| The Turning Point | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | October 1969 | |||
| Recorded | 12 July 1969 | |||
| Venue | Fillmore East, New York City, New York [1] | |||
| Genre | Blues | |||
| Length | 47:24 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | John Mayall [1] | |||
| John Mayall chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| PopMatters | (favourable) [3] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [4] |
The Turning Point is a live album by John Mayall, featuring British blues music recorded at a concert at Bill Graham's Fillmore East on 12 July 1969.
When John Mayall was starting another band after the break-up of the Bluesbreakers in May 1969, [5] he decided to have a band that would play "low volume music" – or music without "heavy lead guitar and drums". [1]
The performers on the album were Mayall on vocals, harmonica, a slide and a Fender Telecaster guitar, a tambourine, and mouth percussion, Jon Mark on acoustic guitar, Steve Thompson on bass, and Johnny Almond on tenor and alto saxophones, flutes, and mouth percussion. All the songs on the album were written or co-written by John Mayall. Thompson co-wrote "California", "Thoughts About Roxanne" and "Don't Waste My Time". [1] Another track, "I'm Gonna Fight For You, J.B.", is a tribute to the American blues guitarist J. B. Lenoir who died in 1967 and who had a deep influence on Mayall (this was Mayall's second such tribute to the musician; "The Death of J.B. Lenoir" appeared on his earlier Crusade album). Two concerts took place, on 11 and 12 July. [5] All tracks are from the second gig.
The album was produced by John Mayall, who also designed the packaging and was the album's art director. The recording engineer was Eddie Kramer, who had engineered Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, among others. [1]
In 2001, a remastered CD reissue included three additional tracks from the same performance.
Earlier recordings of the same material, live from June 1969 in England, were released in 1999 on the first CD of the two-CD set The Masters (the second disc contains mostly interviews). A concert at the Marquee on June 30, 1969, featuring a similar playlist, has been issued. The music from the two CD's of The Masters and the performance at the Marquee were released in 2004 as a 2-CD package, The Turning Point Soundtrack, credited to John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. Portions of these earlier rehearsals and performances had been filmed, and were released as a 25-minute black-and-white 1996 BBC TV documentary The Turning Point. (They were included, as well, on a 2003 DVD, Godfather of British Blues/The Turning Point.).
All songs written by John Mayall, except where indicated.
Bonus tracks (2001 reissue)
Other recordings of the same material:
John Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, guitarist, organist and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band which has counted among its members some of the most famous blues and blues rock musicians.
Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton, colloquially known as The Beano Album, is a studio album by the English blues rock band John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. Produced by Mike Vernon and released in 1966 by Decca Records (UK) and London Records (US), it pioneered a guitar-dominated blues-rock sound.
70th Birthday Concert is a live electric blues video recording of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers to celebrate Mayall's 70th Birthday. Recorded in Liverpool, England on 19 July 2003, the concert was notable as it featured Eric Clapton as a guest, so marked the first time he and Mayall had performed together in almost 40 years, if one discounts Clapton guesting on Mayall's Back to the Roots. The set also features Mick Taylor and Chris Barber.
A Hard Road is the third album recorded by John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, released in 1967. It features Peter Green on lead guitar, John McVie on bass, Aynsley Dunbar on drums and John Almond on saxophone. Tracks 5, 7 and 13 feature the horn section of Alan Skidmore and Ray Warleigh. Peter Green sings lead vocals on "You Don't Love Me" and "The Same Way".
The Lost Episodes is a 1996 posthumous album by Frank Zappa which compiles previously unreleased material. Much of the material covered dates from early in his career, and as early as 1958, into the mid-1970s. Zappa had been working on these tracks in the years before his death in 1993.
Eric Clapton is the debut studio album by British rock musician Eric Clapton, released in August 1970 under Atco and Polydor Records.
Crusade is the fourth album and third studio album by the British blues rock band John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, released on 1 September 1967 on Decca Records. It was the follow-up to A Hard Road, also released in 1967. As with their two previous albums, Crusade was produced by Mike Vernon. The album was the first recordings of the then-18-year-old guitarist Mick Taylor.
