Few casual fans of Jazz recognize the name of Cal Massey. Sadly ignored by countless Jazz critics, Massey was revered by the foremost musicians of his day as a genius of composition and as a solid trumpeter. John Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, Lee Morgan, Archie Shepp, and many others have performed and recorded Massey‘s works. He was a forceful activist for the Black Liberation Movement and was seen as a pillar of his community.
While he was raised in Pittsburgh, Massey‘s family moved back to his birth city of Philadelphia in his teenage years, where by a chance encounter he earned a spot in Jimmy Heath’s big band trumpet section. The group featured a young alto sax player that immediately captivated Massey’s attention: John Coltrane. The two became lifetime friends and Massey’s song Bakai was recorded by Coltrane on the latter’s first recording session as a leader. Massey also contributed to Coltrane’s Africa/Brass sessions, notably “The Damned Don’t Cry,” which would become part of his seminal work The Black Liberation Movement Suite.
The Black Liberation Movement Suite is Massey‘s masterpiece, thrusting him onto the same level as fellow composers and contemporaries Sun Ra and Charles Mingus. It was premiered at the first of a series of benefit concerts for the Black Panthers, but has rarely been performed since the 1970’s. More recently, Fred Ho rerecorded the suite with a large group ensemble, Each movement has a close connection to the B.L.M., with some numbers dedicated to heroes of the Civil Rights movement like Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X.
Fred Ho, the late baritone saxophonist and Massey expert, related that in the early 1960’s, Massey stepped into an elevator with Francis Wolff, co-owner of the iconic Blue Note records. According to Massey‘s wife Charlotte, Massey attempted to speak to Wolff, but Wolff ignored him. Out of frustration, Massey kicked Wolff as he left the elevator. From then on, Massey was effectively blacklisted by Blue Note and other prominent record labels. If true, this and Massey’s ideology could have resulted in him getting blacklisted (or “whitelisted” according to Fred Ho) from major recording companies and only one album was recorded under his name, contributing to Massey‘s relative obscurity in the Jazz legacy.
Music: From 1961’s “Africa/Brass” – The John Coltrane Quartet with “The Damned Don’t’ Cry”
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