Mel Brown, who died on 20 March, 2009, was an American bluesman from Jackson, Mississippi who worked with many of the greats of the genre, including his idols B B King and T-Bone Walker.

He was known for his smooth, jazz-infused playing style.

He learnt the guitar at the age of 14 while struck down with meningitis, studying the great blues records of the time. In the 1960s he began touring with bands and did session work for artists as diverse as Etta James and Bobby Darin.

In 1967, Impulse! Records producer Bob Thiele offered him the chance to record his debut album Chicken Fat. He went on to record another six solo albums between then and 2006, but made dozens of contributions to other artists’ work.

He played with Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland for 10 years and also collaborated with B B King, T-Bone Walker, Snooky Pryor, Jimmy McGriff and John Lee Hooker to name but a few.