DRIVIN' SIDEWAYS (1967) by John Mayall's Bluesbreakers featuring Mick Taylor on guitar

[melanieburn]

nice shuffle..



[mcleanartists]

Smoother than Clapton or Green!

[LanceHelmut]

as great as eric is...i had/ have NO problems with the job mick did while in the b'breakers.

[penfloyd]

Saw John Mayalls Bluesbreakers in late 68 at Mothers in Birmingham UK.......

Blues from Laurel Canyon and Bare Wires were brilliant albums,,

[heapbigtalk]

epic jam !~

[mrsoccerboy91]

THUMBS UP IF YOU THINK MICK TAYLOR IS THE NR 1 GUITARIST OF ALL TIME!!!

[186kms]

Very much a Clapton style of playing

[leegenix]

Only 30 comments about this great blues player?..

Thanks for putting up those new photos. When I was a kid, I was a member of the Blues Breakers Fan Club and even got a letter from John himself.

Give my regards to Chris Mercer for a job well done. Electric blues guitar and Freddie King was my introduction to music.

[redman840]

This is a  nice rendition of an old Freddie King song.

[kfjc1953]

Bought the vinyl in 1967, still got it!

[putdownan8dude]

soulless blues pop

[eraffel]

@putdownan8dude I wouldn't go that far, but I tend to agree that it's missing something. Soul may just be it. Not my favorite rendition of the Bluesbreakers

[putdownan8dude]

@eraffel yes , i have found that much british blues, while sounding great on the surface lacks a lot of the guts and soul of blues played by americans. i am not sure why this is that way. but it really seems to be. a couple of exceptions might be early clapton and original fleetwood mac,

[eraffel]

@putdownan8dude We would probably need to do a sociological study of the British, but it would seem that they just don't have the blues. They weren't sharecroppers, they weren't slaves, they never stand up to authority. People with a queen don't have the blues. However, there was a guy named Rory Gallagher that knew a thing or two about Blues, but he was Irish.

[eraffel]

@eraffel Not to mention the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, in my opinion the greatest musical group to ever record music. But they were Scottish. Does that count?

[af4k]

@eraffel LOL - yeah, Vambo - comin to the rescue...

[bramley1001]

Great work, thank you. There's an atmosphere to all the Mayall / Eric/ Peter/ Mick tracks that's never been created since. That "Englishman on a Les Paul " pick attack sends shivers down my spine to this day.

[imakeawishforapotato]

i personally never underratedmick t. in the stones-although a rabid stones fan since 1964, i thought he was the best thing that ever happened to the stones ... let it bleed, sticky fingers, exile on main street, goats head, only rock 'n roll ... what more needs be said? and get yer ya-ya's out-probably the greatest guitar album of all time. thanks to mick t! his playing on that was so powerful - menacing, a little scary, -thass power!!!

[leegenix]

@imakeawishforapotato I agree totally with your opinion. The Stones went through a succession of guitar players. The best was of course, Mick Taylor. You would think Keith Richards playing might have improved with Taylor, but no.

Taylor was riding the gravy train as long as it lasted. After that came Ron Wood. Not up to pay with Taylor, but a good replacement considering the Stones.

[impala327]

Clapton spawned a whole school of style and tone. With enough roots and possibilities that Greats like Green and Taylor could jump off.

[StoneHeartFull]

@impala327 I know what you mean/are trying to say

[SRone45]

Who's on Drums?

[wilsonmcphert]

@SRone45

Keef Hartleyl is on drums. See background info under the video for details of the members, particularly Chris Mercer.

[wentberg]

You do realise Mick Taylor is 17-18 years old on this record, right?

[saxby01]

Never a top drawer player----missed too many blue notes and he must have known it---but played lovely for the Stones when he found his own fluid thing.

[monkstermanjah]

Man, brings back memories for sure! I saw them in 68 or 9 IIRC, in this little joint in Texas outside of Houston or Austin (memory again!). Mayall came out with a criss cross of of all his different harps in bandaleros or ammo belts or whatever, and Mick tore it up!!

[SRone45]

@monkstermanjah Lucky.

[hassledguy]

RensStella got deleted

[6SL]

Ok... I'm and idiot! LOL! Please reverse the two previous comments from me (6SL) the get the thoughts in the correct order. DOH!

[6SL]

Mick's playing has no doubt influenced countless guitarists during and after his heyday... Bluesbreakers & Stones. (at least in my mind). Ex: MT's inspiration can be heard in B. Gibbons' during the early ZZ Top Rio Grande Mud era. The tune Bar-B-Q has what sounds to me like a direct lift of MT in Freddie King's Driving Sideways. Check BBQ (1:33-1:46) & Drving Sideways (1:09-1:16) As a guitar player myself, that really jumps out at me. con't below.....

[6SL]

@6SL

While I'm at it – Peter Green's influence on Gibbons is apparent too… Apologies to Pearly also on Rio Grande Mud begins w/a nod to Elmore James then morphs into a progression similar to Peter Green's Freddie King cover of the Stumble. If you have it, listen to 'Apologies' at 0:37 - 0:50 and the Stumble at :42 - :48 and at 2:33 - 2:40. Check it out...

[soltisimba]

I saw this very band open for Hendrix at Winterland in Feb 1967. We had heard the Mayall was going to introduce a new guitarist to replace Peter Green on this tour and sure enough, we saw a baby-faced 17-year old Mick Taylor out there! BTW, the next act was Albert King who almost stole the show from the best ever, Jimi.

[fidomusic]

Another Mick Taylor classic. Thanks for posting.

[jagheterchristopher]

the pic at 1.22 of mick is from love in vain, right? where the hell did that video go? cant find it anywhere! a shame thats what it is.. anyone got it? Peace

[mybrucespringsteen]

oy remembah when mick would play the lone stahr, wot a guitarist!

[Bluesdirections]

This was my introduction to the Bluesbreakers. Love the Bluesbreakers pictures.

[ChaliQ1]

Don't forget that lead on Can't ya hear me knockin Taylor is the top cat.

[eaglerockwillfuckyou]

great

[MegaDoucet]

gènial point à la ligne!!!!

[aristotlehead]

Thanks for this, good old Mick, always underrated in the Stones, so brilliant on Time Waits For No One. I was interested you'd heard from Chris Mercer, I was wondering what had happened to him. Rens Stella (below) told me he's living in America now, and still playing. Any more info?

[wilsonmcphert]

I have put in 'more info' background provided by Chris Mercer about the two photos he sent me and which are now included in the slideshow, and I summarised some of his observations about his time in the Bluesbreakers. As you will see, yes, he is living in America and is still playing.

[aristotlehead]

Thank for replying, I thought I had read your comments in the sidebar, I don't know I missed that bit about how he works for Power Line now. I feel a bit silly now. Anyway, good to know Chris is still about and playing. I used to have his solo album 'Anglo Sax-Man' but it got nicked. Hopefully it'll get a re-release one day.

[wilsonmcphert]

I should have been clearer that I updated 'more info' to include info about Chris Mercer, so it wouldn't have been there when you read it! So you did not miss it! Thanks for the info about his solo album, which I didn't know about.

[fidomusic]

@aristotlehead Chris is actually living in Portland, Oregon. He plays with a woman whose name I can't remember. They have a band and do 1940s type swing music. I lived and worked in Portland and considered seeing him (I am a Bluesbreakers fan from way back). But I went onto their site and heard some stuff and decided I didn't like the music. Not my scene. So I didn't see him.

[RensStella]

fantastic, classic, it is so great to hear this again today, thank you!!!