It's true but it happened once with another Black guy named Jimi something and a nod to two others named Hazel and Isley then they turned off the segregated faucet and said go to the back of the building for water.
Would you consider Chris Buck a blues player? I think he's right in there with blues/rock. Like Derek Trucks, Chris doesn't sound like anyone else, I'm in awe every time I see one of his videos. Just the intros to some of his vids are insane. For sure he has the skills and not just RUclips skills either as he does play in a band. He just did a Purple Rain solo with Martin Miller and did a video explaining it later on that it was a last minute thing and he was pretty wasted on some strong German beers, lol.
Man I think Chris is insanely talented but I actually wish he had more restraint. As impressed as I am, I don’t find myself tuning in to any of his projects, nothing hooks me and just a bit too busy with his phrasing. I loved cardinal blacks singles and was really unimpressed with the studio product on the final album. Dudes still great.
@@adam_michael540 Same, the album sounded a little too…raw, if that makes sense. It’s a big difference from the singles where they sounded modern and polished.
I think H.E.R. - if she wanted to - could be a blues icon. She's got the chops, the look, the vibe. She could follow the Mayer template and capitalize on her popularity and go the blues route. I say again, IF she wanted to be a blues icon.
Second this, Rick Beato did a video about her recently and she's fully legit. Chops, stage presence, voice, name recognition; she's got the full package to be the next mainstream Guitar Hero.
A better question is, "who can bring the blues back to the main stream?" I think Larkin Poe could bring in a younger generation. But does today's music medias allow for great players?
Shamefully only discovered Mayer a couple years ago with Stop this train. He has such a broad appeal, I got hooked because of the guitar wizardry, some I guess because of the pop side of it. The next blues star will be one that can appeal to different groups.
Kingfish. His songs are as good as his guitar playing. Unlike some other established, modern day guitar gods (cough, JB... cough, cough JM) you don’t have to tolerate their mostly bland, mediocre or once Top 40 Pop songwriting just to get to the amazing solos and guitarmanship. Plus Kingfish is a down to Earth, approachable nice kid. Deserves the success he’s earning.
In 1968, an album called Super Session was released and reached #12 on Billboard. Guitarist Mike Bloomfield played on Side One only and this half-an-album was the was the Rosetta Stone, the Magna Carta, and the Ten Commandments of the electric blues guitar.
I almost shat myself laughing when I saw the thumbnail. My vote goes to Christone "Kingfish" Ingram. The dude is pure blues, and throws in some rock and roll for fun. I'd argue he's the closest to SRV we have right now.
Kingfish Ingram is picking up a following. International touring, Grammy awards. He's from Clarksdale so some of us who live down here have seen him since he was a kid. An unknown player a little younger than Kingfish, DK Harrell from Arkansas, blew Gary Clark Jr. off the stage at a concert in Indianola (which included Derek Trucks playing BB King's Lucille and Susan Tedeshi, and Kingfish and was a free concert. 200 people showed up). He's not as young as Kingfish and DK, but Luther Dickinson of the North Mississippi All Stars has been doing Hill Country Blues for decades and is a really great guitarist and showman. He's linked up with the Allman/Betts/Trucks family and some of the Dead family so has some of the same background as John Mayer now. Among the blues aficionados those are some of the younger folks who will carry the flame. Will they be the next big thing is another question.
A few criteria would need to be considered for this to happen again: 1. Attractiveness 2. Balance between originality and inspiration (talent) 3. Good songs
I was living in Decatur Georgia when John Mayer and Clay Cook were in a duo together called Lo Fi Masters. Saw them at Eddie’s Attic every couple of weeks or so for $5 a show. Many of the songs on John’s first solo album were those songs. Shortly after they started playing there, Clay Cook left the group, John began playing solo. Again most of those songs and a few of his own. It was an acoustic bluesy thing. John worked at the club taking peoples money for admission etc…on the nights he did not play. A couple times I had the chance to see him on a random Sunday at the club with few people in and sit at the front of the stage. Believe me he knew his way around the blues back then. I moved back to the west coast and turned on tv, radio, mtv, etc…and there was this pop star John Mayer who was dating Jennifer Aniston. A very different appearing marketing package then he was back at Eddie’s. I lost interest due to the marketing machine until I saw him on Eric Clayton’s crossroads event. WOW….what a journey…both envious and happy for him to see a small town kid make it so big. Great player!
Guys, I’m not even remotely kidding. I’m watching this in my kitchen. Thank God in my kitchen because my Pop Tarts got trapped in the toaster and burst into flame. My toaster was literally ablaze. I’d turned around to get my coffee from the Keurig machine and there it was. I was able to act quickly, unplug it and throw a glassful of water on it. Crisis subsided. Just airing my kitchen out a bit now from blueberry Pop Tart smoke. But surely, this must be a sign that John Mayer is the next blues guitar hero. How’s your morning going?
i went to a James Bay concert on a whim and was surprised by his proficiency on guitar.. can clearly hear his roots are blues based.. he def deserves to be mentioned in this conversation
I'm in line to be the next blues guitar torch bearer. I just have to get this pentatonic scale thing down and figure out chord changes...guitar is hard!
