Music giant Curtis Mayfield dies
By Monica
Moorehead
CURTIS MAYFIELD--one of the towering figures of
African American music, especially rhythm and blues--passed
away on Dec. 26 at the age of 57 in Roswell, Ga.
After a 1990 accident in which a lighting rig fell on him
during a concert, Mayfield was paralyzed and in poor health. He
developed diabetes, leading to the amputation of one leg.
Like many other Black singers, from Patti LaBelle to Marvin
Gaye, Mayfield started singing gospel in church. Born in
Chicago, Mayfield sang with the Northern Jubilee Singers, who
were a part of his grandmother's Traveling Soul Spiritualist
Church.
Mayfield and gospel singer Jerry Butler formed the group
known as the Impressions in the 1960s. Butler would eventually
leave the Impressions to embark upon a successful solo career,
in which he was known as the "Iceman."
Not only was Mayfield a lead singer of the three-person
group but he wrote many of their songs and played lead guitar.
The historic movement for Black civil rights was not lost on
Mayfield and the Impressions. In fact, their music expressed
the growing strength of the movement as they led the way in
showing that Black music could play a helpful role in the
anti-racist struggle.
Mayfield wrote a number of uplifting songs like "People Get
Ready" and "Keep On Pushing" that helped to instill confidence
that the struggle for democratic rights among the Black masses
was just and that united the people could win. These songs
alone will stand the test of time.
The Impressions' other hits included "It's All Right," "I'm
so Proud," "Amen," and "We're A Winner." Mayfield wrote
memorable hits not only for the Impressions but for other Black
artists as well. They included Gladys Knight and the Pips,
Aretha Franklin, the Staple Singers, Major Lance and Gene
Chandler.
Mayfield's song-writing talents became so prolific that he
has been credited with starting the "Chicago Sound," which
proved to be distinctive from the more popular Motown Sound. It
is a testimony to his greatness that many artists, Black and
white, are interpreting Mayfield's songs to this day.
In 1970, Mayfield left the Impressions to pursue a solo
career. In 1972, he produced the number one album of the year,
the movie soundtrack for "Superfly." A story about the life of
a drug pusher, Superfly was one of the most successful of the
"blaxploitation" movies of the 1970s. Mayfield's haunting music
and profound lyrics reflected the movie's glamorization of
drugs as well as their tragic consequences for the Black
community.
Mayfield and the Impressions were inducted into the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. During the same period, Mayfield
joined with fellow performers Jerry Butler, Sam Moore from Sam
and Dave, and the estates of the late Mary Wells and Jackie
Wilson as plaintiffs in a $7-billion class-action suit. This
suit charged some of the major U.S. recording companies with
systematically defrauding recording artists of their health
insurance, pensions and other benefits.
In 1998, the Georgia House of Representatives passed a
resolution honoring the contributions of Curtis Mayfield.
However, in a racist society like the U.S., a Black artist will
never get the total recognition accorded to popular white
performers like Elvis Presley or the Beatles, who are elevated
to almost a mythical level. These performers discovered that
the answer to having a successful career was to try to imitate
the Black sound. They made millions of dollars in the
process.
Curtis Mayfield never came close to being a
multi-millionaire and also never got the recognition he so
richly deserved. But he was a musical genius, pure and simple.
He was a product of the social upheaval of the 1960s.
Even when Mayfield enjoyed a modicum of success, he never
forgot his roots as he continued to produce quality music.
Until his last breath his music reflected real life, especially
the lives of Black people. He refused to compromise his music
and that should always be a part of his legacy.
The title of one of his most revered songs could apply to
the struggle today: "Keep On Pushing."
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email: ww@workers.org
Subscribe wwnews-subscribe@workersworld.net
Support independent news http://www.workers.org/orders/donate.php)
HOME
:: U.S. NEWS ::
WORLD NEWS ::
EDITORIALS ::
SUBSCRIBE ::
DONATE
Email
this article
Printable
page