Mwandishi

Mwandishi is the ninth album by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, released in 1971.

Background

It is one of Hancock's first departures from the traditional idioms of jazz as well as the onset of a new, creative and original style which produced an appeal to a wider audience, before his 1973 album, Head Hunters. In addition, Mwandishi was Hancock's attempt at continuing the musical principles and styles he began playing with Miles Davis on In A Silent Way. Hancock's previous attempts at jazz-rock fusion included Fat Albert Rotunda, an album conceived solely for Bill Cosby's Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids.

Mwandishi was recorded at Wally Heider Recording Studios, in San Francisco, California in December 1970. It was originally recorded by the Mwandishi Sextet that was built around Herbie Hancock and progressive notions of funk, jazz, and rock during this time period.

The tracks on Mwandishi are "Ostinato," the time signature of which is 15/8, "You'll Know When You Get There", and "Wandering Spirit Song". "Wandering Spirit Song" features Hancock's extensive use of tension and release, whereby he builds the tension of the song by increasing the amount of musical voices and increasing crescendos, only to release the tension with long held out chords on his synthesizer.

Herbie Hancock

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Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, composer and actor. Starting his career with Donald Byrd, he shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet where Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the post-bop sound. He was one of the first jazz musicians to embrace synthesizers and funk music. Hancock's music is often melodic and accessible; he has had many songs "cross over" and achieved success among pop audiences. His music embraces elements of funk and soul while adopting freer stylistic elements from jazz. In his jazz improvisation, he possesses a unique creative blend of jazz, blues, and modern classical music, with harmonic stylings much like the styles of Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.

Hancock's best-known compositions include "Cantaloupe Island", "Watermelon Man" (later performed by dozens of musicians, including bandleader Mongo Santamaría), "Maiden Voyage", "Chameleon", and the singles "I Thought It Was You" and "Rockit". His 2007 tribute album River: The Joni Letters won the 2008 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, only the second jazz album ever to win the award, after Getz/Gilberto in 1965.

Bennie Maupin

Bennie Maupin (born August 29, 1940) is a Detroit Michigan jazz multireedist. He performs on various saxophones, flute and bass clarinet.

He is probably best known for his participation in Herbie Hancock's Mwandishi sextet and Headhunters band, and for performing on Miles Davis's seminal fusion record, Bitches Brew. Maupin has collaborated with Horace Silver, Roy Haynes, Woody Shaw, Lee Morgan and many others. He has also performed on several Meat Beat Manifesto albums. He is noted for having a harmonically-advanced, "out" improvisation style, while having a different sense of melodic direction than other "out" jazz musicians such as Eric Dolphy.

Maupin was also a member of Almanac, a group with Cecil McBee (bass), Mike Nock (piano) and Eddie Marshall (drums).

Discography

As leader

Buster Williams

Charles Anthony "Buster" Williams (born April 17, 1942 in Camden, New Jersey) is an American jazz bassist.

Biography

Early life and career

Eddie Henderson (soccer)

Eddie Henderson (born September 11, 1967 in Seattle, Washington) is a retired U.S. soccer player and current Nevada Director of Youth Coaching. Henderson spent two seasons in the Western Soccer League, one in the American Professional Soccer League, one season in Major Soccer League and seven in the National Professional Soccer League. He also played for the U.S. at the U-17 and U-20 levels.

High school and college

Henderson, the youngest of 18 children, grew up in Seattle, Washington where he played for the Seattle Kickers, a local youth club. In 1985 the Kickers won the WSYSA championship. Henderson attended O'Dea High School where he played both basketball and soccer. After he graduated from high school, Henderson attended the University of Washington from 1985 to 1989 where he played on the men’s soccer team. In 1989, he was a third team All American. He finished his four years with 29 goals and 21 assists.

Professional

While in college, Henderson spent two seasons as a forward with the Seattle Storm of the Western Soccer League (WSL). In 1988, he was selected as a first team WSL All Star. In 1989, he was a second team All Star. After graduating from the University of Washington, Henderson spent one more season with the Storm, the last in its existence as it folded at the end of the 1990 season. The Tacoma Stars of the Major Indoor Soccer League drafted Henderson, but he signed with the San Diego Sockers. The Sockers cut him four games into the 1990-1991 season and he signed with the Milwaukee Wave of the American Indoor Soccer Association in January 1991. In 1992, Henderson signed with the Wichita Wings of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and remained with the team through the 1997-1998 season.