Complicated topic, BECAUSE: to be the torch-bearer, you have to have modern songwriting skills and intense charisma/stage presence in addition to a signature style on guitar. If (and this is a huge ‘IF’) Larkin Poe starts writing hits and getting big song placements in film and TV, they are it. Gary Clark Jr came very close but the hits were not there. Chris Buck is probably my favorite but Cardinal Black also needs to write a hit. So do Tedeschi Trucks, Bonamassa, Marcus King and Kingfish. If Joey Landreth ever goes for the commercial jugular, or even hardcore blues, look out. He’s the best writer out of all of them, hands down. Blues-influenced rock had a revival with the Black Keys and the White Stripes, and there have been big blues-influenced hits like ‘Human’ by Rag’n’Bone Man in 2018. But no one artist has stood up and said ‘I’ll carry the tradition’ with the songs and star quality to back it up.
You guys forgot to mention the late great amazing Gary Moore since he passed a lot of people have discovered he may be the best blues player ever but he started off in classic rock with his earlier bands then Thin Lizzy
I discovered GM from a random RUclips video. It actually sounded so different to my brain that it woke me up from a nap and I was floored by the guitar tone and his feel. I mean I had NO IDEA who he even was!!!! I’m a guitar player for life and didn’t know who GM was. Wild!
Gary Moore is one of my biggest influences on guitar I'm glad you discovered him! He played with such ferocity and he could play super fast and technical but he also had the most amazing feel and tone and his playing was so melodic and soulful. I play in a blues/fusion band and I have based alot of my licks and tone off of him just with my own spin on it of course I'll always sound like me but man it's hard to beat Gary Moore, Joe Bonnamassa and Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Stevie Ray Vaughn, Robben Ford, Larry Carlton and Steve Luckather all amazing players but Gary is my favorite and the other players I mentioned.
Honestly, I don't believe there's anyone in the queue to take John Mayer's place. He's in a league of his own. And when I say that, I'm not saying he's better than any other blues player out there. But there is no one, currently, that has such a definitive guitar style, voice, and songwriting capability. Also, John is a blues player, not a Bluesman, if that makes sense? His looks are also a large contributing factor to his success. But, I think if Gary Clark Jr. crafted more cohesive albums (IMO), then maybe he would be runner up. Great topic, guys!
For me it's Marcus King and Derek Trucks...I've been obsessed with these two for a couple years now....I've seen them both live in the UK too and they were just amazing...
I think Marcus King is talented enough and relatable enough to dub the blues crown by popular opinion. What would boost him to that point is if he was pushed in the main stream media. Dude can play. You could argue the same with Ariel Posen, Joey Landreth, Josh Smith, Derek Trucks, and Chris Buck. In all honesty there are so many talented six string slingers these days that they all could be the torch bearer.
Alot of really good Blues players over the years never got radio play, so they're unknown to most people...I think of Walter Trout (Got a broken heart) as one of those....Davy Knowles and Donna Grantis are pretty awesome👍
The biggest hindrance for most people will be the looks. You have to be good looking in the pop world. But you have to be able to play for the blues world, that's a tough combo for most.
I always said that Mayer was super smart. He played what he needed to in order to be famous. Once he was huge for his pop songwriting he suddenly decided to play what was in his heart and did some great blues.
Mayer said exactly that in an interview that I can't recall ATM. The pop music pays the bills and that allows him to play what he is truly passionate about.
I think you bring up a very good point. We as guitarists tend to be a lot more aware of non-mainstream musicians and it is perhaps even safe to say that we are a bit more accepting of very niche, guitar community focused music. When I see someone say "Eric Gales is going to be the next big thing!" I have to really ask why. I know that he is very, very good but as the guys said in the video, Mayer and Clapton became huge because they pretty quickly entered the highest echelons of mainstream music pretty early in their careers. They became household names not just for guitarists but for just about anyone who occasionally turned on a radio or went anywhere where pop music might be playing. We (as guitarists) will obviously have our thumb on the pulse of the guitar playing world and as such, otherwise relatively unknown guitarists will seem much, much more popular to us. The only way that someone will replace Mayer is if they get into the mainstream pop scene early in their career and leave a widespread impression.
I saw SRV at a bar called The Decade in Pittsbugh, PA in 1983 right before Texas Flood came out with a crowd of 100-150 people max. The man was mesmerizing.
Probably gonna get some backlash here but oh well. Firstly, Mayer is amazing af on guitar. Can not deny that. He can play blues very good but to say he’s a blues champion to me is a little far fetched considering 85% of his set list is pop rock. Like I said, he’s amazing! I can not deny him of that. I feel like personally for me the modern day Blues champion is Joe Bonamassa . Just my take on it.
Gotta say I remember when Mayer first hit the scene. Figured he was as just a flavor of the day pop star and wouldn't go anywhere. In a weird way his success gives me hope for the future of the music industry.
Eric Gales and Marcus King are two monster players. Gales has killer tones because of his upside down playing style. Marcus King has the old school vibe and also killer tone.
John was just smart enough to get his money right with the pop so he could do what he loves the rest of his life and not have to worry about money. Plus, pop is not awful. Some of those songs were good.
