Misplaced Pages

#874125

58-448: Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Dubbed the " Gentle Genius ", he is considered one of the most influential musicians of soul and socially conscious African-American music . Mayfield first achieved success and recognition with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -inducted vocal group The Impressions during

116-440: A Hell Below, We're All Going to Go" has been included as an entrance song on every episode of the drama series The Deuce . The Deuce tells of the germination of the sex-trade industry in the heart of New York's Times Square in the 1970s. Mayfield's career began to slow down during the 1980s. In later years, Mayfield's music was included in the movies I'm Gonna Git You Sucka , Hollywood Shuffle , Friday (though not on

174-442: A civil rights hero with his ability to inspire hope and courage. Mayfield was unique in his ability to fuse relevant social commentary with melodies and lyrics that instilled a hopefulness for a better future in his listeners. He wrote and recorded the soundtrack to the 1972 blaxploitation film Super Fly with the help of producer Johnny Pate. The soundtrack for Super Fly is regarded as an all-time great body of work that captured

232-638: A job at the University of Chicago and returning to college during the evenings to pursue a degree in sociology . He re-emerged from obscurity in the late 1980s, when British DJs discovered his old recordings and began to play his songs in clubs. Acid Jazz Records head Eddie Piller reissued a little-known Callier recording from 1983, "I Don't Want to See Myself (Without You)", and brought him to play clubs in Britain. From 1991 he began to make regular trips to play gigs during his vacation time from work. In

290-484: A lasting impact in the civil rights struggle with his inspirational music. By the end of the decade Mayfield was a pioneering voice in the black pride movement, along with James Brown and Sly Stone. Paving the way for a future generation of rebel thinkers, Mayfield paid the price, artistically and commercially, for his politically charged music. Mayfield's "Keep On Pushing" was actually banned from several radio stations, including WLS in his hometown of Chicago. Regardless of

348-604: A musician, but after the award the news of his work as a musician became widely known and subsequently led to his dismissal by the University. One of Callier's last live gigs in the UK was at Trentham Gardens, Stoke on the night that Diana, Princess of Wales died in 1997. As well as touring internationally, Callier continued his recording career, releasing five albums after Timepeace , including Lifetime (1999), Alive (2001), Speak Your Peace (2002), featuring Paul Weller on

406-461: A new socially conscious , funky style of popular soul music . The single releases " Freddie's Dead " and " Super Fly " each sold more than one million copies, and were awarded gold discs by the R.I.A.A. Super Fly brought success that resulted in Mayfield being tapped for additional soundtracks, some of which he wrote and produced while having others perform the vocals. Gladys Knight &

464-553: A result of which he was awarded his own recording contract with Cadet as a singer-songwriter. Three critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful albums followed, produced by Charles Stepney : Occasional Rain (1972), What Color Is Love (1972), and I Just Can't Help Myself (1973). These demonstrated that Callier's influences included soul, jazz, funk , psychedelia , and classical music . Subsequently, he toured with George Benson , Gil Scott-Heron and others. Cadet and its parent label Chess were sold in 1976 and Callier

522-460: A song that focuses on the demise of Freddie, a junkie that was forced into "pushin' dope for the man" because of a debt that he owed to his dealer, and "Pusherman", a song that reveals how many people in the ghetto fell victim to drug abuse, and therefore became dependent upon their dealers, Mayfield illuminated a darker side of life in the ghetto that these blaxploitation films often failed to criticize. However, although Mayfield's soundtrack criticized

580-623: Is Strong in Here" from his soundtrack to the Robert M. Young film of Miguel Piñero 's play Short Eyes . In his 2003 biography of Curtis Mayfield, People Never Give Up , author Peter Burns noted that Mayfield has 140 songs in the Curtom vaults. Burns indicated that the songs were maybe already completed or in the stages of completion, so that they could then be released commercially. These recordings include "The Great Escape", "In The News", "Turn up

