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Black Merda ( ) is an American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band from
Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
active from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s and reuniting in 2005. The core band members are guitarist/vocalist Anthony Hawkins, bassist/guitarist/vocalist VC L. Veasey, and guitarist/vocalist Charles Hawkins, plus original drummer/vocalist Tyrone Hite. Hite was a native of Detroit; the Hawkins brothers and Veasey were all born in Lyon, Mississippi and came of age in Detroit.


History


Early session and backup work

Anthony Hawkins and VC Lamont Veasey (also known as VC L Veasey, Veesee L Veasey, The Mighty V!) met in elementary school. Hawkins and Tyrone Hite met in high school in Detroit in the early 1960s, and all worked as session and backup musicians in the Detroit scene in the following years. Hawkins and Veasey worked frequently as session musicians for companies such as Fortune Records, Golden World Studios, and producer Don Davis, while Hite worked in sessions originally as a singer before taking up the drums. Many singers and musicians would show up at the Hawkins house where most of the rehearsals would take place. Hawkins, Veasey, and Hite originally performed together as the Impacts, then as the Soul Agents backing up
Edwin Starr Charles Edwin Hatcher (January 21, 1942 – April 2, 2003), known by his stage name Edwin Starr, was an American singer and songwriter. He is best remembered for his Norman Whitfield-produced Motown singles of the 1970s, most notably the num ...
,
Gene Chandler Gene Chandler (born Eugene Drake Dixon; July 6, 1937) is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, "the Duke." He is best known for his most successful song ...
,
Wilson Pickett Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded more than 50 songs that made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the '' ...
, The Spinners,
The Artistics The Artistics were an American R&B vocal group in the 1960s and early 1970s. Their biggest hit was "I'm Gonna Miss You", recorded in 1966. Career The group was formed in 1958 at Marshall High School in Chicago, Illinois with a line-up of C ...
, Billy Butler,
The Chi-Lites The Chi-Lites (, ) are an American R&B/soul vocal quartet from Chicago. Forming at Chicago's Hyde Park High School in 1959, the group's original lineup consisted of singers Robert Lester, Eugene Record, Creadel Jones, Clarence Johnson, Burt ...
,
Joe Tex Yusuf Hazziez (born Joseph Arrington Jr.; August 8, 1935 – August 13, 1982), known professionally as Joe Tex, was an American singer and musician who gained success in the 1960s and 1970s with his brand of Southern soul, which mixed the style ...
,
Jackie Wilson Jack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer who was a prominent figure in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement", he was considered a master showman and one of th ...
,
The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...
, and other soul/R&B acts affiliated with
Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
and
Brunswick Records Brunswick Records is an American record label founded in 1916. History 1916–1929 Records under the Brunswick label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, a company based in Dubuque, Iowa which had been manufacturing ...
. The Impacts were hired as the backing band for the 1965 single "Agent Double-O Soul" by Edwin Starr. Starr took them on as his permanent backing unit and dubbed them the Soul Agents. A horn section consisting of Victor Stubblefield and Gus Hawkins worked with the group periodically during this period. By 1967 the Soul Agents had appeared on the subsequent Starr singles "Twenty Five Miles" and the seminal "
War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
". Hawkins and Veasey (who had been writing songs together since they were 14 years old) also scored as songwriters in 1967 with "I Will Fear No Evil" by Robert Ward (produced by Don Davis), the B-side of his hit "My Love Is Strictly Reserved For You". Hawkins, Veasey, and Hite (while working with Starr) began to move away from the standard R&B sounds of the period and became heavily influenced by the hard rock sounds of
Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...
,
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
, and especially
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
. Veasey had first learned of Hendrix from a Seattle newspaper story in 1966 while stationed with the military in Washington State. Veasey introduced Hawkins and Hite to the album ''
Are You Experienced ''Are You Experienced'' is the debut studio album by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, released in May 1967. The album was an immediate critical and commercial success, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time. It features J ...
'', and the three were inspired to refashion themselves as a rock power trio in the mold of
The Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
. Still known as the Soul Agents, in 1967 the trio cut what is believed to be the first cover of a Hendrix song on record, a rendition of "
Foxy Lady "Foxy Lady" (or alternatively "Foxey Lady") is a song by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. It first appeared on their 1967 debut album '' Are You Experienced'' and was later issued as their third single in the U.S. with the alternate spelling. It is ...
" that has become a rare collector's item. During this period, Charles Hawkins (younger brother of Anthony) was added on second guitar to broaden the group’s sound. Another influence on the group's new musical interests was the general shift in the R&B scene toward harder-edged
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
and
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
with socially conscious lyrics.