Don't compare Bonamassa to SRV. SRV did have videos with airplay on MTV. During that time young people still listened to regular Rock . His covers of Hendrix were well known as Hendrix had a reissued popularity around the beginning of grunge. Probably more popular than during Hendrix's life.
With no disrespect to John Mayer at all, as far as I am concerned Buddy Guy is still the reigning king of the blues. I've seen John Mayer play blues live on a a really scary level , but if someone can point out a studio album of his that is a gold standard for his blues champion torch bearing level I'm all ears. Buddy is the real deal. Arguably the most important (guitar) blues musician alive today, with no one even slightly close. I would guess that pretty much every musician mentioned below would agree including John Mayer.
Blues, in and of itself, is relatively obscure to the masses. Mayer was able to use his pop stardom to bring newer listeners and his fans to the blues. Nothing wrong with that. Marcus King, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, and a few others are probably in the running, but they aren't going to be household names for most listeners. But, what so I know? I'm just an old guy with eclectic musical tastes...
Totally agree.Rory could play all sorts of blues styles.Accoustic, electric,slide .Gary Moore was also an amazing blues player.I would point out Kingfish, Chris Burke and Joe Bonamassa are excellent maybe throw in Derek Trucks for good measure.Damn there's so many fine players out there.
There's no shortage of current blues players that guitarists love - as demonstrated in the comments so far. As far as pop stars with a big platform who could make the shift my first thought is Shawn Mendes. He's a decent guitarist but sticks to rhythm from what I've seen. But I think he and Mayer are supposed to be tight so he would have a solid mentor if he wanted to do a more blues-based album. Plus he's dating an older woman now so maybe she'd be into.
I have been waiting for months now for these guys to get to 50K subscribers. Does anyone know if they're still planning to give away the Silver Sky when they get to 50K? It's getting really close!!!
The biggest problem in my opinion is the lack of really good songs . Too many young players even if they are excellent players are still relying on 50 year old songs particularly by Hendrix to excite their audiences !
I second Billy Strings - he releases a catchy bluegrass song that crosses over into a popular hit, then transitions over and unleashes a blues album that blows everyone away.
I definitely think Billy Strings has the capability but I feel like he’s just too rooted in Bluegrass to take that turn. But i’d kill to hear that album too
The reason no one is getting close to Mayer yet is his songwriting, he’s original and fresh. Kingfish and Marcus King are great players but I don’t hear an original style yet or memorable songs.
Since when was John Mayer ever a blues champion? That's heresy of the highest order, and judging by the info-box, you wouldn't know what blues is if I hit you in the head with it. If we're talking about "kids", then it's obviously Christone "Kingfish" Ingram hands down, as for already seasoned players, then Eric Gales & Larry McCray are pretty much hard to beat. I'll throw in "Captain" Kirk Franklin in there for good measure too.
⚓️ Thanks Casino 😎 I agree got to get some newnessyness into rock blues. But I can’t handle $140 + tickets 😎 The recent Swift mess for example. The next show for me is Larkin Poe at the Fillmore in Feb. … like $50. ⚓️ corporate monopolies on venues > Live Nation < is untenable.
Have followed ec from cream in Glasgow and only see him once play proper blues not long after his nightmare ( Connor) he played tears in heaven and he had the blues players/shouters repressed anger in his playing, he aged 10 years in front of your eyes that night. I think maybe Quinn Sullivan if he really wants it. 👍👍👍Respect to you fellas.
Josh Smith is the undisputed apex predator among contemporary blues guitarists. Marcus Smith or Kingfish are the most likely ones to have more commercial success tho
I agree with a lot of the below comments. There are a lot of great blues players out there right now. I think the difference is, Mayer can lead you to discovering those players but he can also get you to an artisy like Lizzy McAlpine. He's got an incredibly unique pop and blues sensibility.
Kingfish could possibly do it. His music isn't mainstream but he has the voice/talent as a great singer. And he is personally into mainstream music, so could see someone famous pick him up to play guitar and sing on a hit. But yeah...it's tough because blues just isn't mainstream (if it ever was). The blues that people think of as famous from the past had other elements to it IMO. A lot was more rock than blues IMO.
The blues have evolve i think. Jazz have evolved and i think for the blues to survive, is to have it on a R&B and lo fi music. Just opinion. I don’t know anything whatsoever
In the eyes of the general non-guitar-playing public, even John Mayer is NOT seen as being famous for being a blues guitarist. Among guitar players, yes, but not the general population.
Kenny Wayne Shepard. He wouldn't have had Tommy Layton & Tommy Shannon of SRV's band "Double Trouble" play for him (Tommy still does) if he wasn't the real deal. He's the only living, highest charting, blues artist with "Blue on Black" (#66) since B.B. King did it in 1969 with "The Thrill is Gone" at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100. A case could be made for Gary Clarke, Jr., too.
