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O J A I M AG A Z I N E | SUMMER 2025
THE BALLAD OF
JAcKiE LoMax In the nineties, denizens of Ojai might have beheld a sinewy figure, adorned in cowboy attire and crowned with a wide-brimmed Stetson, ambling along East Ojai Avenue with a battered guitar case. This was none other than Jackie Lomax, erstwhile collaborator with rock titans Harrison, McCartney, and Clapton.
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magine, if you will, the Liverpool of the early sixties. Not the staid port city of Liverpool from your grandma’s sepia-toned postcards, but the Liverpool of The Cavern, a crucible of raw, youthful energy where the air crackled with the electricity of the coming revolution. This was the domain of The Beatles, those mop-topped geniuses who were about to dominate the airwaves. But lurking in the shadows, honing their own brand of sonic fury, were a thousand other bands, each dreaming of escaping the gray monotony of post-war Britain. Among them were The Undertakers, fronted by a rawboned, ambitious young guitarist and singer named Jackie Lomax. Lomax, a creature of The Cavern, embodied the spirit of the times: rebellious, restless, and utterly consumed by the primal urge to create. He and his bandmates, a motley crew of misfits and mavericks, poured their souls into their music, channeling the raw energy of the city into a potent brew of blues, R&B, and rock ’n’ roll. They were a force of nature, a whirlwind of noise and fury, captivating audiences with their sheer, unadulterated energy.
by PAUL STANTON
The road to fame, however, was treacherous. Hamburg, that legendary breeding ground for rock ’n’ roll rebels, beckoned. The Undertakers, like a thousand other bands before them, made the pilgrimage to Germany, hoping to conquer the Reeperbahn, the notorious strip of bars and brothels where legends were born and dreams shattered.
First signed to Apple Records in 1968, Jackie's collaboration with George Harrison culminated in the release of "Sour Milk Sea" that August. Photo: Wikimedia CC