Were back in the key
of Ab and the same fourth-position blues
box, but this time its Ab major. (Whew!)
Playing a 50s vintage Gibson ES-125 (I
used to own one!), Mayall spins a rhyth-
mically inventive three-bar opening state-
ment over three measures of the I chord
(a third-less Ab7#9 voicing), using only a
few single notes interspersed with par-
tial chords and yet another variation on
those now familiar double-stops, before
resting for the rst half of bar 4. Ex. 5b
commences with a broken octave pickup
into the IV chord, where Otis Rush-style
reverse-raked triplets punctuate partial
Db6 and Db9 chords, followed by two bars
of Ab7#9 with lazy quarter-note triplets
and another ash of double-stopped pull-
offs. After soloing for eight bars, Mayall
often reverts to chordal playing during
the last four measures of a 12-bar pro-
gression. Accordingly, Ex. 5c completes
the picture with a bar each of Eb9 (V) and
Db9 (IV) quarter-note triplets, followed
by another signature Mayall move, for
which we're riding a partial Ab7#9 (no 3)
shape for the nal two bars. (Tip: try riding
it through an entire 12-bar cycle.)
S H R E D L ITE
John Mayall: Shredder? Well, not exactly, but
a few choruses into his solo, the adventur-
ous guitarist does employ a unique form of
nger tapping, or, in this case, edge-of-the-
pick tapping rarely heard in the genre. To
play Ex. 6, dial up a low-volume clean tone
with a touch of chorus, anchor your index
nger with a fourth-fret barre across the top
four strings, and use the edge of your pick
positioned parallel to the fretsto tap all
of the higher fretted notes three times on
each beat, as eighth-note triplets. The pre-
pared fourth-fret notes between each tap will
sound automatically, producing a string of
trilled sextuplets, which move from string
to string to create different varying degrees
of tension over the I and IV chords until the
spell is nally broken by the chordal turn-
around from Ex. 5c after bar 8.
At 84, Mayall is still touring inces-
santly with his current trio, featuring
bassist extraordinaire Greg Rzab and pow-
erhouse drummer Jay Davenport, so catch
them while you can. (In 2016 they played
a whopping 63 shows in a row! I repeat:
Who does that?!) Long live the King of
British Blues! g

Ex. 6
 = ca. 115
 A 7 9(no 3)

              
           
*T

 4   
1 1 T T T T T T 1 T T T 1 T T T T T

 4

6 6 6 6 6 
T T T T T T T T T T T T T T T
7 4 7 4 7 4 6 4 6 4 6 4 7 4 7 4 7 4 8 4 8 4 8 4 7 4 7 4 7 4
T
A
B

*Tap w/edge of pick.

D 9 
4
         
T 1 T T

                
T 1 T T T T T
T 1 T T T 1 T T 1


 6 
6 6
6 6
T T T T T T
T T T T T T T T T
7 4 7 4 7 4
T
7 4 7 4 7 4 6 4 6 4 6 4
A
7 4 7 4 7 4 6 4 6 4 6 4
B

 A 7 9(no 3)
(to E 9)
7
     
T 1 T T

     

T T T
1



 6 
6
T T T
T T T
7 4 7 4 7 4
T
7 4 7 4 7 4
A
B

74 G U I TA R P L A Y E R . C O M / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7