We're in a strange time, in the 80s-90s if a guitarist won a "best guitarist in the world" poll in a credible and influential magazine, they would automatically play fairly big venues and sell plenty of tickets, earlier this year I saw Eric Gales and Marcus king in the space of two weeks, Eric had just been named the world's best guitar player by Guitarist magazine and he was playing to a room of about 150 people, it seems even though more people play these days, guitar players are not stars anymore
I feel like there's plenty of stuff to fuel the Blues over the last few years. It's only a matter of time until someone taps into it. Larkin Poe is doing great stuff that I feel is most likely to crossover. Christone Kingfish is pure blues and one of my current favorites. Marcus King has an awesome voice and incredible tone. I would count it as a loss if any of them didn't blow up.
I know Sean Mann is not a rock star and doesn’t have any hit records to back up his name but he is one of my favorite players at time. He can definitely hold his own against some of the best.
Check out Albert Castiglia, J.P. Soars, they're out of the South Florida blues scene and are awesome. The Danielle Nicole band out of KC she's one of the best singers out there and Brandon Miller her guitar player/husband has is own band and he's another sick player. Damon Fowler in the Tampa area is crazy good. ☮️❤️
Not a blues guitar man, but just in terms of being a great artist, Harry Styles definitely deserves the praise he gets. Great songwriter and Mayer/Pino have collaborated with him already a few times.
I have never been able to get over Mayer's pop roots. I can't imagine ever wanting to see him play live. .... But then I honestly didn't much like Clapton, that he ever played blues is now in the distant past, and he hasn't released anything worth listening to, IMO, in well over 50 years!
With guitar heroes like Gary Moore, Peter Green, Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, Warren Haynes and SRV, I might be all alone, but John Mayer bores me to tears. I just don't get it. Maybe it's his vocals that turn me off. Kind of mush mouth. I usually post POSITIVE, but you asked for comments.
Eric Gales is almost 50. He’s older than Mayer and Bonamassa who are both 45. Need to look for someone in their 20s who will transition into more of a blues player the same way Mayer and Clapton did.
Christone "Kingfish" Ingram and Marcus King are leading the way for me! Saw both of them in the past year and was blown away!
Ya beat me to it.. kingfish...is epic.. his playing is so natural.. and felt in every note
Saw Kingfish too recently. He’s the future.
I learned of Kingfish when I was first diving into blues and saw him cover “The Thrill is Gone” and was hooked!
These are the two guys that sprang immediately to my mind as well.
These are the first two that came to mind. Amazing players, fantastic voices, great song writers.
He's not strictly blues, but Eric Gales is on another level altogether. It's a crime he's not far more well known.
Absolutely, gales is amazing
It's true but it happened once with another Black guy named Jimi something and a nod to two others named Hazel and Isley then they turned off the segregated faucet and said go to the back of the building for water.
@@maximusindicusoblivious180 Gales' playing is unreal, so I'll be promoting him wherever I can and whenever I can.
Would you consider Chris Buck a blues player? I think he's right in there with blues/rock.
Like Derek Trucks, Chris doesn't sound like anyone else, I'm in awe every time I see one of his videos. Just the intros to some of his vids are insane.
For sure he has the skills and not just RUclips skills either as he does play in a band. He just did a Purple Rain solo with Martin Miller and did a video explaining it later on that it was a last minute thing and he was pretty wasted on some strong German beers, lol.
Man I think Chris is insanely talented but I actually wish he had more restraint. As impressed as I am, I don’t find myself tuning in to any of his projects, nothing hooks me and just a bit too busy with his phrasing. I loved cardinal blacks singles and was really unimpressed with the studio product on the final album. Dudes still great.
Yes. Chris Buck is the young truth.
If Chris sang the songs he'd be famous by now.
He's a great player but does he have songs? That's the key.
@@adam_michael540 Same, the album sounded a little too…raw, if that makes sense. It’s a big difference from the singles where they sounded modern and polished.
Not a blues guitarist only, but one of the best players for me: Marcus King . Kirk Fletcher, JD Simo, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram.
Stevie Ray Vaughan making people who don’t play guitar wish they could , and those that playing guitar feel like they can’t .❤❤❤
I think H.E.R. - if she wanted to - could be a blues icon. She's got the chops, the look, the vibe. She could follow the Mayer template and capitalize on her popularity and go the blues route. I say again, IF she wanted to be a blues icon.
Second this, Rick Beato did a video about her recently and she's fully legit. Chops, stage presence, voice, name recognition; she's got the full package to be the next mainstream Guitar Hero.
A better question is, "who can bring the blues back to the main stream?" I think Larkin Poe could bring in a younger generation. But does today's music medias allow for great players?
Mainstream media doesn’t care one bit about what is good. They are ONLY concerned with what will sell in mass quantities.
If you don’t know about Phillip Sayce definitely check him out 🙌🏼 🔥
Shamefully only discovered Mayer a couple years ago with Stop this train. He has such a broad appeal, I got hooked because of the guitar wizardry, some I guess because of the pop side of it. The next blues star will be one that can appeal to different groups.
He definitely has “broad” appeal. They love him.
Kingfish. His songs are as good as his guitar playing. Unlike some other established, modern day guitar gods (cough, JB... cough, cough JM) you don’t have to tolerate their mostly bland, mediocre or once Top 40 Pop songwriting just to get to the amazing solos and guitarmanship. Plus Kingfish is a down to Earth, approachable nice kid. Deserves the success he’s earning.
