Khan Jamal
Birth nameWarren Robert Cheeseboro
Born(1946-07-23)July 23, 1946
Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
DiedJanuary 10, 2022(2022-01-10) (aged 75)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
GenresJazz
Instrument(s)vibraphone, marimba, percussion
Years active1960s–2022
LabelsSteepleChase

Khan Jamal (July 23, 1946 – January 10, 2022), born Warren Robert Cheeseboro, was an American jazz vibraphone and marimba player. He founded the band Sounds of Liberation in 1970. He was described by Ron Wynn as "a proficient soloist when playing free material, jazz-rock and fusion, hard bop, or bluesy fare."[1]

Early life

Warren Robert Cheeseboro was born in Jacksonville, Florida, on July 23, 1946.[1] His father, Henry McCloud, worked as an entrepreneur; his mother, Willa Mae Cheeseboro, was a stride pianist. He was raised in Philadelphia, and began playing the vibraphone during the later part of his teenage years in the mid-1960s.[2][3] Jamal attended the Granoff School of Music and the Combs College of Music.[2][4]

Career

Jamal first played for a group called Cosmic Forces during the later part of the 1960s.[1] He also played with The Sun Ra Arkestra. After leaving the group, he teamed up with several other of its former members to play with Sunny Murray's group Untouchable Factor.[2][4]

Jamal later co-founded Sounds of Liberation with Byard Lancaster in 1970.[1][2] Its members included Monnette Sudler (guitar), Billy Mills (bass), Dwight James (drums), and Omar Hill and Rashid Salim (percussion). The band released its only album, titled New Horizons, two years later on its own record label Dogtown.[2][4] However, it gained little impact outside Philadelphia at the time.[2] The album was eventually reissued on Porter Records in 2010. This gave the group a new lease on life, culminating in the re-emergence of a recording made at Columbia University in 1973. It was ultimately issued in 2019 as Unreleased on Dogtown/Brewerytown.[2][4]

In addition to leading his own groups, Jamal performed with Ronald Shannon Jackson's Decoding Society in the 1980s,[4] Joe Bonner, Billy Bang, Charles Tyler and others.[1][3] His first solo album was Drum Dance to the Motherland,[2] a live recording that was held in a small café in his hometown and first released in 1973.[4] It was reissued by Eremite Records in 2006, with the label describing it as "the most legendary private press underground jazz album of the 1970s".[2] Another solo album by Jamal, Infinity (1984), was reissued by Jazz Room in 2021 and dubbed spiritual jazz by WBGO.[2][4]

Jamal's style connected the two contrasting forms of free jazz and jazz fusion.[2][4] He was also known for his skill of shifting modes and moods, as well as his versatile way towards music. He was a frequent performer at the Vision Festival.[2]

Personal life

Jamal had two sons: Khan II and Tahir.[2] He died on January 10, 2022, at the Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia. He was 75, and suffered kidney failure prior to his death.[2][4]

Discography

As leader

NameYearLabel
Drum Dance to the Motherland[5]1972Dogtown
Give the Vibes Some[6][7]1974Palm 10
The River[7]1978Philly Jazz 1002, with Bill Lewis
Infinity[5]1984Con'brio 001; Stash 278; Jambrio 1001; Jazz Room 006
Dark Warrior[5]1984SteepleChase
Three[5]1985SteepleChase with Pierre Dørge, Johnny Dyani
The Traveller[5]1985SteepleChase
Thinking of You[5]1986Storyville 4138
Speak Easy[5]1988Gazell 4001
Don't Take No![5]1989Stash ST-CD-20
Percussion & Strings[5]1997CIMP
Cubano Chant[5]2000Jambrio 1002
Balafon Dance[5]2002CIMP
Cool[5]2002Jambrio 1008
Nothing Is Wrong[8]2003CIMP with Odean Pope
Black Awareness[5]2005CIMP
Return from Exile[5]2005Discograph 6124582
Fire and Water[5]2007CIMP with Dylan Taylor-bass
Impressions of Coltrane[5]2009SteepleChase

As sideman

Sources:[9][10]

ArtistNameYearLabel
Sounds of LiberationNew Horizons1972Dogtown
Ted DanielTapestry1974Sun
Monnette SudlerBrighter Days for You1978Steeplechase
Ronald Shannon Jackson & the Decoding SocietyNasty1981Moers
Dwight JamesInner Heat1983Cadence
Jemeel MoondocKonstanze's Delight1983Soul Note
Billy BangOutline No. 121983Celluloid
Joe BonnerSuite for Chocolate1985SteepleChase
Omar Hill and Art WebbCaribbean Breeze1986Gaslight
Dan FogelNaked Flowers1986Laughing Waters
Sunny MurrayChange of the Century Orchestra1999JAS
Omar HillTribes of the Future2000Afrotex
Jemeel MoondocRevolt of the Negro Lawn Jockeys2001Eremite
Roy Campbell Jr.It's Krunch Time2001Thirsty Ear
Antipop Consortium and Matthew ShippAntipop vs. Matthew Shipp2003Thirsty Ear
Matthew ShippEquilibrium2003Thirsty Ear
Thunderbird ServiceSoul Unity2006Heavenly Sweetness
DJ SpookyThe Secret Song2009Thirsty Ear
Scanner with the Post Modern Jazz QuartetBlink of an Eye2010Thirsty Ear
Sounds of LiberationUnreleased (Columbia University 1973)2018Dogtown

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Wynn, Ron (1994), Ron Wynn (ed.), All Music Guide to Jazz, M. Erlewine, V. Bogdanov, San Francisco: Miller Freeman, pp. 370–371, ISBN 978-0-87930-308-2
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Chinen, Nate (January 11, 2022). "Khan Jamal, vibraphonist who merged free jazz and fusion in a spiritual vein, is dead at 75". WBGO. Retrieved January 13, 2022. The band released one album, originally titled New Horizons, on its own Dogtown label in 1972. Its impact was barely felt outside of Philadelphia, though it has since acquired a glowing cachet.
  3. 1 2 Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2008) [1992]. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (9th ed.). New York: Penguin. pp. 762–763. ISBN 978-0-14-103401-0.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (January 12, 2022). "Khan Jamal, vibraphonist who merged free jazz and fusion in a spiritual vein, is dead at 75". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Khan Jamal – Album Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  6. ↑ Laing, Ralph (1981). Jazz Records: The Specialist Labels. Vol. 2. Jazzmedia. p. 413. ISBN 978-87-88043-01-3.
  7. 1 2 Lord, Tom (1992). The Jazz Discography. Lord Music Reference. p. J-86. ISBN 978-1-881993-01-8.
  8. ↑ "Khan Jamal – Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Khan Jamal: Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Khan Jamal discography". JazzLists. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
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