CULTURE SPEAKS PII: THEN AND NOW

John William "Trane" Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967[1]) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer.

Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz. He was prolific, making about fifty recordings as a leader during his recording career, and appeared as a sideman on many other albums, notably with trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist Thelonious Monk. As his career progressed, Coltrane's music took on an increasingly spiritual dimension. His second wife was pianist Alice Coltrane, and their son Ravi Coltrane is also a saxophonist.

He influenced innumerable musicians, and remains one of the most significant tenor saxophonists in jazz history. He received many awards, among them a posthumous Special Citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board in 2007 for his "masterful improvisation, supreme musicianship and iconic centrality to the history of jazz."

The late great john coltrane inspired internationally..i wanted to highlight the new generation that sit under his mantle. Execptionally one group of youth i personally know... Zaire Darden(drummer)-18 Joshua Darden (keys)- 11 and Lawrence "Baby Giant"(trombone)-16 Darden of collingswood N.J. The brothers are personally like nephews to me, and have excelled musically in their league and sphere of influence. Peep the future @work in a performance.. notice Lawrence(lead trombonist) bears the very profile of John coltrane..this monday night see the face of jazz music revisted in the 21st century..



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CULTURE AND THE POWER OF MUSIC: SERGIO MENDES

Sérgio Santos Mendes (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈsɛɣʒiu ˈsɐ̃tus ˈmẽˈdʒis]; born February 11, 1941[1] in Niterói, Brazil) is a Brazilian musician. He has released over thirty-five albums, and plays bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk.[1]

Mendes is married to Gracinha Leporace who regularly performs vocals for her husband and can also be heard on his 2006 version of the song Mas Que Nada with Black Eyed Peas.;

Timeless, one of his projects features a wide array of neo-soul and alternative hip hop guest artists, most prominently will.i.am and The Black Eyed Peas. It was released February 14, 2006 by Concord Records.[1]

It features The Black Eyed Peas, Erykah Badu, Black Thought, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, India.Arie, John Legend, Justin Timberlake, Q-Tip, Stevie Wonder and Pharoahe Monch.

The 2006, re-recorded version of "Mas que Nada" with The Black Eyed Peas had additional vocals by Gracinha Leporace (Mendes' wife); a version that is included on his album Timeless. In Brazil, the song is pretty well-known for being the theme song for the local television channel Globo's Estrelas.

The Black Eyed Peas' version also contains a sample of their 2004 hit "Hey Mama". The re-recorded song became popular on many European charts. On the UK Singles Chart, the song entered at #29 and rose to and peaked at #6 on its second week on the chart.

In 2006 the masses was blessed with a project by sergio mendes, one of the fathers of latin music. Projects like these are just that:"Timeless". For a lil' cultural and music educstion, peeep the conscious and crossover appeal of "loose ends" feat. pharoahe monche.



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THE SEED: RETROSPECT FOR LIFE

In the history of abortion, induced abortion has been the source of considerable debate, controversy, and activism. An individual's position on the complex ethical, moral, philosophical, biological, and legal issues is often related to his or her value system. The main positions are the pro-choice position, which argues in favor of access to abortion, and the pro-life position, which argues against access to abortion. Opinions of abortion may be described as being a combination of beliefs on its morality, and beliefs on the responsibility, ethical scope, and proper extent of governmental authorities in public policy. Religious ethics also has an influence upon both personal opinion and the greater debate over abortion-sources WIKIPEDIA

A controversial but noteworthy subject..seeing the pro-life/pro-choice debates, whether in the pollitical forum, or right here in our communities made me think. Everybody has an opinion on this touchy subject, i personally have my views, what made me think is seeing the effects this subject has on the mother, and the families that have encounterd it. Whatever your views are on the subject..let your heart answer it. Here's a throwback from common's "one day it'll all make sense" lp.. the song & video still send me..