In 1968, an album called Super Session was released and reached #12 on Billboard. Guitarist Mike Bloomfield played on Side One only and this half-an-album was the was the Rosetta Stone, the Magna Carta, and the Ten Commandments of the electric blues guitar.
I almost shat myself laughing when I saw the thumbnail. My vote goes to Christone "Kingfish" Ingram. The dude is pure blues, and throws in some rock and roll for fun. I'd argue he's the closest to SRV we have right now.
Kingfish Ingram is picking up a following. International touring, Grammy awards. He's from Clarksdale so some of us who live down here have seen him since he was a kid. An unknown player a little younger than Kingfish, DK Harrell from Arkansas, blew Gary Clark Jr. off the stage at a concert in Indianola (which included Derek Trucks playing BB King's Lucille and Susan Tedeshi, and Kingfish and was a free concert. 200 people showed up). He's not as young as Kingfish and DK, but Luther Dickinson of the North Mississippi All Stars has been doing Hill Country Blues for decades and is a really great guitarist and showman. He's linked up with the Allman/Betts/Trucks family and some of the Dead family so has some of the same background as John Mayer now. Among the blues aficionados those are some of the younger folks who will carry the flame. Will they be the next big thing is another question.
A few criteria would need to be considered for this to happen again: 1. Attractiveness 2. Balance between originality and inspiration (talent) 3. Good songs
I was living in Decatur Georgia when John Mayer and Clay Cook were in a duo together called Lo Fi Masters. Saw them at Eddie’s Attic every couple of weeks or so for $5 a show. Many of the songs on John’s first solo album were those songs. Shortly after they started playing there, Clay Cook left the group, John began playing solo. Again most of those songs and a few of his own. It was an acoustic bluesy thing. John worked at the club taking peoples money for admission etc…on the nights he did not play. A couple times I had the chance to see him on a random Sunday at the club with few people in and sit at the front of the stage. Believe me he knew his way around the blues back then. I moved back to the west coast and turned on tv, radio, mtv, etc…and there was this pop star John Mayer who was dating Jennifer Aniston. A very different appearing marketing package then he was back at Eddie’s. I lost interest due to the marketing machine until I saw him on Eric Clayton’s crossroads event. WOW….what a journey…both envious and happy for him to see a small town kid make it so big. Great player!
Fairfield CT isn't exactly a small town. He went to Georgia specifically to be discovered.
Guys, I’m not even remotely kidding. I’m watching this in my kitchen. Thank God in my kitchen because my Pop Tarts got trapped in the toaster and burst into flame. My toaster was literally ablaze. I’d turned around to get my coffee from the Keurig machine and there it was. I was able to act quickly, unplug it and throw a glassful of water on it. Crisis subsided. Just airing my kitchen out a bit now from blueberry Pop Tart smoke. But surely, this must be a sign that John Mayer is the next blues guitar hero. How’s your morning going?
Nice blues song- Blueberry Poptart Smoke
I was thinking that would be a great band name. Blueberry PopTart Smoke. LOL
Blueberry Pop Tarts: Delicious, but deadly.
Would be great to see you both Jamming, rocking, whatever the cool term is at this time!!!..🎸🎸🎶🎶🤘🏼🤘🏼✍🏼✍🏼
What about Christone "Kingfish" Ingram?, this young men is really good. 🎸🎸
i went to a James Bay concert on a whim and was surprised by his proficiency on guitar.. can clearly hear his roots are blues based.. he def deserves to be mentioned in this conversation
I think James Bay could fit the bill! Yeah! He got something going on. If only he add more of the bluesy guitars
I'm in line to be the next blues guitar torch bearer. I just have to get this pentatonic scale thing down and figure out chord changes...guitar is hard!
Complicated topic, BECAUSE: to be the torch-bearer, you have to have modern songwriting skills and intense charisma/stage presence in addition to a signature style on guitar.
If (and this is a huge ‘IF’) Larkin Poe starts writing hits and getting big song placements in film and TV, they are it. Gary Clark Jr came very close but the hits were not there.
Chris Buck is probably my favorite but Cardinal Black also needs to write a hit. So do Tedeschi Trucks, Bonamassa, Marcus King and Kingfish. If Joey Landreth ever goes for the commercial jugular, or even hardcore blues, look out. He’s the best writer out of all of them, hands down.
Blues-influenced rock had a revival with the Black Keys and the White Stripes, and there have been big blues-influenced hits like ‘Human’ by Rag’n’Bone Man in 2018. But no one artist has stood up and said ‘I’ll carry the tradition’ with the songs and star quality to back it up.
You guys forgot to mention the late great amazing Gary Moore since he passed a lot of people have discovered he may be the best blues player ever but he started off in classic rock with his earlier bands then Thin Lizzy
I discovered GM from a random RUclips video.
It actually sounded so different to my brain that it woke me up from a nap and I was floored by the guitar tone and his feel.
I mean I had NO IDEA who he even was!!!!
I’m a guitar player for life and didn’t know who GM was. Wild!
