It appeared that his drumming with The Mojos was to afford him his first real break when he was asked to audition for a new group that Chas Chandler of The Animals was putting together. He did such a great job at the audition that he was one of the two finalists. Jimi Hendrix couldn’t decide who he liked better so they actually flipped a coin. Mitch Mitchell won the coin toss and became the drummer for The Jimi Hendrix Experience.
Before Aynsley could be too down about his fate, two other well-known British Blues giants showed real interest. Alexis Korner, the father of British blues, was the first, but it was John Mayall who was able to convince the young drummer to play with him. John Mayall was the perfect launching pad for any young artist. There’s a real long list of superstars who played with Mayall including Eric Clapton, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Peter Green, and Jack Bruce are just some former John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers members.
In the summer of 1966 Aynsley joined The Blusbreakers and remain with the band through the spring of 1967 when he was replaced by Mick Fleetwood. In that short span he made a name for himself and was asked to join The Jeff Beck Group.
During his stay with Beck he developed a desire to have his own band. In 1967 he formed Aynsley Dunbar’s Retaliation. They put out a single of a song that he wrote called “Warning” that later was covered by Black Sabbath. The group went on to release four quality albums that were largely ignored.
King Crimson tried unsuccessfully to get him to be their drummer but he instead chose to join a group called Blue Whale instead. It turned out to be a bad career move. The group disbanded after just one record.
Frank Zappa was always on the lookout for outstanding musicians who were capable and willing to perform his somewhat complex music. The unemployed Dunbar jumped at the chance to play something a little challenging. He remained with Zappa through 1974 and played on CHUNGA’S REVENGE, FILMORE EAST LIVE, 200 MOTELS, JUST ANOTHER BAND FROM LA, WAKA/JAWAKA, THE GRAND WAZOO and APOSTROPHE.
After hearing his work. other artists asked him to play on their records. You’ll find the name Aynsley Dunbar in the credits of FLO & EDDIE, PIN UPS and DIAMOND DOGS by David Bowie, BERLIN by Lou Reed, LONDON UNDERGROUND by Jazz great Herbie Mann, SLAUGHTER ON 10th AVENUE and PLAY DON”T WORRY by Mick Ronson, Nils Lofgren’s solo LP, ALL AMERICAN ALIEN BOY by Ian Hunter and NINE ON A TEN SCALE by Sammy Hagar.
Then in 1974 he got what he thought was his first big break. He was invited to join Neal Schon and Gregg Rolie of the original Santana band to form a new group. The band got all kinds of press even before their first album release. Everyone in the band were great musicians and much was expected from the group Journey upon the release of their first album.
Musically, Journey was great. That wasn’t their problem. Their first three LPS meet with disappointing sales results. It was apparent that the group needed a better lead singer and a good songwriter. Steve Perry came along in time to record the band’s fourth album INFINITY. “Wheel in the Sky” and “Lights” led the way to stardom for the group.
All, however, was not right with the Journey world. Aynsley did not like the pop leanings of Steve Perry so he left the band to join Jefferson Starship. He remained their drummer through FREEDOM POINT ZERO, MODERN TIMES and WINDS OF CHANGE.
After the breakup of Jefferson Starship, Dunbar played with Whitesnake, Ronnie Montrose, UFO, Leslie West and pat Travers.
With the kind of credits next to his name, you would think that more people would be aware of the name Aynsley Thomas Dunbar and give him more respect and recognition. That was not the case. Almost quietly the name was added to the rolls of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 as a member of Journey.
