Amiri Baraka Talks About Sun Ra, Dr. King, Malcolm X, & Poetry, + Photo, 2 of 2

Last time we heard the first hour of Amiri Baraka speaking with me and my grad students, from October 29, 2010. He talked about his own life story, and the necessary connections between music and politics, as well as Malcolm X and Dr. King. Today we’ll hear the last half hour, which begins with him reflecting on how King’s and Malcolm’s ideas were moving closer together before each was murdered. And he explains at length that, although he later understood the sense behind Dr. King’s non-violent approach, at the time young Black people like Baraka favored Malcolm X’s more aggressive stance.

The conversation turns back to music at 8:40. At 10:40, we discuss and hear short excerpts from Baraka’s “Black Dada Nihilismus” recording with the New York Art Quartet (John Tchicai and others), and A Black Mass with Sun Ra. This leads into a long discussion of Sun Ra, how he performed at the Black Arts Repertory Theatre that Baraka founded in Harlem, and that Ra was among the first to use light shows, and more. At 21:15, one of the graduate students, Bill Graham, a witty Black man from Minneapolis, has some insightful comments about Sun Ra.

From 28 minutes until the end, we discuss poetry itself. Baraka has a lot to say about Langston Hughes, including the collaborations with Charles Mingus and other artists.

I hope you enjoyed this personal and in-depth conversation with the late Amiri Baraka. As a bonus, here is an image by noted New Jersey photographer Bill May, taken in July 1984 at Baraka’s long-time home at 808 South 10th Street, Newark. Here you see, from left to right, Baraka with his wife, the poet Amina Baraka, who still lives there, as well as Nina Simone, who was staying there at the time, singer Abbey Lincoln, who was in town to perform, and Dorthaan Kirk, Rahsaan’s widow who was a long-time beloved staff member at WBGO-FM and, now retired, remains active as an NEA Jazz Advocate. Dorthaan tells the story of this photo here:

Please understand and respect that this photo is the property of Bill May, and cannot be shared elsewhere on the internet without his permission. He’s a charming guy and easy to contact through his website, which also displays hundreds of thumbnails of his other photos. To enlarge a photo, simply “Save Image” and then click on it.

As you can see from the photo, the Barakas’ home was a hub of cultural activity, and from 1987 to about 2004, they hosted performances of music, dance, theater, and poetry every Saturday night. They named the series Kimako's Blues People, in tribute to Amiri’s sister who was murdered by a violent man in 1984, and to Amiri’s famous book about jazz in American society, Blues People.

Among Baraka’s children are the distinguished art historian Kellie Jones, from his first marriage, and the long-time mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, whose mother is Amina. Amiri specifically told me that he was very proud of Ras’s political accomplishments, but he did not live to see him win the mayoral election.

All the best,
Lewis