638-702: The R&;B chart in 1979. The single prompted his appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival , where Mizell presented him in the Elektra Jazz Fusion Night showcase alongside Grover Washington , Dee Dee Bridgewater and Lee Ritenour . When Mizell moved on to work with Stevie Wonder in 1980, Callier was dropped from the label. Callier continued to perform and tour until 1983, when he gained custody of his daughter and retired from music to take classes in computer programming, landing

SECTION 10

#1732802597875

696-562: The civil rights movement of the late 1950s and the 1960s, and later worked as a solo artist. Mayfield started his musical career in a gospel choir. Moving to the North Side of Chicago, he met Jerry Butler in 1956 at the age of 14 and joined The Impressions. The group's lead singer and primary songwriter, Mayfield became noted as one of the first musicians to bring more prevalent themes of social awareness into soul music. In 1965, he wrote " People Get Ready " for The Impressions, which

754-654: The psychedelic rock band H. P. Lovecraft in 1968, as part of their H. P. Lovecraft II album. H. P. Lovecraft featured fellow Chicago folk club stalwart George Edwards , who would go on to co-produce several tracks for Callier in 1969. He continued to perform in Chicago; in 1970, he joined the Chicago Songwriters Workshop set up by Jerry Butler. He and partner Larry Wade wrote material for Chess and its subsidiary Cadet label, including The Dells ' 1972 hit "The Love We Had Stays on My Mind", as

812-465: The soundtrack for the 1972 blaxploitation film Super Fly . The soundtrack was noted for its socially conscious themes, primarily addressing issues that heavily affected inner city residents and racial minorities such as crime, poverty and drug abuse . The album was ranked No. 72 in Rolling Stone ' s list of the " 500 Greatest Albums of All Time " in 2003. On August 13, 1990, Mayfield

870-523: The 1950s. There was a series of attempts to find—and a number of claimants to be—the "King of Rock 'n' Roll", a title that became most associated with Elvis Presley . This has been characterized as part of a process of the appropriation of credit for innovation of the then new music by a white establishment. Different honorifics have been taken or given for other leading figures in the genre, such as "the Architect of Rock and Roll", by Little Richard from

928-510: The 1960s and 1970s. Mayfield taught himself how to play guitar, tuning it to the black keys of the piano, giving the guitar an open F-sharp tuning that he used throughout his career. He primarily sang in falsetto register . His guitar playing, singing, and socially aware song-writing influenced a range of artists, including Jimi Hendrix , Bob Marley , Tracy Chapman , Sly Stone , Marvin Gaye , Stevie Wonder and Sinéad O'Connor . In 2017, it

986-477: The 1963 United Artists film Lilies of the Field , which starred Sidney Poitier . The Impressions reached the height of their popularity in the mid-to-late-'60s with a string of Mayfield compositions that included " Keep On Pushing ," " People Get Ready ", " It's All Right " (Top 10), the up-tempo "Talking about My Baby"(Top 20) and "Woman's Got Soul". He formed his own label, Curtom Records in Chicago in 1968 and

1044-465: The 1980s. Some nicknames have been strongly promulgated and contested by various artists, and occasionally disowned or played down by their subjects. Some notable honorific nicknames are in general usage and commonly identified with particular individuals. Terry Callier Terrence Orlando "Terry" Callier (May 24, 1945 – October 27, 2012) was an American soul , folk and jazz guitarist and singer-songwriter. Callier

1102-421: The 1990s; this term, like many, is also used for other important figures, in this case including pioneer electric guitarist Les Paul . Similar honorific nicknames have been given in other genres, including Aretha Franklin , who was crowned the "Queen of Soul" on stage by disk jockey Pervis Spann in 1968. Michael Jackson and Madonna have been closely associated with the terms "King and Queen of Pop" since

