Wake Up Call

Performer: John Mayall
Artist: Buddy Guy; Albert Collins; Mick Taylor; Mavis Staples
Engineer: Dave McNair
Producer: Dave McNair; R.S. Field
Distributor: BMG (distributor)

Notes: John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers: John Mayall (vocals, guitar, harmonica, keyboards); Coco Montoya (guitar, background vocals); Rick Cortes (bass, background vocals); Joe Yuele (drums, background vocals). Additional personnel: Mavis Staples (vocals); Buddy Guy (guitar, vocals); David Grissom (guitar, background vocals); Mick Taylor, Albert Collins (guitar); Joe Sublett (saxophone); Darrell Leonard (trumpet); Tom Canning (Hammond organ, Wurlitzer electric piano); Dave McNair, Mike Bruno (percussion); Maggie Mayall (background vocals). Recorded at The Clubhouse, Burbank, California between October 19th and November 10th, 1992. Personnel: John Mayall (vocals, guitar, harmonica, piano, Wurlitzer organ); Buddy Guy (vocals, guitar); Mavis Staples (vocals); Coco Montoya, David Grissom, Albert Collins, Mick Taylor (guitar); Joe Sublett (saxophone); Darrell Leonard (trumpet); Tom Canning (Wurlitzer organ); Rick Cortes (bass guitar, background vocals); Joe Yuele (drums); Dave McNair, Michael Bruno (percussion); Maggie Mayall (background vocals). Recording information: Clubhouse, Burbank, CA (10/19/1992-11/10/1992). Photographer: Richard McLaurin. Unknown Contributor Roles: Dave McNair; John Gabrysiak; John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. Arranger: John Mayall. Fuelled by Coco Montoya's searing but economical string-slashing, drummer Joe Yuele, and bassist Rick Cortes, John Mayall has managed to keep a stable core of Bluesbreakers together in recent years. Mayall rarely does the same album twice, and Wake Up Call finds him returning to a basic, physical sound after 1990's more progressive/highly produced A Sense of Place. The harp whiz has rarely flirted with the pop charts over the decades, a track record that will likely handicap the title track - a potential hit featuring guest vocalist Mavis Staples and some take-charge riffing from former mate Mick Taylor. For pure guitar joy though, Montoya turns the trick all on his own with barnburners "Loaded Dice" and "Nature's Disappearing." ~ Roch Parisien

Q (5/93, p.96) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...[Mayall] carries himself with the insouciant demeanour of the old timer....judging by the zesty standards of this Bluesbreakers line-up, he can still spot talent..." Down Beat (7/93, p.35) - 4 Stars - Very Good - "...contains some highly charged boogies, swinging blues-rock shuffles, a couple of lyrical, mid-tempo soul gems, and the show-stopping slow-blues crawl through Junior Wells' 'I Could Cry'..."

Like most British blues fanatics in the early '60s, John Mayall took his cues primarily from the stars of Chicago's electric blues scene. Both with the Bluesbreakers and later on his own, Mayall played a large role in introducing white audiences to electric blues. He was a leader in the emerging blues-rock movement, and his bands were an early proving ground for a number of future stars--Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce of Cream, Mick Taylor of the Rolling Stones, and Peter Green, John McVie, and Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac.

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