'His Presence Endures'
Rolling Stone • • general
Key Points:
- Steve Winwood paid tribute to his former Traffic bandmate Dave Mason, who passed away on April 19, highlighting Mason's significant role in shaping the band's early sound and lasting musical legacy.
- Mason co-founded Traffic in 1967 but left the band twice, with his second departure reportedly initiated by Winwood due to creative differences, and he was not involved in the band's later reunion tours.
- Despite tensions, Mason, Capaldi, and Winwood reunited onstage in 2004 for Traffic's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, marking their final performance together, though Mason declined to play bass as requested.
- After Capaldi's death in 2005, Mason's proposed Traffic reunion tour was declined by Winwood, citing Capaldi's deathbed wish that the band never play again, a decision Mason described as "machiavellian."
- In his later years, Mason continued to celebrate Traffic's music by touring with Dave Mason’s Traffic Jam, performing many classic Traffic songs to keep the band's legacy alive.