@@Job.Well.Done_01 I was lucky enough to see Gary play shortly after he "discovered" the blues, on his tour with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker.
Gary Moore is one of my biggest influences on guitar I'm glad you discovered him! He played with such ferocity and he could play super fast and technical but he also had the most amazing feel and tone and his playing was so melodic and soulful. I play in a blues/fusion band and I have based alot of my licks and tone off of him just with my own spin on it of course I'll always sound like me but man it's hard to beat Gary Moore, Joe Bonnamassa and Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Stevie Ray Vaughn, Robben Ford, Larry Carlton and Steve Luckather all amazing players but Gary is my favorite and the other players I mentioned.
I almost forgot Roy Buchanan and Danny Gatton and also Albert Lee all amazing underrated players
It won't matter because mainstream radio doesn't play anything that doesn't have big corporate backing.
Honestly, I don't believe there's anyone in the queue to take John Mayer's place. He's in a league of his own. And when I say that, I'm not saying he's better than any other blues player out there. But there is no one, currently, that has such a definitive guitar style, voice, and songwriting capability. Also, John is a blues player, not a Bluesman, if that makes sense? His looks are also a large contributing factor to his success. But, I think if Gary Clark Jr. crafted more cohesive albums (IMO), then maybe he would be runner up. Great topic, guys!
For me it's Marcus King and Derek Trucks...I've been obsessed with these two for a couple years now....I've seen them both live in the UK too and they were just amazing...
I think Marcus King is talented enough and relatable enough to dub the blues crown by popular opinion. What would boost him to that point is if he was pushed in the main stream media. Dude can play. You could argue the same with Ariel Posen, Joey Landreth, Josh Smith, Derek Trucks, and Chris Buck. In all honesty there are so many talented six string slingers these days that they all could be the torch bearer.
I can't believe you guys have not made it to 50k yet
Alot of really good Blues players over the years never got radio play, so they're unknown to most people...I think of Walter Trout (Got a broken heart) as one of those....Davy Knowles and Donna Grantis are pretty awesome👍
The biggest hindrance for most people will be the looks. You have to be good looking in the pop world. But you have to be able to play for the blues world, that's a tough combo for most.
I always said that Mayer was super smart. He played what he needed to in order to be famous. Once he was huge for his pop songwriting he suddenly decided to play what was in his heart and did some great blues.
Mayer said exactly that in an interview that I can't recall ATM. The pop music pays the bills and that allows him to play what he is truly passionate about.
My uncle who is a hella curmudgeon was like "Have you heard the John Mayer Trio?". And I thought he'd lost his mind until I actually heard it.
@Ryan Gunwitch-Black I played that forever when it came out and there is a good live recording that AXS tv showed as well.
I think you bring up a very good point. We as guitarists tend to be a lot more aware of non-mainstream musicians and it is perhaps even safe to say that we are a bit more accepting of very niche, guitar community focused music. When I see someone say "Eric Gales is going to be the next big thing!" I have to really ask why. I know that he is very, very good but as the guys said in the video, Mayer and Clapton became huge because they pretty quickly entered the highest echelons of mainstream music pretty early in their careers. They became household names not just for guitarists but for just about anyone who occasionally turned on a radio or went anywhere where pop music might be playing.
We (as guitarists) will obviously have our thumb on the pulse of the guitar playing world and as such, otherwise relatively unknown guitarists will seem much, much more popular to us. The only way that someone will replace Mayer is if they get into the mainstream pop scene early in their career and leave a widespread impression.
How to spell 'McClunky'? Could not find on Spotify. Thanks and Happy Xmas...
I saw SRV at a bar called The Decade in Pittsbugh, PA in 1983 right before Texas Flood came out with a crowd of 100-150 people max. The man was mesmerizing.
Next Blues Champion(s), Larkin Poe… Sisters Rebecca on guitar, and Megan on lap slide. They just kill it musically, and they are great singers!
This^^
Excellent choice.
Finding, new to me, bands this good are a wonderful treat. Just checked out their Bad Spell video and enjoy watching them play. Thanks.
This is definitely more on point than most of the other answers.
Hahaha, joking I hope.
Patrick Droney comes to mind but he’s very much in the Mayer vein of things so idk. That’s a tough one.
I love John and his music, but I feel like John makes Blues accessible to the masses but Derek Trucks is the current standard bearer for blues.
Probably gonna get some backlash here but oh well. Firstly, Mayer is amazing af on guitar. Can not deny that. He can play blues very good but to say he’s a blues champion to me is a little far fetched considering 85% of his set list is pop rock. Like I said, he’s amazing! I can not deny him of that. I feel like personally for me the modern day Blues champion is Joe Bonamassa . Just my take on it.
Kingfish is a fantastic blues player. And he has a cool name.
Gotta say I remember when Mayer first hit the scene. Figured he was as just a flavor of the day pop star and wouldn't go anywhere. In a weird way his success gives me hope for the future of the music industry.
While he’s not considered a blues guy, I could see Sturgill Simpson getting together some great players and laying down some solid blues.
Check out Scott McKeon - UK guitarist. Also Henrik Freischlader from Germany. Fantastic blues players.
