06/16/06: Rise, Sir John!
Queen Elizabeth named blues legend John Mayall an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) last Friday. Jimmy Page and Brian May also got one, but they're a lot more familiar out here. We'd like to take time to salute Mr. Mayall, who not only helped introduce the blues and rock n roll to England and Europe as a whole, but offered it in a sort of mirror to us Americans as well, back when people might not quite have seen it for what it was.

"John Mayall's legendary Bluesbreakers launched the careers of some of the greatest musicians of our time. Former Bluesbreakers Eric Crapton and Jack Bruce formed Cream, and John McVie, Mick Fleetwood and Peter Green went on to Fleetwood Mac. Mick Taylor was another Bluesbreaker who continued on to play with the Rolling Stones during what some consider their greatest musical period."

And here at pruesspress, Mayall occasioned this recent tribute by artist Henry Taylor when he was sitting in with Sea of Gallilee.

Still, it would have been preferable to us had he turned down the Queen's offer. Pruesspress hasn't forgotten that she put medals on some of the killers at Bloody Sunday.