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SEEDTIME & HARVEST: JOHN ALLEN MUHAMMAD

John Allen Muhammad (December 31, 1960 – November 10, 2009) was a spree killer from the United States. With his younger partner, Lee Boyd Malvo, he carried out the 2002 Beltway sniper attacks, killing at least 10 people. Muhammad and Malvo were arrested in connection with the attacks on October 24, 2002, following tips from alert citizens. Born John Allen Williams, Muhammad joined the Nation of Islam in 1987 and later changed his surname to Muhammad.[1] Drawings by Malvo describe the murders as part of a "jihad" (Arabic for "struggle in the way of God").[2] At Muhammad's trial, the prosecutor claimed that the rampage was part of a plot to kill his ex-wife and regain custody of his children, but the judge ruled that there was insufficient evidence to support this argument.[3]

His trial for one of the murders (the murder of Dean Harold Meyers in Prince William County, Virginia) began in October 2003, and the following month, he was found guilty of capital murder. Four months later he was sentenced to death. While awaiting execution in Virginia, in August 2005, he was extradited to Maryland to face some of the charges there, for which he was convicted of six counts of first-degree murder on May 30, 2006. Upon completion of the trial activity in Maryland, he was returned to Virginia's death row pending an agreement with another state or the District of Columbia seeking to try him. He was not tried on additional charges in other Virginia jurisdictions, and faced potential trials in three other states and the District of Columbia involving other deaths and serious woundings. Some appeals had been made and rejected, but others remained pending.

Muhammad was executed by lethal injection on November 10, 2009, at 9:06 PM EST at Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt, Virginia, and was pronounced dead at 9:11 PM EST


Fresh off the press, a couple days ago was this news article realeased. I highlight thursday's spot to keep the consciousness alive of the world around us. Seeing john muhammed's story shows the element and purpose of history..not to repeat it. Whatever convictions john muhammed had to do what he did.. the principle is he couldnt run from the accountability factor. As all of us, we still responsible for our descisions. Almost ten years later the reality of the incident still ring. Society is strugglin.. utilize wisdom as u livin..






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NEW HOME WEBSITE ON WORDPRESS FOR ARTIST ZION ANTONI..Copy&Paste..PEEP..-Z.A

CULTURE SPEAKS: HARRISON RIDLEY JR.

Harrison Ridley Jr. (1938 (?) - February 19, 2009) was a teacher and broadcaster on African-American music.

Ridley taught music history at Temple University and Villanova University, he was the host of a Sunday night radio show on WRTI (90.1FM) entitled, "The Historical Approach to the Positive Music." The "historical approach" Ridley took was to focus in particular on one artist, and use his entire four-hour (8pm-12am) program to give the listener a sense of that artist's contribution to the tradition. Often he would focus on a specific period in an artist's career, such as early (1920s-1940s) Duke Ellington or Miles Davis recordings from the 1960s. The show ran for more than thirty years and was very popular in the Philadelphia area. Ridley would often reference the fact that his phone lines in the studio were full of calls--local jazz celebrities had been known to call in during a show as well.

Ridley was also a record collector and archivist. In the course of fifty years of collecting, he ammassed over 8,500 LPs, 3,000 78s, 200 45s, 300 CDs, and 6,000 books on African American history and music. He specialized in Duke Ellington albums (of which he had more than 600), and was also an expert on Benny Carter (he had 200 Benny Carter albums).[1

This definetley hit home for me..due to the fact he was my teacher during the late
90's at temple university. Harrison always took the time to answer questiones to the best of his knowledge, and gave in depth lessons in class that always had you walking away with something. To jump off the week we wanna start with a lil' musical education..with what harrison said was "classical music" jazz. If you feel it.. zone out to a john colrane throwback..



THEE URBANPRIESTHOOD GROUP

CONTRIBUTION: THE LATE JAMES YANCEY

James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006),[1] better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan. According to his obituary at NPR.org, he "was one of the music industry's most influential hip-hop artists, working for big-name acts like De La Soul, Busta Rhymes and Common."[2]

Yancey's career began slowly. He has now become highly regarded, most notably for the production of critically acclaimed albums by Common, Busta Rhymes, A Tribe Called Quest, and The Pharcyde. He was a member of Slum Village for their acclaimed debut album Fantastic, Vol. 2.[1]




The legacy of dilla is still in rotation in the hearts and minds of all he touched.
Below is a 2006 interview shortly before he died. But if he were here he would look back the same on the accomplishments he made and give thanks..that he had time to do what he did. Salute the legacy of J dilla. Lets all learn from his life.





THEE URBANRIESTHOOD GROUP