Longtime Fort Worth bluesman Johnny Mack was 67.
Courtesy the artist/Facebook
Longtime Fort Worth bluesman Johnny Mack died Sunday from heart failure. He was 67.
Friendly and outgoing, and seemingly always onstage, Mack is perhaps best known for Gave Myself the Blues, his 2003 album produced by fellow Fort Worth bluesman James Hinkle. Mack is survived by his sister, Donna McWilliams.
Mack played in dozens of regional groups throughout his life, for the past decade with Americana Fort Worth singer-songwriter Joe Savage, who recalled, “I met Johnny in 2014, and he was always supportive of younger artists, fun to be around, and could really light up a room from stage. People loved hearing Johnny sing and watching him perform. He was a unique individual and a living legend”
Mack was born in Wichita, Kansas, and attended Wichita High School (class of 1976) then the University of South Dakota before moving to Fort Worth. Hinkle said Mack “was kind and loving, and he loved the Fort Worth music community. He was a good friend, and we put a lot of miles on together, and I’m sorry to see him go.”
Mack’s life will be celebrated with a musical gathering at Magnolia Motor Lounge on Thursday. Since Mack does not qualify for the county to pay for his cremation, Joe Savage has set up a GoFundMe at gofund.me/c2b76e065 to help pay Mack’s balance of $2,000.
Johnny Mack Farwell Concert
8pm Thu, Jul 16, at Magnolia Motor Lounge, 3803 Southwest Blvd, Fort Worth. Free. 817-332-3344.
Over the decades, Johnny Mack played with dozens of local and regional artists. Photo by Robert Keith
My brother, John, was a sweetheart and the consummate performer. He loved being in the spotlight, but even more than that, he loved the camaraderie of playing and creating music with other musicians.
Because John’s passing came during the same week that our mother died, a few details in this article are incorrect, and I wanted to clarify them.
John had just turned 68. He spent the last two years of his life at Grandview Nursing Home in Grandview, Texas after suffering what was believed to have been a stroke about three years earlier, from which he never fully recovered.
He was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and moved several times with our family before graduating from North High School in Wichita, Kansas, in 1976. It was there that his lifelong passion for music truly began. When our family later relocated to the Arlington–Fort Worth area, John followed in the mid-1990s and became a familiar and much-loved part of the Fort Worth live music community.
Despite his struggles with mental illness and, later, declining physical health, John was deeply loved by our parents and by me his sister. We cared for him as best we could throughout his life. Music gave him a joy and sense of purpose that he often struggled to find elsewhere, and for that I will always be grateful.
To everyone who welcomed him, performed with him, encouraged him, and surrounded him with kindness over the years—thank you. You gave him friendship, belonging, and some of the happiest moments of his life. Our family will always be grateful for the love you showed him.
My brother, John, was a sweetheart and the consummate performer. He loved being in the spotlight, but even more than that, he loved the camaraderie of playing and creating music with other musicians.
Because John’s passing came during the same week that our mother died, a few details in this article are incorrect, and I wanted to clarify them.
John had just turned 68. He spent the last two years of his life at Grandview Nursing Home in Grandview, Texas after suffering what was believed to have been a stroke about three years earlier, from which he never fully recovered.
He was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and moved several times with our family before graduating from North High School in Wichita, Kansas, in 1976. It was there that his lifelong passion for music truly began. When our family later relocated to the Arlington–Fort Worth area, John followed in the mid-1990s and became a familiar and much-loved part of the Fort Worth live music community.
Despite his struggles with mental illness and, later, declining physical health, John was deeply loved by our parents and by me his sister. We cared for him as best we could throughout his life. Music gave him a joy and sense of purpose that he often struggled to find elsewhere, and for that I will always be grateful.
To everyone who welcomed him, performed with him, encouraged him, and surrounded him with kindness over the years—thank you. You gave him friendship, belonging, and some of the happiest moments of his life. Our family will always be grateful for the love you showed him.