1160-956: The Civil Rights Movement. Mayfield was a prolific songwriter in Chicago even outside his work for the Impressions, writing and producing scores of hits for many other artists. He also owned the Mayfield and Windy C labels which were distributed by Cameo-Parkway , and was a partner in the Curtom (first independent, then distributed by Buddah then Warner Bros and finally RSO) and Thomas labels (first independent, then distributed by Atlantic, then independent again and finally Buddah). Among Mayfield's greatest songwriting successes were three hits that he wrote for Jerry Butler on Vee Jay ("He Will Break Your Heart", "Find Another Girl" and "I'm A-Tellin' You"). His harmony vocals are very prominent. He also had great success writing and arranging Jan Bradley 's "Mama Didn't Lie". Starting in 1963, he

1218-608: The Club Chicago . In 1982, Mayfield decided to move to Atlanta with his family, closing down his recording operation in Chicago. The label had gradually reduced in size in its final two years or so with releases on the main RSO imprint and Curtom credited as the production company. Mayfield continued to record occasionally, keeping the Curtom name alive for a few more years, and to tour worldwide. Mayfield's song "(Don't Worry) If There's

SECTION 20

#1732802597875

1276-475: The Impressions joined him to continue their run of hits including "Fool For You," "This is My Country", "Choice Of Colors" and "Check Out Your Mind". Mayfield had written much of the soundtrack of the Civil Rights Movement in the early 1960s, but by the end of the decade, he was a pioneering voice in the black pride movement along with James Brown and Sly Stone . Mayfield's " We're a Winner "

1334-592: The Impressions, Leroy Hutson , the Five Stairsteps , the Staples Singers , Mavis Staples , Linda Clifford , Natural Four , The Notations and Baby Huey and the Babysitters . Gene Chandler and Major Lance, who had worked with Mayfield during the 1960s, also signed for short stays at Curtom. Many of the label's recordings were produced by Mayfield. Mayfield's first solo album, Curtis ,

1392-593: The North Fulton Regional Hospital in Roswell, Georgia . He was survived by his wife, Altheida Mayfield; his mother, Mariam Jackson; 10 children; two sisters, Carolyn Falls and Judy Mayfield; a brother, Kenneth Mayfield; and seven grandchildren. Mayfield was among the first of a new wave of mainstream black R&B performing artists and composers injecting social commentary into their work. This "message music" proved immensely popular during

1450-633: The Northern Jubilee Gospel Singers. Mayfield received his first guitar when he was ten, later recalling that he loved his guitar so much he used to sleep with it. He was a self-taught musician, and he grew up admiring blues singer Muddy Waters and Spanish guitarist Andres Segovia . When he was 14 years old he formed the Alphatones when the Northern Jubilee Gospel Singers decided to try their luck in downtown Chicago and Mayfield stayed behind. Fellow group member Sam Gooden

1508-510: The Pips recorded Mayfield's soundtrack for Claudine in 1974, while Aretha Franklin recorded the soundtrack for Sparkle in 1976. Mayfield also worked with The Staples Singers on the soundtrack for the 1975 film Let's Do It Again , and teamed up with Mavis Staples exclusively on the 1977 film soundtrack A Piece of the Action (both movies were part of a trilogy of films that featured

1566-556: The Prix Otis Redding for best R&B record. Mayfield was nominated for eight Grammy Awards during his career. He is a winner of the prestigious Grammy Legend Award and Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award . Honorific nicknames in popular music In U.S. culture , despite its republican constitution and ideology, royalist honorific nicknames have been used to describe leading figures in various areas of activity, such as industry, commerce, sports, and

1624-528: The Radio", "What's The Situation?" and one recording labelled "Curtis at Montreux Jazz Festival 87".Two other albums featuring Curtis Mayfield present in the Curtom vaults and as yet unissued are a 1982/83 live recording titled "25th Silver Anniversary" (which features performances by Mayfield, the Impressions, and Jerry Butler ) and a live performance, recorded in September 1966 by the Impressions titled Live at

