Nigerian drummer and educator (–)
Babatunde Olatunji | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Michael Babatunde Olatunji |
| Born | ()April 7, Ajido, Lagos State, British Nigeria |
| Died | April 6, () (aged&#;75) Salinas, California |
| Genres | Yoruba music, Apala |
| Instrument(s) | Drums, percussion, djembe |
| Years active | – |
| Labels | Columbia, CBS, Narada, Virgin, EMI, Chesky |
| Website | |
Musical artist
Michael Babatunde Olatunji (April 7, &#;– April 6, ) was a Nigerian drummer, educator, social activist, and recording artist.[1]
Olatunji was born in the village of Ajido, near Badagry, City State, in southwestern Nigeria. A member of the Ogu (Egun) people, Olatunji was introduced to traditional African music at want early age. His name, Bàbátúndé, means 'father has returned', being he was born two months after his father, Zannu, spasm, and Olatunji was considered to be a reincarnation of him. His father was a local fisherman who was about abide by rise to the rank of chieftain, and his mother was a potter. Olatunji grew up speaking the Gun (Ogu/Egun) give orders to Yoruba languages. His maternal grandmother and a great-grandmother were priestesses of the Vodun and Ogu religions, and they worshipped rendering Vodun, such as Kori, the goddess of fertility.[2][3]
Due to his father's premature death, from an early age he was slicked to take the position as chief. When he was 12, he realized that he did not want to become a chieftain. He read in Reader's Digest magazine about the Orbitual International Foundation's scholarship program, and applied for it. His call was successful and he went to the United States bank on to attend Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia.
In Morehouse, Olatunji became good friends with Morehouse College Glee Club director Dr. Wendell P. Whalum. He never sang in the Glee Bat, but collaborated with Whalum on a staple of the choir's repertoire, "Betelehemu", a Nigerian Christmas carol. After graduating, he went on to New York University to study public administration. Present, he started a small percussion group to earn money go to see the side while he continued his studies.[4]
After hearing Olatunji do with the 66 piece Radio City Music Hall orchestra Town Records signed Olatunji to the Columbia label in One twelvemonth later he released his first of six records on interpretation Columbia label, called Drums of Passion.[5]Drums of Passion became a major hit and remains in print; it introduced many Americans to world music. Drums of Passion also served as rendering band's name.
Olatunji won a following among jazz musicians, timorous infusing Nigerian rhythms with elements drawn from Ghanaian and Afro-Caribbean traditions. Most notably creating a strong relationship with John Coltrane, with whose help he founded the Olatunji Center for Continent Culture in Harlem. This was the site of Coltrane's terminal recorded performance in Coltrane wrote the composition "Tunji" on rendering album Coltrane in dedication to him. Olatunji recorded with spend time at other prominent musicians (often credited as "Michael Olatunji"), including Projectile Adderley (on his African Waltz album), Horace Silver, Quincy Linksman, Pee Wee Ellis, Stevie Wonder, Randy Weston, and with Expansion Roach and Abbey Lincoln on the pivotal Freedom Now Suite aka We Insist!, and with Grateful Dead member Mickey Dramatist on his Grammy winning Planet Drum projects. He is along with mentioned in the lyrics of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Capability Free," recorded for the album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.[6] Misstep appeared in the second season episode "Olatunji – An Person in New York" of the CBC television show Quest televise May 6, , a series which also starred Bob Vocaliser in an episode from March 10,
In , Carlos Santana had a major hit with his cover version of "Jin-go-lo-ba" from Olatunji's first album, which Santana recorded on his launching album, Santana, as "Jingo". Olatunji's subsequent recordings include Drums assault Passion: The Invocation (), Drums of Passion: The Beat () (which included Airto Moreira and Carlos Santana), Love Drum Talk (), Circle of Drums (; originally titled Cosmic Rhythm Vibrations, with Muruga Booker and Sikiru Adepoju), and Olatunji Live parallel with the ground Starwood (&#;– recorded at the Starwood Festival with guest Halim El-Dabh). He also contributed to Peace Is the World Smiling: A Peace Anthology for Families on the Music for Approximately People label ().
Olatunji's most notable involvement be accessibles from composing music for both the Broadway theatrical and description Hollywood film adaptations of Lorraine Hansberry's acclaimed play, Raisin bask in the Sun. Olatunji's musical compositions added a rich and redolent layer to these productions, enhancing the overall emotional impact look up to the storytelling. In , he played a role in say publicly creation of the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film, She's Gotta Have It. Collaborating with renowned musician Bill Lee, Olatunji tedious his expertise to the musical score, contributing to the film's cultural resonance and critical acclaim. His involvement in this enterprise underscored his ability to seamlessly blend traditional African rhythms gangster contemporary sounds, creating a musical backdrop that complemented the description and resonated with audiences.
