Dave Mason

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Dave Mason, born David Thomas Mason, May 10, 1944, is a multi-talented musician -- singer, songwriter, and guitarist -- from Worcester, England, who first found fame with the rock band Traffic. In his long career Mason has played and recorded with many of the era's notable musicians (including Eric Clapton, George Harrison, and Mama Cass Elliot). Mason's best known songs are "Feelin' Alright", recorded by Traffic in 1968, which became a major hit for Joe Cocker the following year (and has since been covered by dozens of artists), and "We Just Disagree," Mason's own 1977 hit which has become a staple of Oldies and Adult Contemporary radio playlists.

Mason's tenure with Traffic was disjointed. He was a co-founder, but left the group following the recording of their debut album, Mr. Fantasy (1967), only to rejoin halfway through the sessions for Traffic (1968) -- after which the band broke up. Last Exit (1969), a compilation of leftovers from the first album, features little material by Mason, apart from his song "Just For You." Traffic would later reform without Mason, although he did briefly tour with the band in 1971, as captured on Welcome to the Canteen.

Mason was a good friend of legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix, whose career was launched in England in 1967. Hendrix first heard the song "All Along The Watchtower", by Bob Dylan, at a party he was invited to by Mason, and promptly decided to record his own version. That night he recorded the song at Olympic Barnes, South West London, with Mason playing either acoustic guitar or electric bass guitar (which is unclear); it was released on the Electric Ladyland album in September 1968. When the song came out as a single, in October, it became a Top 40 hit in the U.S., and reached number 5 on the UK charts.

After Traffic, Mason had a moderately successful solo career. In the mid-late '70s, he toured and recorded with guitarist Jim Kreuger, keyboardist Mike Finnegan, bassist Gerald Johnson and drummer Rick Jaeger. Their album, Certified Live is a display of his song writing/arranging, vocal and guitar talents. Another hit that Mason had was "We Just Disagree", written by Jim Krueger, and recorded in 1977. Reaching #12 on the Billboard Hot 100, it was Mason's biggest hit single and was later successfully covered by country singer Billy Dean.

For a brief period in the nineties Dave Mason joined Fleetwood Mac and released the album "Time" in 1995.

Along the way, Dave Mason has lived in the Ojai Valley of California, USA.

As of 2005, Mason is currently performing solo shows across the UK at a rate of about 100 per year. In 2006 he is on tour in the US.