{"id":5207,"date":"2022-11-14T23:42:32","date_gmt":"2022-11-15T05:42:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=5207"},"modified":"2022-11-18T16:41:51","modified_gmt":"2022-11-18T22:41:51","slug":"roots-infinity-harrison-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/roots-infinity-harrison-i\/","title":{"rendered":"Roots to Infinity: A Conversation with Donald Harrison, Jr. (Part One)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

While the history of improvised music is replete with works of artistic brilliance, such recordings seldom reach outside the confines of their usual audiences. It is not merely difficult but near impossible for improvisation-laced instrumental music to resonate with the larger popular culture. But there are always exceptions. One of these rare recordings is Herbie Hancock\u2019s Head Hunters<\/em> (Columbia, 1973). The first \u201cjazz\u201d album to obtain platinum status, Head Hunters, <\/em> once peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200. This success did not come at the cost of artistic daring, as critics have similarly praised the album over the years. The recording is even in the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry, a recognition of “cultural[], historical[], or aesthetic[] important[ance]” among the most elite recordings of the 20th century. Essential to Head Hunters<\/em>\u2019 success was its capability to present music that spans different eras and styles. That same power makes the Headhunters\u2019 Speakers in the House<\/em> (Ropeadope, 2022) a compelling work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given the group\u2019s reliance on synthesizers and funky grooves, it is easy to overlook how connected the 1970s incarnations of the Headhunters were to the roots of music. But the reality is that what made Head Hunters<\/em> so readily understandable to audiences was how grounded the group\u2019s ideas were even if they, at times, sounded otherworldly. As Hancock notes in his autobiography, \u201c[i]f Mwandishi had worked with an intergalactic palette, [the Headhunters] worked with an earthy one.\u201d A perfect example of this is \u201cWatermelon Man.\u201d A once straight-ahead standard adopts a funky groove while percussionist Bill Summers imitates the hindewho, an instrument of the Mbuti Pygmies of Northeastern Zaire. This single track closes gaps between African music, straight-ahead instrumental jazz, and the then somewhat nascent jazz-funk \u201cfusion\u201d form. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the decades since the Headhunters’ first album, Summers has kept the group alive, along with help from drummer Mike Clark who first joined the ensemble on Thrust <\/em>(Columbia, 1974). The Headhunters\u2019 sound has changed over the years to encompass new sounds and ideas, but the band\u2019s primary focus on connecting the past and present has remained unchanged.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the passing of almost a half-century since the Headhunters\u2019 formation, it is appropriate to reexamine the group\u2019s legacy and its impact on younger artists. One excellent case study can be found in Donald Harrison, Jr. A young man in the mid-1970s, Harrison had not yet dedicated himself to a musical career but found the Headhunters\u2019 pull nevertheless undeniable. While more indebted to Grover Washington Jr.\u2019s music for his picking up the saxophone, one must wonder whether Harrison’s career-long emphasis on connecting the past, present, and future derives partly from his experiences listening to the Headhunters. He has spent decades examining temporal connections, from his role as a young pupil of some of the music\u2019s most important voices to instilling musical virtues to future generations. Along the way, he created his own musical style, Nouveau Swing, which blurs modern jazz, funk, hip-hop, and soul music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Speakers in the House<\/em> is Harrison\u2019s second record with the Headhunters, it seems as though the saxophonist was custom suited for this album. While the Headhunters have borrowed ideas from many different kinds of music over the years, Speakers<\/em> is the group’s most overt statement on its indebtedness to the historical ties that run through New Orleans. \u201cKongo Square\u201d emphasizes the importance of the birthplace of modern music by combining Harrison\u2019s modern horn with the more ancient kora. \u201cRocking at the Mole House\u201d draws parallels between the second line tradition and dub and Caribbean music, whereas \u201cStoop\u201d pulls into New Orleans\u2019 history of instrumental R&B. Speakers<\/em> is an enjoyable listen at a cursory level, but more fascinating and intriguing the deeper you dig. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Summers is also a longtime resident of the Crescent City, it is nearly impossible to discuss the history of modern New Orleans music without discussing Harrison\u2019s role in it. As Big Chief of the Congo Square Nation, Harrison is a part of a long lineage that traces back generations in the city\u2019s culture. Yet, at the same time, he has proved a critical figure in mentoring young artists at the center of contemporary New Orleans musical culture, including Jon Batiste, Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, and Trombone Shorty. His work with the next generation of artists has been so impactful it even earned Harrison the title of NEA Jazz Master, one of the highest honors that can be bestowed upon a jazz musician.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this first part of our discussion with Harrison, we cover the new album, the legacy of the Headhunters, Nouveau Swing, Charlie Parker, Big Bill Broonzy, and the importance of transgenerational musical dialogue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

PostGenre: You were twelve or thirteen when the original Head Hunters<\/em> album came out. Do you remember the first time you heard the Headhunters?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Donald Harrison: Of course. Everywhere you could imagine, the Headhunters were blasting back then. I remember hearing \u201cChameleon\u201d and \u201cWatermelon Man\u201d and some other songs on what they called urban radio. Jazz radio played at my house all the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I loved the band\u2019s songs. I wasn’t a musician back when I first heard them, but every time their music came on, I dug it. And in those days, the [radio stations] would play long versions of the songs. You could hear a fifteen-minute version of \u201cChameleon\u201d on the radio. Now everything is three minutes or less if, by some miracle, instrumental music even gets played at all. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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