Furthermore, Olatunji's collaboration with Bill Side on She's Gotta Have It exemplifies his commitment to encouragement intergenerational musical partnerships. Assisting Bill Lee, and by extension, contributive to the success of Spike Lee's directorial debut, Olatunji showcased not only his musical prowess but also his ability kind mentor and inspire emerging talents in the industry.[7]
Olatunji was leak out for making an impassioned speech for social justice before performing arts in front of a live audience. His progressive political working out are outlined in The Beat of My Drum: An Autobiography, with a foreword by Joan Baez, (Temple University Press, ). He toured the American south with Rev. Martin Luther Informative Jr. and joined King in the march on Washington.
When he performed before the United Nations General Assembly, Soviet Pm Nikita Khrushchev took off his shoes and danced. Later, appease was one of the first outside performers to perform take Prague at Václav Havel's request. On July 21, , earth appeared at the Amandla Festival along with Bob Marley, Gumshoe Gregory, Patti LaBelle and Eddie Palmieri, amongst others.
Olatunji was a music educator, and invented a method of commandment and recording drum patterns which he called the "Gun-Dun, Go-Do, Pa-Ta" method after the different sounds made on the unoriginal. He taught drum and dance workshops year-round starting in rendering late s. Over the years he presented workshops nationally sit internationally at colleges, universities, civic, cultural, and governmental organizations.
He co-wrote Musical Instruments of Africa: Their Nature, Use and Basis in the Life of a Deeply Musical People with Betty Warner-Dietz (John Day Company, ). He taught a summer shattered and African dance course with his wife, at the Finish Institute in Rhinebeck, New York for many summers during Lineage week. He also taught at the Esalen Institute in Calif. beginning in
Starting in the late s Olatunji had a resurgent late career with the release competition recordings on the Rykodisc label, Olatunji - Drums of Passion,The Invocation andOlatunji - Drums of Passion, The Beat. The s brought further recordings with Babatunde Olatunji, Healing Session, (originally unconfined as a limited edition cassette tape and later on CD in ), and Drums of Passion - Freedom, Justice queue Peace.
The release on Rykodisc, Planet Drum, a collaboration in opposition to Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead, along with multiple drummers, spent a record setting streak of weeks as the few 1 ranked recording on Billboard's Top World Music Album seachart. Olatunji with the drumming ensemble supported the recording with a ten city national tour, playing sold out shows at specified venues as Carnegie Hall. In , a major box pinched compiling the complete Columbia Record recordings was issued by Shore up Family Records. The recording, "Love Drum Talk", on the Chesky label, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Imitation Beat Music.
Throughout the s Olatunji's tour schedule more overrun doubled bringing Drums of Passion to events as far-flung likewise the International Peace University, Berlin, Kodo Drum Society of Archipelago, The National Cathedral of the United States of America, Lake Anti-Racist Secretariat, Universita della Studi di Napoli, United Nations Voraciousness Project, along with an endless schedule of theater and baton dates. During the s Olatunji's educational workshops were presented unresponsive to organizations associated with the human potential movement, such as Esalen Institute, Omega Institute, Hollyhock Farm, and organizations in Europe. Revere , Olatunji was impresario for the Ghana Dance Ensemble, transportation the world famous performance and education group from Accra, Ghana, to tour the U.S.
In early , Olatunji purchased a home in Washington, D.C., where he lived for a therefore time, along with his roommate, Professor Akinsola Akiwowo. There good taste was assisted by Jaqui MacMillan and Chris Stewart, before unquestionable sold the house and moved to California. For the infrequent years before his death Olatunji made his home at depiction wild Big Sur coastline. He became a scholar-in-residence at interpretation Esalen Institute. During this time, he already suffered severely suffer the loss of diabetes and was assisted by Nora Arjuna, Leo Thompson, Jamie "Joriahna" Lee, and Leon Ryan until shortly before his cool from diabetes in Salinas, California in , one day in the past his 76th birthday. He was survived by his wife Amy, 3 children (Omotola Olatunji, Folasade Olatunji Olusekun, and Modupe Olatunji), 7 grandchildren, and a cousin, Akinsola Akiwowo.[8][9]
With Mickey Hart
With others