Blues from Laurel Canyon is a 1968 album by John Mayall, featuring British blues music. It was his first album after the breakup of his band the Bluesbreakers in May 1968, though others claim it was on 14 July 1968. It was also his last album with Decca before moving to Polydor.
Michael William Hugh Vernon is an English music executive studio owner, and record producer from Harrow, Middlesex. He produced albums for British blues artists and groups in the 1960s, working with the Bluesbreakers, David Bowie, Duster Bennett, Savoy Brown, Chicken Shack, Climax Blues Band, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac, Peter Green, Danny Kirwan, John Mayall, Christine McVie and Ten Years After amongst others.
The 1982 Reunion Concert is a live album from a concert by British blues musician John Mayall. His sidemen are Mick Taylor on guitar, John McVie on bass and Colin Allen on drums. The concert took place at the Wax Museum, Washington DC, on 17 June 1982. It was released in 1994 by Repertoire Records as a CD credited to John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.
USA Union is a 1970 album by blues musician John Mayall, featuring Harvey Mandel on guitar, Larry Taylor on bass and Don "Sugarcane" Harris on violin. The album was recorded on July 27 & 28th, 1970 at Larrabee Studios in LA and released by Polydor later in the same year John Mayall - Discography.
Live from Austin, TX is a live album by John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. The performance from September 13, 1993 was for the TV show Austin City Limits and has been released in 2007 on CD and DVD. Only John Mayall is credited on the cover but he can be heard to announce 'The Bluesbreakers': Joe Yuele on drums, Rick Cortes on bass and Coco Montoya on lead guitar. Texas guitarist David Grissom makes a guest appearance on last track.
Back to the Roots is a 1971 double album by John Mayall released on Polydor. Recording sessions took place both in California and London where Mayall invited some former members of his band, notably guitarists Eric Clapton and Mick Taylor. At the end of the 1980s Mayall remixed some tracks and issued them along with some of the older material as Archives to Eighties. An expanded two-CD version of Back to the Roots now includes both the original and later remixed versions of the tracks.
Ten Years Are Gone is a double album by John Mayall, recorded at Sunset Sound, Los Angeles, and released in 1973. Like its predecessors Jazz Blues Fusion and Moving On, it features Freddy Robinson on guitar and Blue Mitchell on trumpet.
Empty Rooms is a studio album by English blues musician John Mayall, released in March 1970 on Polydor. It is a follow-up to the live album The Turning Point, released earlier in the year with the same musicians: Jon Mark on acoustic guitar, Johnny Almond on saxophones and flute, and Stephen Thompson on bass. John Mayall sings, plays harmonica, guitars and keyboards. Former Canned Heat bassist Larry Taylor guests as second bass player on one track, "To a Princess," improvising with Thompson on an unusual bass duet. The absence of a drummer leaves the rhythm rather fluid and the resulting sound is unusual, even for a John Mayall album. The songs, all written by Mayall, mostly addressed his romance with photographer Nancy Throckmorton, a theme he would pursue further on USA Union. The album is dedicated to her.
For the American band see Matthew Melton
Looking Back is the seventh album released by John Mayall in August 1969 by Decca Records. The album features songs by both John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and John Mayall solo work. The album reached No. 79 on the Billboard 200. Confusingly, there are two different albums with the title "Looking Back": a Decca UK release as a single album and a Decca Germany release as a double album. Later issues on CD would use the Deram label.
Wake Up Call is an album by British bluesman John Mayall with various special guest appearances by Buddy Guy, Mick Taylor, Mavis Staples and other musicians, released on 6 April 1993.
Spinning Coin is a studio album by the British bluesman John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers.
Thru the Years is a compilation album of music by John Mayall released in October 1971 by Decca Records in the U.K. and London Records in the U.S.A. The album was the second compilation to be issued by Decca/London with Mayall's blessing, although his contract with them had ceased. It features a mixture of previously unissued songs or non-album tracks that had only been released as singles.
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