Eric Gales and Marcus King are two monster players. Gales has killer tones because of his upside down playing style. Marcus King has the old school vibe and also killer tone.
Dude! Logan is such an awesome movie. It's a great comic book movie, a great action movie and just a great film.
I am. Me. This guy 👍
Thank you for the support
Marcus King as a whole, and Chris Buck for his style that you can spot blindly 👌
Those are my two favorites right now.
John was just smart enough to get his money right with the pop so he could do what he loves the rest of his life and not have to worry about money. Plus, pop is not awful. Some of those songs were good.
Sorta like Ricky Skaggs doing country untill he switched to Bluegrass
Inching closer to 50k subscribers! Y'all still have that Silver Sky...right?
My bets are on Emily Wolfe, Madison Cunningham, and Larkin Poe!
Don't compare Bonamassa to SRV. SRV did have videos with airplay on MTV. During that time young people still listened to regular Rock . His covers of Hendrix were well known as Hendrix had a reissued popularity around the beginning of grunge. Probably more popular than during Hendrix's life.
There's a kid named Kyle Eldridge who is the guy to carry the torch for Country / Western Swing. He's Joe Maphis all over again!
With no disrespect to John Mayer at all, as far as I am concerned Buddy Guy is still the reigning king of the blues. I've seen John Mayer play blues live on a a really scary level , but if someone can point out a studio album of his that is a gold standard for his blues champion torch bearing level I'm all ears. Buddy is the real deal. Arguably the most important (guitar) blues musician alive today, with no one even slightly close. I would guess that pretty much every musician mentioned below would agree including John Mayer.
Blues, in and of itself, is relatively obscure to the masses. Mayer was able to use his pop stardom to bring newer listeners and his fans to the blues. Nothing wrong with that.
Marcus King, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, and a few others are probably in the running, but they aren't going to be household names for most listeners.
But, what so I know? I'm just an old guy with eclectic musical tastes...
Haha!!! Cosmic Country is Daniel Donatos band! Galaxy Grass is a genre coined by the Kitchen Dwellers. Love it!
Larkin Poe!!!! Them southern girl get my vote!!! All hail the Slide Queen!! ❤🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎸☮️🙏
Another hot blues guy nobody ever talks about, because of Eric's "mainstream" hits, is Rory Gallagher ('63-'95) True blues legend, before SRV
Totally agree.Rory could play all sorts of blues styles.Accoustic, electric,slide .Gary Moore was also an amazing blues player.I would point out Kingfish, Chris Burke and Joe Bonamassa are excellent maybe throw in Derek Trucks for good measure.Damn there's so many fine players out there.
There's no shortage of current blues players that guitarists love - as demonstrated in the comments so far. As far as pop stars with a big platform who could make the shift my first thought is Shawn Mendes. He's a decent guitarist but sticks to rhythm from what I've seen. But I think he and Mayer are supposed to be tight so he would have a solid mentor if he wanted to do a more blues-based album. Plus he's dating an older woman now so maybe she'd be into.
I have been waiting for months now for these guys to get to 50K subscribers. Does anyone know if they're still planning to give away the Silver Sky when they get to 50K? It's getting really close!!!
The biggest problem in my opinion is the lack of really good songs . Too many young players even if they are excellent players are still relying on 50 year old songs particularly by Hendrix to excite their audiences !
I second Billy Strings - he releases a catchy bluegrass song that crosses over into a popular hit, then transitions over and unleashes a blues album that blows everyone away.
I definitely think Billy Strings has the capability but I feel like he’s just too rooted in Bluegrass to take that turn.
But i’d kill to hear that album too
@@DomsGuitarGear I'd kill to hear his heavy rock album too - the kid can get down.
@@nervousnedmusic Yea definitely, all the live covers he did this last Halloween that are on youtube all rock. Sabbath & Zeppelin 🤘🏼
The reason no one is getting close to Mayer yet is his songwriting, he’s original and fresh. Kingfish and Marcus King are great players but I don’t hear an original style yet or memorable songs.
Since when was John Mayer ever a blues champion? That's heresy of the highest order, and judging by the info-box, you wouldn't know what blues is if I hit you in the head with it. If we're talking about "kids", then it's obviously Christone "Kingfish" Ingram hands down, as for already seasoned players, then Eric Gales & Larry McCray are pretty much hard to beat. I'll throw in "Captain" Kirk Franklin in there for good measure too.
⚓️ Thanks Casino 😎 I agree got to get some newnessyness into rock blues. But I can’t handle $140 + tickets 😎 The recent Swift mess for example. The next show for me is Larkin Poe at the Fillmore in Feb. … like $50. ⚓️ corporate monopolies on venues > Live Nation < is untenable.
Billy strings is a hell of a guitar player
Yep, but Billy play bluegrass, not blues…
Stacy Mitchhart Nashville - Absolutely sick
Have followed ec from cream in Glasgow and only see him once play proper blues not long after his nightmare ( Connor) he played tears in heaven and he had the blues players/shouters repressed anger in his playing, he aged 10 years in front of your eyes that night. I think maybe Quinn Sullivan if he really wants it. 👍👍👍Respect to you fellas.
