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Mason Ruffner

Mason Ruffner is an American blues and rock guitarist, singer and songwriter from Mason, Illinois, born in 1947. He studied and lived in California from age 17, but his newborn interest in blues took him to Fort Worth, Texas in the early 70s, where he honed his skills as a guitarist and also found live work, backing [a=Robert Ealey] in a local joint. Just a few years later the Francophile Ruffner moved to New Orleans where he formed his own band, [i]Blue Rockers[/i], and played in Bourbon Street clubs like [i]Old Absinthe Bar[/i]. He also backed up [a=John Lee Hooker] and [a=Memphis Slim] when they visited, and was soon offered a record deal for CBS. His 1985 selftitled debut, produced by [a=Rick Derringer] was a hit, both critically and commercially, and earned him the job as supporting artist for [a=Jimmy Page] on tour. His second effort, the 1987 [i]Gypsy Blood[/i], was produced by [a=Dave Edmunds], and the late 80s saw him supporting various rock greats such as [a=Crosby, Stills & Nash], [a=U2] and [a=Ringo Starr]. After having played on [m27823] and [m57194] in 1989, Ruffner bought a place in Wimberley, Texas, and withdrew from the music industry for almost a decade, but in 1989 he moved again. This time to Memphis, Tennessee, where he found job performing at [a37729]'s [i]Blues Club[/i]. He released his 3rd album, [i]Evolution[/i], in 1997, which was released in Europe only. The following year, he played at Scandinavia's largest blues festival, the Norwegian [i]Notodden Blues Festival[/i]. Later, a couple of albums were release on [i]CD Baby[/i] in 2007 and 2008, and in 2011 he played at [i]Sweden Rock Festival[/i].