Booker T. & The MGs (the Memphis Group), a biracial jazz ensemble, was formed in 1962 in Memphis, Tennessee. The group’s original members were Booker T. Jones (organ, piano), born December 11, 1944; Lewie Steinberg (bass), born September 13, 1933; Al Jackson, Jr. (percussions), born … Read MoreBooker T & the MGs (1962-2017)
The musical moment in jazz fusion in the United States was 1954 when pianist Joseph Leslie Sample, born on February 1, 1939, began with tenor saxophonist Wilton Lewis Felder, born on August 31, 1940, and percussionist Nesbert “Stix” Hooper, born August 15, 1938, came together … Read MoreThe Crusaders (1954-2010)
Conductor, clarinetist, and composer W. Rudolph Dunbar was born on November 26, 1907, in Nabaclis, Guyana. At the age of nine, his musical genius apparent, he was invited to serve as a clarinetist in the British Guiana Militia Band. After a brief apprenticeship for stellar … Read MoreW. Rudolph Dunbar (1907-1988)
Fela Kuti was born in Abeokuta, Nigeria in the year 1938 as Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-KutFela Anikuplap Kuti. He later shortened his name to Fela Kuti, as he saw his birth name as a symbol of slavery and oppression. He also was popularly known as … Read MoreFela Kuti (1938-1997)
Also called Edythe Turnham and her Knights of Syncopation, the Edythe Turnham Orchestra was a prominent fixture in the Seattle music scene during its “Jazz Age” (1920-1933). It was led by the husband and wife team of Edythe and Floyd Turnham and was one of … Read MoreEdythe Turnham Orchestra
