Black Music Sunday is a weekly sequence highlighting all issues Black music, with over 240 tales masking performers, genres, historical past, and extra, every that includes its personal vibrant soundtrack. I hope you’ll discover some acquainted tunes and maybe an introduction to one thing new.
Keyboardist, producer, composer, and singer-songwriter George Duke was born on Jan. 12, 1946. Duke was each a grasp pianist and synthesizer participant, and whereas he was a stellar jazz artist, he’s greatest referred to as a practitioner of what has been dubbed “jazz-funk.”
His web site gives an intensive biography.
George Duke was born in San Rafael, California, and reared in Marin Metropolis, a working class part of Marin County. When he was simply 4 years previous, his mom took him to see Duke Ellington in live performance. “I don’t remember it too well,” says George, “but my mother told me I went crazy. I ran around saying ‘Get me a piano, get me a piano!'” He started his piano research at age seven, absorbing the roots of Black music in his native Baptist church. “That’s where I first began to play funky. I really learned a lot about music from the church. I saw how music could trigger emotions in a cause-and-effect relationship.”
By the age of sixteen, George had performed with plenty of highschool jazz teams. He was closely influenced by Miles Davis and the soul-jazz sound of Les McCann and Cal Tjader. Attending the San Francisco Conservatory Of Music and majoring in trombone and composition with a minor in contrabass, he acquired his Bachelor of Music diploma in 1967.
George and a younger singer named Al Jarreau fashioned a bunch which turned the home band at San Francisco’s Half Word Membership. “There was another club up the street called The Both/And and I worked there on Mondays with everybody from Letta Mbulu to Sonny Rollins and Dexter Gordon.” George later acquired a Masters Diploma in composition from San Francisco State College and briefly taught a course on Jazz And American Tradition at Merritt Junior School in Oakland. It was about this time that George started to launch a sequence of jazz LP’s on the MPS label.
All About Jazz continues Duke’s story.
One night time, on a neighborhood jazz station, George heard a report by the violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. When he came upon that Jean- Luc was coming to California to report, he despatched a tape to Dick Bock at World-Pacific Data, together with a observe saying “There is no other pianist for this guy but me.”
The George Duke Trio which emerged from these classes was quickly burning a path of inventive pleasure by means of the jazz world. It included a serious European tour and an look on the Newport Jazz Competition. The group’s first gig in a rock-oriented venue got here in early 1969. “It was a club in Los Angeles called Thee Experience,” George recollects. In attendance had been Cannonball Adderly, Quincy Jones, Frank Zappa, and the surprising presence of an electrical, moderately than acoustic, piano on-stage. The Ponty- Duke efficiency wowed the group, and ushered within the West Coast counterpart of the Japanese fusion revolution sparked by Miles Davis, The Mahavishnu Orchestra and Climate Report. Earlier than ’69 was out, George joined Frank Zappa (as he put collectively a brand new “Mothers Of Invention” lineup) and toured for a complete yr.
Duke himself talks about his 1969 gig with Jean Luc Ponty at Thee Expertise Membership, and tells the story of how he began taking part in a Fender Rhodes piano.
Right here are Ponty and Duke, masking Herbie Hancock’s “Cantaloupe Island.”
Duke would go onto hook up with Frank Zappa, which might change his life and his musical development. I used to be each a Moms of Invention and Zappa fan, from the time of the difficulty of their debut double album “Freak Out,” however it took some time longer for a lot of of my Black associates to hitch me.
British music author Charles Waring’s “Mojo” interview with Duke is included on the Zappa Books web site.
I used to be working with my trio with [violinist] Jean-Luc Ponty in a small rock membership in Los Angeles known as Thee Expertise on Sundown Boulevard, and Frank Zappa got here in.[1] I used to be steeped in jazz so I did not know who Frank was, however I knew this might be a turning level in my life so I performed a Fender Rhodes piano with my ft, my head, something I might give you. And Frank sort of preferred it. He wished to do an album with Jean-Luc, who stated, “I’ll do it if I can bring my piano player,” ‘cos Jean-Luc wished any individual from the jazz world with him. So I labored with Frank on Jean-Luc’s album King Kong [2] and on the finish of ’69 I did a gig with him at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles at UCLA. It was with a giant orchestra. [3]
A few month later I used to be at my mum’s home for Sunday lunch. The cellphone rang. She picked up and stated to me, “There’s somebody named Zuper on the phone.” I stated, “Zuper? Who the heck is Zuper? Oh, you mean Zappa.” So I picked up the cellphone and he stated “I want you to join the Mothers.” I stated, “The who?” He stated, “No, not The Who, the Mothers.” I did not even know who The Who was. I believed he was placing me on, however he despatched me a ticket and requested me to see him the next week so he might test me out to see if I used to be cool. We went within the studio and recorded Chunga’s Revenge.
Take a look at these clips of “Frank Zappa and His Collaboration with George Duke,” from Swedish Tv.
