Dave Mason, the singer, songwriter and guitarist who first found fame with Traffic and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the band, died Sunday. He was 79.
“On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of the passing of Dave Mason,” said a statement from the family shared with Rolling Stone. “Dave Mason lived a remarkable life devoted to the music and people he loved.”
No cause of death was given.
Mason, who co-founded Traffic and wrote one of their best-known songs, “Feelin’ Alright,” later a hit for Joe Cocker, scored his own solo U.S. hit in 1977 with “We Just Disagree,” co-written with Jim Krueger.
He recorded and performed with the likes of Paul McCartney, George Harrison, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Steve Winwood, Fleetwood Mac, Delaney Bramlett and Cass Eilliot.
Born May 10, 1946, in Worcester, England, David Thomas Mason fell 20 feet from a ceiling loft at the age of 5, bending a hipbone and contacting a rare disease that landed him in a hospital for 18 months and forced him to learn how to walk again.
His initial dream was to become a member of the Royal Air Force, but at 16, he began to play guitar and sing, and by the following year, was a working musician in his first band, The Jaguars, before forming The Hellions, striking up a lifelong friendship with Jim Capaldi.
The two wrote their first song together, “Shades of Blue,” and recorded it as a B-side for their Pye Records single, a cover of Jackie Deshannon’s “Daydreaming of You,” produced by rock gadfly Kim Fowley. The two continued to work as a team, forming yet another group, The Deep Feeling, before hooking up with two Capaldi acquaintances, Winwood and Chris Wood, to form Traffic.
Traffic’s mythology began when they retreated to a secluded stone cottage in the countryside to write and rehearse material for their classic 1967 debut, Mr. Fantasy. The group’s first single was the Winwood/Capaldi-penned “Paper Moon,” followed by Mason’s “Hole in My Shoe,” which went to No. 2 on the U.K. chart.
Mason’s whimsical melodies, light feel and mellow vocals provided a contrast to Winwood on his three tracks, “Utterly Simple,” “House for Everyone” and “Hope I Never Fine Me There,” demonstrating his virtuosity on sitar, vocals and guitar.
Mason suddenly quit the band after their debut album over artistic differences with Winwood, recording a solo single, “Little Woman,” for Island Records in 1969, the B-side of which, “Just for You,” appeared on Traffic’s third album, Last Exit. Mason had rejoined the band briefly during sessions for their second, self-titled album (which included his “Feelin’ Alright”) before leaving again for a solo career and moving to the U.S. in 1968. When Traffic came over for their first stateside tour in March, he rejoined the band for a handful of songs.
When Traffic broke up again in late ’68, Mason, Capaldi and Wood teamed with Mick Weaver in the short-lived Wooden Frog, while Winwood joined the super group Blind Faith with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker.
During this period, Mason was active as a session player, turning his friend Jimi Hendrix on to Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” and playing 12-string acoustic guitar on the recorded version. He also appeared, though was uncredited, on the Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet through his relationship with Traffic producer Jimmy Miller, and he also played on George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass with Clapton.
He sang on both Hendrix’s “Crosstown Traffic” and The Beatles’ “Across the Universe.” Other cameos included work with Graham Nash (“Songs for Beginners,” “Wild Tales”), McCartney (“Venus and Mars”), Joe Walsh (“You Can’t Argue With a Sick Mind”), Ron Wood (“Gimmee Some Nick”), Clapton (“Crossroads”) and Stephen Stills (“Thoroughfare Gap”).
Having relocated to Los Angeles in ‘69, Mason joined Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, playing lead guitar for the band when they opened for Blind Faith, where Clapton took an immediate liking to the group and eventually joined them. Mason’s “Only You Know and I Know” became a No. 2 hit for them and in 1970, he signed with Blue Thumb Records as a solo act, co-producing his debut album with Tommy LiPuma.
The first result of the sessions was “World in Changes,” a single released in April 1970, followed by the classic Alone Together album in June. The LP peaked in the Top 25, and a second single, Mason’s take on his own “Only You Know and I Know,” became a Top 40 hit.
While in L.A., Mason struck up a friendship with Cass Elliot, forming a duo that debuted at the Hollywood Bowl and then played the Fillmore East in New York, releasing the 1971 album, Dave Mason & Cass Elliot, before Mason briefly hooked up with a new configuration of Traffic for the live album, Welcome to the Canteen, featuring a version of “Feelin’ Alright” and “Sad and Deep as You,” recorded in the U.K.
Mason decided to remain in England after the shows and was an original member of Derek And The Dominos prior to the release of the song “Layla,” when he was replaced by Duane Allman after recording several tracks as their second guitarist. “That’s when Eric was pretty fucked up,” said Mason. “And there was just never any rehearsing. I just got bored and returned to the States.”
Legal issues with Blue Note Records had Mason withholding the follow-up to the successful album Alone Together, resulting in a lawsuit and the label releasing unauthorized “bootlegs” of the material such as “Headkeeper” in 1972 and “Dave Mason Is Alive” in 1973. Leaving Blue Note by declaring personal bankruptcy, he was snapped up by Columbia Records and legendary label exec Clive Davis just prior to his own ignominious departure from the label.
The first album under the arrangement, 1973’s It’s Like You Never Left, included one of his all-time best ballads, with a harmonica solo from Stevie Wonder on the song “The Lonely One,” but it wasn’t until Let It Flow, released in 1977, that Mason struck paydirt, going platinum on the strength of the hit single, “We Just Disagree,” which peaked at No.12 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was later successfully covered by country singer Billy Dean.
In 1979, Mason played himself in the roller disco movie Skatetown, U.S.A. opposite Scott Baio, Flip Wilson, Ruth Buzzi and, in his first big screen role, Patrick Swayze, writing and performing two songs, including the film’s theme. His single, “Save Me,” from the 1980 album, Old Crest on a New Wave, featured a duet with Michael Jackson.
During this time, Mason was a major concert attraction, headlining Madison Square Garden and the L.A. Forum before growing taking a break, thanks to problems with drug and alcohol addiction. He returned to recording with 1987’s “Some Assembly Required,” on the Canadian Maze label (A&M in the U.S.), then hooked up with Voyager/Mca for Two Hearts later that same year. He briefly joined a new Fleetwood Mac lineup in 1994 and 1996 for tours and the 1995 album, Time, which included two songs he co-wrote.
In 1997, Mason was scheduled to join Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band to perform “Only You Know and I Know,” “We Just Disagree” and “Feelin’ Alright,” but he was dropped from the lineup just before the tour started.
In 2002, a Dave Mason Live at Sunrise DVD was released, as he continued to tour, performing 100 shows a year with his Dave Mason Band and, more recently, Traffic Jam. In 2004, Traffic and Mason were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Dave Matthews.
Mason released 26 Letters, 12 Notes, his first solo album in more than 20 years in 2008 and began to release some of his archival recordings since then, including 2014’s “Future’s Past,” and 2016’s “Traffic Jam,” both featuring new material and rerecorded versions of his most iconic songs.
Mason was active in a number of philanthropic pursuits, including an official supporter of Little Kids Rock, a nonprofit organization providing free musical instruments and lessons to public school children throughout the U.S.
He was also a founding board member of Yoga Blue, which is devoted to teaching yoga and other holistic practices to those recovering from substance abuse. He also was a founder of Rock Our Vets, a charity helping supply food and clothing to homeless veterans and laptop computers for those aspiring to continue their education, as well as a suicide prevention program.
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