Following a rash of acclaimed digitally re-mastered reissues on the Columbia/Legacy label, a new wave of interest has been sparked in Miles Davis' most volatile and controversial period, the electrified '70s. Now -- 30 or so years after the fact -- a number of respected Miles alumni have joined forces to recreate and reinterpret this intensely visceral and highly provocative groove-oriented, rock-tinged jazz. Billed as Children On The Corner (a sly reference to Miles' groundbreaking 1972 studio recording, On The Corner), they are now spreading Miles' edgiest, most unabashedly electrified music in clubs, concert halls and festivals around the world. Their debut release, Rebirth hits the streets on October 7th from Sonance Records. A whole new audience who missed out on this fiercely uncompromising sound the first time around can now picking up on what Michael Henderson and his crew are putting down. Alongside saxophonist Sonny Fortune (a Miles alum from 1974 who appeared on Big Fun, Agharta, Pangaea and Get Up With It), tabla player Badal Roy (who played a key role on 1972's On The Corner), drummer Ndugu Chancler (who toured Europe with Miles for one month in 1971 as a sub for Jack DeJohnette), guitarist Barry Finnerty (who played on Miles' 1981 comeback album The Man With The Horn) and keyboardist Michael Wolff (who although he never played with Miles Davis was hugely influenced by Miles' electric years, as evidenced by his 2001 release, Intoxicate), Henderson conjures up some of the same bubbling, subversive and influential grooves that shook up the world 30-some years ago. On Rebirth, a live set recorded at the renowned Oakland, California jazz spot, Yoshi's, the music sounds as ferocious now as it did back in the day.
The exemplary ensemble fires off tunes from Miles' fusion canon. Included are fiery interpretations of Josef Zawinul's “Directions" from the Davis LP of the same name and “New York Girl" and “Black Satin" from On the Corner. In addition to some incendiary tracks culled from live collective improvisation are two pieces by Michael Wolff that capture the spirit and vibe that these Miles alumni bring to this music that so influenced their individual musical journeys.
Henderson, the one-time Motown session bass player was recruited into the ranks of Miles Davis' most turbulent ensemble in 1970 during a series of jam-oriented recording sessions that ended up on A Tribute to Jack Johnson. Davis, a pugilist himself, recorded this soundtrack for an obscure documentary film on the life and times of the audacious heavyweight boxing champion from the early 1900s. Henderson would remain with Miles through 1975, appearing on such groundbreaking recordings as Live/Evil, On The Corner, Get Up With It, Agharta, Pangaea and Dark Magus. He described his duties with Miles during those turbulent but productive years: “He basically wanted me to just keep it funky. When I was with Stevie Wonder, that's what I did. Stevie Wonder was pretty funky his damn self so he didn't need nobody to keep it funky, but when I was with him, that's what we played...funk. And Miles wanted that, too. He wanted me to give him bass lines that were memorable. Nothing too busy, just solid stuff. Heavy groove. Something that you can remember. He wanted to get into having hit records."
Taking his cues from two reigning black pop stars of the day -- Sly Stone and Jimi Hendrix -- Miles became intent on purveying groove music, but with his own unique twist that incorporated bits of free jazz, Indian classical music, Afro-Cuban percussion and searing rock decibels on top. Henderson played a key role in Davis' plan by remaining the rock steady anchor in the fray, the deeply-rooted fulcrum upon which everything pivoted. His deep-toned ostinatos and vamps provided a kind of hypnotic glue that brought all the parts -- no matter how turbulent and potentially chaotic they might become -- together into a cohesive yet kinetic whole. “That's what he hired me for," says Henderson, “to come in and take control and to keep it there. In fact, that was my job with everybody I worked with before Miles, just to come in and keep it solid. Miles definitely knew what he wanted, always."
Striking out on his own in 1976, when Miles went into a self-imposed exile, Henderson went on to gain international renown as a singer-songwriter-producer who wrote and performed on several Top 10 hits, including Norman Connors' Grammy-winning “You Are My Starship" and his own 1980 hit “Wide Receiver." He recorded as a solo artist for Buddah Records from 1976 to 1983 and later recorded duets with singers Phyllis Hyman, Bobby Womack and Johnnie Taylor. Since forming Children on the Corner in 2002, Henderson has watched the band gel naturally through the age-old process of gigging.
“We're growing, just like Miles' band from those earlier years did over time. We've been out there hitting it and there's something very special happening for us right now. At first it was a struggle to get this band back on the scene but it seems very timely that this project is coming out now. It's going to strike up a whole other thing, maybe help stir up interest in Miles music of that period. To pull this project off successfully, it was just a question of getting the right people involved, going through the material from that period and doing it right. I just feel blessed that we got the right cats for this project and that we're putting this music out there again. Now's the time."
Lest anyone misunderstand, Michael is quick to point out, “This ain't no smooth jazz. Don't come to hear us and get ready to eat your steak and sit there and have a conversation with your old lady. It ain't happenin'. Because when we hit the stage, we mean business. We're going for the throat."
The sheer visceral power that Michael Henderson helped unleash in Miles Davis' most provocative and electrified ensemble from the 1970s is still reverberating around the world. And it's found a new home in Children On The Corner, the keepers of that volatile flame. Hear them explode out of the gate and stretch to the stratosphere on Rebirth, their incendiary debut on Sonance Records, a label specializing in live recordings from an eclectic variety of bands from all genres.
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