From the YouTube video notes:
Frank Zappa and his collaboration with George Duke is essentially the most noteworthy and most recognized in musical historical past amongst Duke’s collaborations. Frank Zappa labored with Duke twice, damaged by a hiatus because of Zappa’s excursions within the USA. Their collaboration started with the 1970 Zappa album, Chunga’s Revenge.Duke, a proficient keyboard-player, contributed to Zappa’s legacy along with his work in a few of the albums during which Zappa was most recognized for. A few of these are the 1974-1975 album sequences of Zappa which had been Over-Nite Sensation, Apostrophe, Roxy & Elsewhere (all three had been 1974), One Dimension Suits All and Bongo Fury (each had been 1975). George Duke had additionally carried out with Zappa and his band in concert events on this interval.
The “Best of Atlanta Concerts” YouTube channel posted this interview with Duke, the place he talks about creating a “sense of humor” in music—recommendation he acquired from Miles Davis—and extra.
Duke pays tribute to Zappa on this mysterious medley posted with out particulars to YouTube.
After fairly a little bit of looking, I used to be capable of determine it as a clip from “Live in Prague,”a 2011 DVD launch of a live performance on the Lucerna Music Bar in 2009. On guitar was Jef Lee Johnson, who handed on in 2013, Ronald Bruner Jr. on drums, and Michael Manson on bass. The beautiful vocals had been offered by Shannon Pearson, the “Sangin’ Diva.”
Duke talks about hooking up with, touring, and recording with drummer Billy Cobham on this phase of “The Fender Rhodes Story”:
Duke additionally expressed his pleasure concerning the hookup on his web site:
The Billy Cobham – George Duke Band
“LIVE” On Tour In Europe, by Billy Cobham- George Duke Band
I like working with Billy! We began speaking about placing a band collectively whereas he was taking part in with The Mahavishnu Orchestra, and I used to be with Zappa. The truth is we did a tour collectively – boy what a second in time that was!
I used to be within the strategy of leaving the Moms of Invention, not as a result of I used to be sad, however I simply wanted to problem myself in different methods. I wished to dive headfirst into fusion. Additionally, my contract with MPS information was ending. Little did I do know, that this LP would grow to be such a basic. Extra musicians have advised me that this report modified their lives. Thankfully, I stored all the authentic recordings, and extra unreleased materials exists from the unique classes. Billy and I plan to launch that materials within the close to future.
Apart from Billy and myself, the band was rounded off with John Scofield on guitar. He was excellent for the band. Al Johnson was not the primary bass participant with the band; it was Doug Rauche, who had performed with Santana. He was a wild – straight out of the sixties bass participant. He actually seemed the half, and will actually play as properly! Nevertheless, he had a moderately massive substance abuse drawback, so we had been ultimately known as Al Johnson to do the gig.
[…]
Becoming a member of forces with Billy was one of many highlights of my profession!
Right here’s Duke and Cobham, jammin’ dwell on the Montreux Jazz Competition again in 1976.
Harmony Data picks up Duke’s story within the 70’s:
For the subsequent a number of years, Duke experimented with jazz and fusion by collaborating and performing with artists as various as Jean Luc-Ponty, Frank Zappa, Cannonball Adderley, Nancy Wilson, Dizzy Gillespie, Billy Cobham and Stanley Clarke. He launched his solo recording profession at age 20, and shortly thereafter started slicing LPs for the MPS label within the ‘70s. As the last decade progressed, he veered extra towards fusion, R&B and funk with albums like From Me To You (1976) and Attain For It (1978).
Throughout this era he recorded what’s presumably his greatest recognized album, Brazilian Love Affair. Launched in 1980, the album included vocals by Flora Purim and Milton Nascimento, and percussion by Airto Moreira. Love Affair stood in marked distinction to the opposite jazz/funk styled albums he was slicing on the time.
Right here’s the funky title tune:
As Duke wrote:
That is one in all my private favourite information. It was a labor of affection. I had all the time wished to return to Brazil and report. So that is the way it occurred.
I sort of compelled my hand on this one. Due to the success the band was having within the R&B world, I requested Epic to let me take the band to Brazil and report an album with a few of the nice native musicians from the world. They hesitated, however ultimately gave in to my request. What resulted is one in all my favourite albums, and one which has stood the take a look at of time. Lots of my followers suppose that is my greatest report, and a superb argument might be raised for that viewpoint.
My concept was to take typical Brazilian rhythms and put my stamp on them with my present touring band. I wished to work with Milton Nascimento, and I’d add that I used to be thrilled when he stated OK. I principally labored along with his rhythm part and intermixed them with mine.
[…]
I like Brazil! There really is music within the air. It appears to me that the folks breathe music not air.
As an enormous Milton Nascimento fan, I’ve written about him right here a number of instances, most prominently in “Celebrating the Afro-Brazilian artistry of Milton Nascimento.”
The pair collaborated on a canopy of Nascimento’s well-known “Cravo e Canela” (Cloves and Cinnamon) for the album.
Nascimento’s haunting rendition of “Ao Que Vai Nascer” was price the price of shopping for the entire album. Now you possibly can simply watch it on Duke’s YouTube channel.
