R.I.P.

Here's an important one, at least in my Life's Playlist:

Dave Mason, Songwriter Who Co-Founded Traffic, Dies at 79​

The English singer and guitarist wrote mainstays of the classic-rock canon like “Feelin’ Alright?” and “Only You Know and I Know.” He also had a successful solo career.

Dave Mason, the English singer, songwriter and guitarist who wrote mainstays of the classic-rock canon like “Feelin’ Alright?” and “Only You Know and I Know,” and who was a founding member of the seminal band Traffic before starting a successful solo career, died on Sunday at his home in Gardnerville, Nev. He was 79.

His death was confirmed by his publicist, Melissa Dragich. She did not provide a cause of death.

Mr. Mason’s version of “Feelin’ Alright?”, originally recorded with Traffic in 1968, was not an immediate hit. But the song became a staple of classic-rock radio and was covered by more than two dozen stars, including Joe Cocker, the Jackson 5, Gladys Knight & the Pips and Grand Funk Railroad. In 2004, Mr. Mason was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for his work with Traffic.

As a solo artist, Mr. Mason racked up three gold albums, including his solo debut in 1970, “Alone Together,” which contained some of his most highly regarded songs. He also scored one platinum set, “Let It Flow.” It was boosted by his top charting single, “We Just Disagree,” which reached No. 12 in Billboard in 1977.

Mr. Mason’s solo track, “Only You Know and I Know,” became ahit when it was covered by the rock-soul group Delaney and Bonnie in 1971.

Four young men sit for a portrait in a small room full of musical instruments.

Dave Mason, top center, with Traffic members, from left, Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood and Chris Wood, in 1978.Credit...Keystone Pictures/ZUMA Press, via Reuters

His lead guitar work, marked by fine fingerings, fiery solos and soulful phrasings, was a consistent feature of his solo career. “I approach the instrument like it’s a voice,” he told Guitar Player Magazine in 1975. “That’s why I took guitar up in the first place — to have a way of expressing myself.”

Mr. Mason also worked as a session musician with prominent stars. To the Rolling Stones’ “Street Fighting Man,” he added the wails of the shehnai, an Indian reed instrument. On Jimi Hendrix’s version of Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower,” he played a 12-string acoustic guitar.

He joined an early version of Derek and the Dominos, a band formed by Eric Clapton and the Memphis-born keyboardist Bobby Whitlock. And he played guitar on “All Things Must Pass,” a 1970 album by George Harrison, and on “Listen to What the Man Said,” a 1975 single by Paul McCartney’s band Wings.
He was one of the greats from back in the day. I think I have some of his original vinyl albums.
 

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