Blues legend from Richmond dies in California

Melvyn "Deacon" Jones switched from trumpet to organ and embarked on a renowned career playing the blues on a Hammond B3.

Jones, 73, a Richmond native, died Thursday evening in Hollywood, Calif., according to his website.

Tributes from musicians who called the organist, composer and arranger a mentor, a genius and a legend stacked one after the other on Jones' Facebook page, including a post from his companion and manager, Pamela Hill. She said she enjoyed 25 years "of sharing life, joy, fun, happiness, travel and lots of music" in some of the 42 countries where Jones played.

At Richmond High School, Jones, who graduated in 1962, played in the band for Wilburn T. Elrod, the orchestra for Ralph Burkhardt and the pep band. In addition, Jones played with a dance band that performed at the YMCA.

Jones, the brother of jazz drummer Harold Jones, who backs singer Tony Bennett, was among the Richmond musicians forming rock 'n' roll band Baby Huey and the Babysitters, playing trumpet in the band that eventually progressed to Chicago for five years of five-night-a-week performances. He also studied at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago and the University of Chicago, according to the biography on his website and Facebook page.

As an organist, he spent 18 years as band director for blues legend John Lee Hooker. Jones' original composition, "We'll Meet Again," was part of Hooker's "Chill Out" CD that won a Grammy in 1996.

Jones also toured and recorded with artists such as Curtis Mayfield, Freddie King, Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, Joe Cocker, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Greg Allman, Dr. John, Lester Chambers and Eddie Money. Based in Los Angeles, Jones recorded his own CDs and was still playing with The Deacon Jones Blues Band and The Bucket of Blues Band.

South Bay Blues Awards and San Francisco Blues Society chose Jones as keyboard player of the year in 1991, and Real Blues magazine selected him the top blues keyboard player in 1996, 1997 and 1998.

Jones was born Dec. 12, 1943, in Richmond, according to his biography, to Juanita and Jay Jones.

He said in a 2010 Palladium-Item article that he experienced two miracles as a child. The first came when he was 5 years old and had an acute case of polio. A faith healer in Connersville gave him a jar of water and told him to drink a glass a day and say the Lord's prayer for seven days.

"On the eighth day, I was walking," Jones said.

The second miracle came after he ate red, green and yellow mulberries from a backyard tree. Jones' appendix exploded and he remained in a coma for three days and three nights, with doctors telling his parents, "We've done all we can do. It's in God's hands now."

He said his childhood taught him that "God didn't give you a gift to abuse."

Instead, Jones turned his gift into decades of music.