Again to Duke’s Harmony bio:
On July 16, 2013, Duke launched DreamWeaver, which he calls his “most honest album in several years.” The making of DreamWeaver occurred after his spouse, Corine, handed away.
With help from an illustrious forged of musicians together with bassists Christian McBride and Stanley Clarke; singers Teena Marie, Lalah Hathaway, Rachelle Ferrell, and Jeffrey Osborne; guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr. and Jef Lee Johnson; amongst others, DreamWeaver finds Duke emphasizing extra instrumentals than up to now in addition to concentrating extra on his mastery on varied synthesizers.
Like the majority of Duke’s discography, DreamWeaver accentuates eclecticism with 15 tracks that vary from swinging jazz and sweat funk to gospel-inflected pop and sensual R&B ballads. Because the title implies, Duke likens mixing all the idioms to weaving a sonic material. He additionally compares that stylistic dynamism to life. “Everything is in transition – from hot to cold, from life to death,” he philosophizes, “I wanted to incorporate that kind of thing and include a lot of things that are a part of my life.”
Duke talks about “Dreamweaver” beneath:
From the Harmony Data YouTube video notes:
Out of devastating ache comes DreamWeaver, the brand new disc, which GRAMMY Award-winning keyboardist/composer/arranger/producer George Duke considers his “most honest album in several years.” The making of DreamWeaver occurred after his spouse, Corine, handed away. Struck with grief, he discovered it troublesome to work throughout that interval. “I didn’t feel like creating any music, which was odd, because normally that’s the easiest thing for me to do,” he says, “Sometimes, I would walk into the studio and say, ‘Nah. It’s not going to happen.'”
Duke’s mojo returned whereas on a Capital Cruise. Through the first couple of days, he did not play any music, however did take a look at a few of the different bands. “By the third day, something happened,” he remembers. After returning to his cabin round 4 a.m. from listening to music, inspiration ignited. “I went again on the deck and watched the solar come up. A few songs began coming to me; I obtained out my pen and paper, and began writing.
“With the help of an illustrious forged of musicians that features bassists Christian McBride and Stanley Clarke; singers Teena Marie, Lalah Hathaway, Rachelle Ferrell, and Jeffrey Osborne; guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr. and the late Jef Lee Johnson; amongst others, DreamWeaver, set for launch July 16, 2013 on Heads Up Worldwide, a division of Harmony Music Group, finds Duke emphasizing extra instrumentals than up to now in addition to concentrating extra on his mastery on varied synthesizers.
Like the majority of Duke’s discography, DreamWeaver accentuates eclecticism with 15 tracks that vary from swinging jazz and sweat funk to gospel-inflected pop and sensual R&B ballads. Because the title implies, Duke likens mixing all the idioms to weaving a sonic material. He additionally compares that stylistic dynamism to life. “Everything is in transition — from hot to cold, from life to death,” he philosophizes, “I wanted to incorporate that kind of thing and include a lot of things that are a part of my life.”
The disc begins and ends with allusions of nothingness, beginning with the title observe, a sparse etude, and finishes with “Happy Trails,” a misty ballad that was at first simply devoted to Duke’s spouse, however later gained extra emotional poignancy due to the sudden passing of Johnson, whose distinctive guitar work fades out the conclusion. In between, the disc unfolds with the evocative, mid-tempo fashionable jazz composition, “Stones of Orion,” showcasing Duke’s crystalline piano improvisations together with longtime collaborator Clarke on upright bass; the feisty 15-minute exercise, “Burnt Sausage Jam,” a observe that Duke refurbished from his 2002 Going through the Music classes with Johnson, McBride, and drummer Lil’ John Roberts; the frisky gangster-leaning groover, “Round the Way Girl;” the feet-friendly burner, “Jazzmatazz;” and the heartfelt ballad, “Missing You,” one other direct tribute to Duke’s spouse.
Duke joined the ancestors on Aug. 5, 2013. From his New York Occasions obituary, written by William Yardley:
George Duke, who started his profession as a jazz pianist within the Sixties however made his identify by crossing musical boundaries, died on Monday in Santa Monica, Calif. He was 67.
He had suffered coronary heart issues after being handled for continual lymphocytic leukemia, stated his supervisor, Darryl Porter, who confirmed the loss of life.
The identify of the instrument with which Mr. Duke is probably most carefully related additionally describes his strategy to music: synthesizer. Whereas he remained a revered determine within the jazz world, through the years he additionally performed keyboards with Frank Zappa and Michael Jackson, sang lead on a High 20 single and produced pop and rhythm-and-blues hits for others. His work has been sampled by hip-hop and digital artists, together with Daft Punk.
“I was in a rock band, I played with a bunch of Brazilians, I played R&B with Parliament-Funkadelic and all of that,” he stated in an interview earlier than his most up-to-date album, “DreamWeaver,” was launched final month. “I mean, I’ve done jazz with Miles Davis and Cannonball Adderley. It’s a goulash. It’s a gumbo.”
I’ll shut with this tribute to him—a 2015 efficiency of “My Old Friend,” from Al Jarreau.
Be a part of me within the feedback to search out much more music for our George Duke birthday celebration and please—put up your favorites.
