RIP Long John Baldry

Long John Baldry passed away July 21. He was 64 years old.

"Long John who?" you might think. And why is he mentioned here? Well, although he may not be that well-known he was a major player in Great Britain in the 60's. Here's what they say about him on his homepage:

"Long John's forty-five year career is a rich tapestry of recording, performing, great bands, discoverer of talent and actor. Long John is particularly known for his associations with former band members Rod Stewart and Elton John.

Looking closely at LJB's musical tree you will discover that virtually every musician who came up in England during the 60's have some connection to LJB. Names like Ginger Baker, Jeff Beck, Brian Jones, Beatles, Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart and the Rolling Stones are cemented in LJB's musical history.

In fact, Eric Clapton has stated many times that he was inspired to pick up a guitar after seeing Long John Baldry perform in the early 1960s.Undeniably, Long John was one of the founding Fathers of British Rock n' Roll in the 60s, and without his presence the scene, particularly the Blues scene, may have been quite different."

Elton John played piano in the group Bluesology 1966 -1968. The lead singer was Long John Baldry, and Elton borrowed the "John" from Baldry when it was time to pick a stage name for himself.

Over on the RadioDupree homepage we have news about the 30 anniversary of one of Elton's best albums; Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy. The major hit from that album was "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" where one of the lines go "And someone saved my life tonight sugar bear..."
The sugar bear in question being none other than Long John Baldry.