Song:Attica Blues
Album:The Impulse Story
Sax player Archie Shepp is another jazz musician whose forays into funk and R & B has made him a big influence on hip hop. This Impulse Story comp represents his best known recordings from the late 60s-early 70s. He was born May 24, 1937 in Fort Lauderdale, FL but grew up in Philadelphia. He learned to play sax as a child but studied drama at Goddard College in Vermont because he wanted to be an actor. He moved to New York in 1959 but when he couldn't find acting jobs, he started playing sax in clubs. This led to Shepp appearing on several albums by avant garde pianist Cecil Taylor in the mid 60s and then his first group the New York Contemporary Five featuring trumpeter Don Cherry. Shepp got the attention of John Coltrane and Coltrane brought him to Impulse Records. His time with Coltrane led to several avant garde jazz albums in the late 60s. In the early 70s, Shepp became a professor of music at University Of Massachssets Amherst. His music took a turn away from his experimental music and more towards R & B and funk. Attica Blues was released in 1972 and is considered a major influence on hip hop. The album was also political commentary about the Attica Prison riots. Shepp left Impulse in 1974 and since then has recorded mostly for European record companies. Lately he has recorded for his own Archie Ball label with the 2007 CD Gemini. Archie Shepp also appeared in Ron Mann's 1981 documentary Imagine The Sound and here is a clip from that film.
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