1682-573: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of The Impressions in 1991, and again in 1999 as a solo artist. He is also a two-time Grammy Hall of Fame inductee. He died from complications of type 2 diabetes at the age of 57 on December 26, 1999. Curtis Lee Mayfield was born on Wednesday, June 3, 1942, in Cook County Hospital in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Marion Washington and Kenneth Mayfield, one of five children. Mayfield's father left

1740-466: The Roosters with Arthur and Richard Brooks and Jerry Butler . Two years later the Roosters, now including Sam Gooden , became the Impressions. The band had two hit singles with Butler, " For Your Precious Love " and "Come Back My Love", then Butler left. Mayfield temporarily went with him, co-writing and performing on Butler's next hit, "He Will Break Your Heart", before returning to the Impressions with

1798-539: The Staple Singers . Mayfield's last appearance on record was with the group Bran Van 3000 on the song " Astounded " for their album Discosis , recorded just before his death and released in 2001. However, his health had steadily declined following his paralysis, so his vocals were not new but were instead lifted from archive recordings, including "Move On Up". Mayfield died from complications of type 2 diabetes at 7:20 EST (12:20 GMT) on December 26, 1999, at

Curtis Mayfield - Misplaced Pages Continue

1856-574: The acting and comedic exploits of Bill Cosby and Sidney Poitier and were directed by Poitier ). In 1973 Mayfield released the anti-war album Back to the World , a concept album that dealt with the social aftermath of the Vietnam War and criticized the United States' involvement in wars across the planet. One of Mayfield's most successful funk-disco meldings was the 1977 hit "Do Do Wap

1914-579: The essence of life in the ghetto while criticizing the tendency of young people to glorify the "glamorous" lifestyles of drug dealers and pimps, and illuminating the dark realities of drugs, addiction, and exploitation. Mayfield, along with several other soul and funk musicians, spread messages of hope in the face of oppression, pride in being a member of the black race and gave courage to a generation of people who were demanding their human rights. He has been compared to Martin Luther King Jr. for making

1972-501: The family when Curtis was five; his mother (and maternal grandmother) moved the family into several Chicago public housing projects before settling in Cabrini–Green during his teen years. Mayfield attended Wells Community Academy High School before dropping out his second year. His mother taught him piano and, along with his grandmother, encouraged him to enjoy gospel music. At the age of seven he sang publicly at his aunt's church with

2030-446: The film's message "was diluted by schizoid cross-purposes" because it "glamorizes machismo - cocaine consciousness... the anti-drug message on [Mayfield's soundtrack] is far stronger and more definite than in the film." Because of the tendency of these blaxploitation films to glorify the criminal life of dealers and pimps to target a mostly black lower class audience, Mayfield's album set this movie apart. With songs like "Freddie's Dead",

2088-407: The glorification of dealers and pimps, he in no way denied that this glorification was occurring. When asked about the subject matter of these films he was quoted stating "I don't see why people are complaining about the subject of these films", and "The way you clean up the films is by cleaning up the streets." Along with What's Going On and Stevie Wonder 's Innervisions , this album ushered in

2146-415: The group signing for ABC Records and working with the label's Chicago-based producer/A&R manager, Johnny Pate . Butler was replaced by Fred Cash , a returning original Roosters member, and Mayfield became lead singer, frequently composing for the band, starting with " Gypsy Woman ", a Top 20 Pop hit. Their hit "Amen" (Top 10), an updated version of an old gospel tune, was included in the soundtrack of

2204-504: The late 1990s, Callier began his comeback to recorded music, collaborating with Urban Species on their 1997 EP Religion and Politics and contributed to Beth Orton 's Best Bit EP in 1997 before releasing the album Timepeace in 1998, which won the United Nations' Time For Peace award for outstanding artistic achievement contributing to world peace. His colleagues at the University of Chicago did not know of Callier's life as

