Events

[ROCK] Classic rock fans will recognize his name in an instant. But for the uninitiated, Dave Mason is a guitar legend. As a solo artist, he has but two charted tunes to his credit—the self-penned “Only You Know and I Know,” (1970) and 1977’s soft rock-ish “We Just Disagree,” written by Jim Krueger. But as a founding member of Traffic with Steve Winwood, Mason’s contribution to the rock and roll history books is undeniable. His “Feelin’ Alright” was a hit for Traffic, Joe Cocker and Grand Funk Railroad, with lesser known versions recorded by everyone from Three Dog Night to Paul Weller. Another of his Traffic songs, the ultra-psychedelic “Hole in My Shoe,” was used in an episode of 1980’s Brit-com The Young Ones, thus introducing the tune to a whole new generation of listeners (while also parodying it’s spacey sentiment). Traffic was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, but Mason’s work as contributor and sideman outside of the band have landed him some mighty prestigious guitar sessions, including an uncredited appearance on Beggars Banquet by The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland and on former Beatle George Harrison’s opus All Things Must Pass. His second album outside of Traffic was a collection of duets with Mama Cass Elliot, and he’s performed with Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, the Tedeschi Trucks band and even Michael Jackson (say whaaaat?!). Little known fact: Mason was briefly a member of Fleetwood Mac in the 1990’s when they released the album Time, the band’s first album sans Buckingham and Nicks since 1974. His later-day philanthropic efforts have included co-founding Yoga Blue, an non-profit organization focused on holistic approaches to mental health and substance abuse issues, as well as Rock Our Vets, a collective of musicians helping disenfranchised veterans access basic resources to stabilize and improve their lives. For his gig at Kleinhans on Friday, March 2, Mason will likely revisit his most well known work with Traffic with a couple of surprise covers thrown in for good measure.