SRV is from Oak Cliff, a suburb of Dallas.
by no means the future torch bearer... james bay actually plays blues really nicely. Kinda of the blues player going into the pop world first.
That guy (before John Mayer), was Johnny Lang. Oddly, he seemed to vanish from the limelight almost overnight.
He fell in love with his own voice and went gospel. Boom, gone.
@@missopowers What a shame, lol. I always wondered what happened to him.
Happy that the old band are back together
Josh Smith is the undisputed apex predator among contemporary blues guitarists.
Marcus Smith or Kingfish are the most likely ones to have more commercial success tho
I can almost taste the PRS Polar Ice special 50k guitar!
I agree with a lot of the below comments. There are a lot of great blues players out there right now. I think the difference is, Mayer can lead you to discovering those players but he can also get you to an artisy like Lizzy McAlpine. He's got an incredibly unique pop and blues sensibility.
Getting close to 50,000 subscribers!
According to Greg Koch its In Utero Slim, playing his version of "Dust My Womb".
How can you not call Derek and the Dominos a blues band?
Kingfish could possibly do it. His music isn't mainstream but he has the voice/talent as a great singer. And he is personally into mainstream music, so could see someone famous pick him up to play guitar and sing on a hit. But yeah...it's tough because blues just isn't mainstream (if it ever was). The blues that people think of as famous from the past had other elements to it IMO. A lot was more rock than blues IMO.
The blues have evolve i think. Jazz have evolved and i think for the blues to survive, is to have it on a R&B and lo fi music. Just opinion. I don’t know anything whatsoever
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram is amazing! I hope he gets more recognition
In the eyes of the general non-guitar-playing public, even John Mayer is NOT seen as being famous for being a blues guitarist. Among guitar players, yes, but not the general population.
Kenny Wayne Shepard. He wouldn't have had Tommy Layton & Tommy Shannon of SRV's band "Double Trouble" play for him (Tommy still does) if he wasn't the real deal. He's the only living, highest charting, blues artist with "Blue on Black" (#66) since B.B. King did it in 1969 with "The Thrill is Gone" at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100.
A case could be made for Gary Clarke, Jr., too.
We're in a strange time, in the 80s-90s if a guitarist won a "best guitarist in the world" poll in a credible and influential magazine, they would automatically play fairly big venues and sell plenty of tickets, earlier this year I saw Eric Gales and Marcus king in the space of two weeks, Eric had just been named the world's best guitar player by Guitarist magazine and he was playing to a room of about 150 people, it seems even though more people play these days, guitar players are not stars anymore
Ally Venable is super young and has loads of talent....
I feel like there's plenty of stuff to fuel the Blues over the last few years. It's only a matter of time until someone taps into it. Larkin Poe is doing great stuff that I feel is most likely to crossover. Christone Kingfish is pure blues and one of my current favorites. Marcus King has an awesome voice and incredible tone. I would count it as a loss if any of them didn't blow up.
My guess would be Cletus McJunkins out of Spigot, NC
I know Sean Mann is not a rock star and doesn’t have any hit records to back up his name but he is one of my favorite players at time. He can definitely hold his own against some of the best.
Chris Buck has my vote
Agree with Kingfish. Shaw Davis and The Black Ties are very good if they could get more known. Carolyn Wonderland is also very good
Check out Albert Castiglia, J.P. Soars, they're out of the South Florida blues scene and are awesome. The Danielle Nicole band out of KC she's one of the best singers out there and Brandon Miller her guitar player/husband has is own band and he's another sick player. Damon Fowler in the Tampa area is crazy good. ☮️❤️
Robbie Robertson is one of the greatest of all time if you ask me.. BTW congrats on the 50k ;)
Ohhh looks like CG’s about to hit 50K subs
Not a blues guitar man, but just in terms of being a great artist, Harry Styles definitely deserves the praise he gets. Great songwriter and Mayer/Pino have collaborated with him already a few times.
I have never been able to get over Mayer's pop roots. I can't imagine ever wanting to see him play live. .... But then I honestly didn't much like Clapton, that he ever played blues is now in the distant past, and he hasn't released anything worth listening to, IMO, in well over 50 years!
Just one name, one and only DEREK TRUCKS !!!
With guitar heroes like Gary Moore, Peter Green, Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, Warren Haynes and SRV, I might be all alone, but John Mayer bores me to tears. I just don't get it. Maybe it's his vocals that turn me off. Kind of mush mouth. I usually post POSITIVE, but you asked for comments.
Phillip Sayce, Kingfish, Marcus King, Jackie Venson, Gary Clark Jr, etc
I would say Gary Clark Jr. I think he is popular. But what i know. I coming in from the Blues and Jam scene. So….
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram is your next Blues MEGA SUPERSTAR, provided he lives long enough.
Yeah, that guy really needs to lose weight
I'm amazed that Eric Gales is not a household name.
Jared James Nichols
Just got an Old Glory tribute of his. Amazing guitar!
Marcus King is an absolute beast.
Eric Gales is almost 50. He’s older than Mayer and Bonamassa who are both 45. Need to look for someone in their 20s who will transition into more of a blues player the same way Mayer and Clapton did.