2262-595: The media; father or mother have been used for innovators , and royal titles such as king and queen for dominant figures in a field. In the 1930s and 1940s, as jazz and swing music were gaining popularity, it was the more commercially successful white artists Paul Whiteman and Benny Goodman who became known as "the King of Jazz" and "the King of Swing" respectively, despite there being more highly regarded contemporary African-American artists. These patterns of naming were transferred to rock and roll when it emerged in

2320-539: The music of John Coltrane . During this period, he briefly performed in a duo with David Crosby in Chicago and New York City . He met Samuel Charters of Prestige Records in 1964; the following year, they recorded his debut album. Charters then took the tapes away with him into the Mexican desert, and the album was eventually released in 1968 as The New Folk Sound of Terry Callier . Two of Callier's songs, "Spin, Spin, Spin" and "It's About Time", were recorded by

2378-633: The passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , his group the Impressions produced music that became the soundtrack to a summer of revolution. It is even said that "Keep On Pushing" became the number one sing along during the Freedom Rides. Black students sang their songs as they marched to jail or protested outside their universities, while King often used "Keep On Pushing", "People Get Ready" and "We're A Winner" because of their ability to motivate and inspire marchers. Mayfield had quickly become

Curtis Mayfield - Misplaced Pages Continue

2436-408: The persistent radio bans and loss of revenue, he continued his quest for equality right until his death. Mayfield was also a descriptive social commentator. As the influx of drugs ravaged through black America in the late 1960s and 1970s his bittersweet descriptions of the ghetto would serve as warnings to the impressionable. "Freddie's Dead" is a graphic tale of street life, while "Pusherman" revealed

2494-508: The role of drug dealers in the urban ghettos. Mayfield was married twice. He had 10 children from different relationships. At the time of his death he was married to Altheida Mayfield. Together they had six children. On August 13, 1990, Mayfield became paralyzed from the neck down after stage lighting equipment fell on him while he was being introduced at an outdoor concert at Wingate Field in Flatbush , Brooklyn, New York. Afterwards, he sang

2552-482: The second verse of a remake of " Let's Do It Again " being produced by Gary Katz by the Repercussions for All Men Are Brothers: A Tribute to Curtis Mayfield , while lying on his back in the recording studio. Although he was unable to play the guitar, he continued to compose and sing, which he found he could do by lying down and letting gravity pull down on his chest and lungs. The 1996 album New World Order

2610-753: The single " Brother to Brother ", Golden Apples of the Sun (2003), featuring the words of W. B. Yeats ' poem The Song of the Wandering Aengus , and Lookin' Out (2004). May 2009 saw his album Hidden Conversations featuring Massive Attack released on Mr Bongo records. In 2001, Callier performed "Satin Doll" for the Red Hot Organization 's compilation album Red Hot + Indigo , a tribute to Duke Ellington , which raised money for various charities devoted to increasing AIDS awareness and fighting

2668-569: The soundtrack album), Bend It Like Beckham , The Hangover Part II and Short Eyes , where he had a cameo role as a prisoner. "His most affecting songs carried the optimism and conviction of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s most celebrated sermons. His music was a major influence on many of today's most influential rap and hip-hop stars, from Lauryn Hill to Public Enemy." — Los Angeles Times Pop Music Critic Robert Hilburn (1999) Mayfield sang openly about civil rights and black pride, and

2726-461: The soundtracks to other blaxploitation films (most notably Isaac Hayes ' score for Shaft ), which glorified the ghetto excesses of the characters, Mayfield's lyrics consisted of hard-hitting commentary on the state of affairs in black, urban ghettos at the time, as well as direct criticisms of several characters in the film. Bob Donat wrote in Rolling Stone magazine in 1972 that while

2784-552: Was born in the North Side of Chicago, Illinois, and was raised in the Cabrini–Green housing area. He learned piano, was a childhood friend of Curtis Mayfield , Major Lance and Jerry Butler , and began singing in doo-wop groups in his teens. In 1962, he took an audition at Chess Records , where he recorded his debut single, "Look at Me Now". At the same time as attending college, he then began performing in folk clubs and coffee houses in Chicago, becoming strongly influenced by

2842-478: Was heavily involved in writing and arranging for OKeh Records (with Carl Davis producing), which included hits by Major Lance such as " Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um " and " The Monkey Time ", as well as Walter Jackson, Billy Butler and the Artistics. This arrangement ran through 1965. In 1970, Mayfield left the Impressions and began a solo career. Curtom released many of Mayfield's 1970s records, as well as records by

2900-510: Was known for introducing social consciousness into African-American music . Having been raised in the Cabrini-Green projects of Chicago, he witnessed many of the tragedies of the urban ghetto first hand, and was quoted saying "With everything I saw on the streets as a young black kid, it wasn't hard during the later fifties and sixties for me to write my heartfelt way of how I visualized things, how I thought things ought to be." Following

2958-410: Was paralyzed from the neck down during an accident in which lighting equipment fell on him during a live performance at Wingate Field in Flatbush, Brooklyn , New York. Despite this, he continued his career as a recording artist, releasing his final album New World Order in 1996. Mayfield won a Grammy Legend Award in 1994 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995. He is a double inductee into

SECTION 50

#1732802597875

3016-452: Was quoted "It would have been nice to have him there with us, but of course, your parents have the first say." Later in 1956, he joined his high school friend Jerry Butler's group The Roosters with brothers Arthur and Richard Brooks. He wrote and composed songs for this group who would become The Impressions two years later. He was also notably a childhood friend of fellow musician Terry Callier Mayfield's career began in 1956 when he joined

3074-511: Was ranked No. 24 in Rolling Stone 's list of the " 500 Greatest Songs of All Time " in 2004. The song received numerous other awards; it was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll", and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. After leaving The Impressions in 1970 in pursuit of a solo career, Mayfield released several albums throughout the decade, including his debut Curtis (1970) and

3132-603: Was recorded in this way, with vocals sometimes recorded in lines at a time. Mayfield received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1994. In February 1998, he had to have his right leg amputated due to diabetes. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on March 15, 1999. Health reasons prevented him from attending the ceremony, which included fellow inductees Paul McCartney , Billy Joel , Bruce Springsteen , Dusty Springfield , George Martin , and 1970s Curtom signees and labelmates

3190-486: Was released in 1970, and hit the top 20, as well as being a critical success. It pre-dated Marvin Gaye 's album, What's Going On , to which it has been compared in addressing social change. The commercial and critical peak of his solo career came with Super Fly , the soundtrack to the blaxploitation Super Fly film, which topped the Billboard Top LPs chart and sold more than 12 million copies. Unlike

3248-577: Was reported that Lionel Richie had secured the rights to produce a biographical film about Mayfield. Richie said, "I'm so grateful to be working closely with [Mayfield's widow] Altheida Mayfield, [son] Cheaa Mayfield and the Curtis Mayfield Estate and couldn't be happier to be moving forward on this amazing project about a one-of-a-kind music genius." In 1972, the French Academy of Jazz awarded Mayfield's debut solo album Curtis

3306-451: Was their last major hit for ABC. Reaching number 14 on Billboard ' s pop chart and number one on the R&;B chart, it became an anthem of the black power and black pride movements when it was released in late 1967, much as his earlier "Keep on Pushing" (whose title is quoted in the lyrics of "We're a Winner" and also in " Move On Up ") had been an anthem for Martin Luther King Jr. and

3364-458: Was then dropped from the label. The Songwriters Workshop closed in 1976. The following year, Don Mizell signed him to a new contract with his Jazz Fusion Division at Elektra Records , resulting in the R&B-oriented Fire On Ice (1977) and Turn You to Love (1978). The opening track of the latter album, "Sign Of The Times", was used as the theme tune of radio DJ Frankie Crocker and became Callier's only US chart success, reaching No. 78 on

#874125