As Black Merda

Now a quartet with the addition of Charles Hawkins, the band continued working with Edwin Starr as the Soul Agents, with Starr approving of the change in sound to guitar-based
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
and
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
. But in 1968 they decided to craft a new identity as a self-contained rock band. After considering the name Murder Incorporated after the notorious criminal organization
Murder, Inc. Murder, Inc. (Murder, Incorporated) was an organized crime group active from 1929 to 1941 that acted as the enforcement arm of the National Crime Syndicatea closely connected criminal organization that included Italian-American Mafia, the Jewish ...
, the band settled on Black Murder (suggested by Veasey) as a comment on the rampant inner-city violence experienced by many African Americans during that period. Considering that many young black people were at that time being killed by the police and the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
in Detroit and in the south, Veasey wanted to choose a name that would be a shocking reminder to the public of how bad the situation was. The spelling was later changed to Black Merda as an African American slang spelling (suggested by Anthony) of the word "murder" while retaining the original theme. Black Merda continued with Starr for a brief period, as well as backing
The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...
in 1969, but began to view the R&B scene as passé compared to the experimental rock and funk music of Hendrix and other young artists. Regardless,
Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American tenor singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temp ...
of the Temptations expressed interest in producing Black Merda, and introduced them to like-minded singer Ellington "Fugi" Jordan. They collaborated with Fugi on his psychedelic funk song "Mary Don't Take Me on No Bad Trip", released by the
Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock an ...
subsidiary Cadet (started by
Marshall Chess Marshall Chess (born March 13, 1942) is an American record producer, the son of Leonard Chess who co-founded Chess Records. Chess Records Marshall worked for sixteen years with Chess Records; founded by his father Leonard and his uncle Phil. He ...
, son of the Chess founders) in 1968, which became a popular single in Detroit, though Black Merda did not receive credit on the record. A full album of songs by Fugi in collaboration with Black Merda was recorded but was not released until 2005, under the title ''Mary Don't Take Me on No Bad Trip'' from the TuffCity/Funky Delicacies record label. Fugi also introduced the band to Marshall Chess, who was interested in working with rock and experimental acts. Marshall signed Black Merda on Fugi's recommendation alone. Black Merda’s debut album was released in 1970, and the band briefly became known as leaders among the burgeoning black rock and heavy funk scene that also included up-and-comers
Funkadelic Funkadelic was an American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. As one of the two flagship groups of George Clinton's P-Funk collective, they helped pioneer the funk music culture of the 1970s.John, ...
and
The Bar-Kays The Bar-Kays is an American funk band formed in 1964. The band had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including " Soul Finger" (US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number 17, R&B number 3) in 1967, "Son of Shaft" (R&B number 10) in ...
. The album suffered from a lack of promotion due to management changes at Chess Records. Disillusioned, the band moved to California to back Fugi once more, as well as Eric Burdon and War. The band later returned to Detroit, but without Tyrone Hite, who decided to stay in California. Black Merda began work on their second album without an official drummer, with session drummer Bob Crowder being hired just before recording. The album '' Long Burn the Fire'' was released in 1972 by Chess subsidiary Janus Records, with only Veasey and the Hawkins brothers pictured on the sleeve. The band's name was changed to Mer-Da on the front cover of the album in an attempt at greater accessibility. The second album also suffered from poor promotion, and the band members later broke up and returned to more orthodox session work in soul and R&B.


Reunion

In 2005, the Funky Delicacies label released the compilation disc ''The Folks from Mother's Mixer'', collecting all the songs from the two original albums, ''Black Merda'' and ''Long Burn the Fire''. Thanks to the new attention brought by this compilation and a cult following that showed a growing interest in the obscure black rock of the early 1970s, the Hawkins brothers and Veasey reunited in 2005. (Hite had died in 2004). The reformed Black Merda has played at several festivals in Detroit and the surrounding region as well as New York's Central Park SummerStage concerts series and The Ottawa Blues Festival in 2006. A compilation of rarities titled ''The Psych-funk of Black Merda'' was released in 2006. The band has since released the albums ''Renaissance'' (2006) and ''Force of Nature '' (2009). The long-delayed appreciation for Black Merda's influence was further reflected in 2005 when rapper
Ja Rule Jeffrey Bruce Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule (), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. Born and raised in New York City, Ja Rule became known for blending gangsta rap with pop rap, pop and contempo ...
sampled their 1972 track "Lying" as the backing track for "Exodus Intro" on his ''
Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...
'' album. In 2007 The Detroit ''Metro Times'' named the 1970 track "Cynthy-Ruth" as one of ''The 100 Greatest Detroit Songs Ever!'' Further recognition was garnered when "Cynthy-Ruth" was featured in the HBO documentary ''The Nine Lives Of Marion Barry'' that aired in August 2009.
Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
sampled "Cynthy-Ruth" for use in the track "Teriya King" on the 2009 album ''
Serious Japanese ''Serious Japanese'' is the second studio album by Japanese hip-hop group Teriyaki Boyz. Released on February 3, 2009, it peaked at number 3 on the Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popul ...
'' that he produced for Japanese rappers the
Teriyaki Boyz Teriyaki Boyz are a Japanese hip hop group from Yokohama, Japan. History The group consists of Keisuke Ogihara, Ilmari and Ryo-Z from Rip Slyme, Verbal (rapper), Verbal from M-Flo, rapper Wise (rapper), Wise and Nigo, the DJ and founder of the p ...
. The band was featured in the Spinner.com article "In Living Color: 20 Important Black Rockers Past and Present" in 2010. "Take A Little Time," the single from the 2009 album ''Force Of Nature'', was featured on the ''
Mojo Magazine ''Mojo'' (stylised in all caps) is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer. Following the success of the magazine '' Q'', publishers Emap were looking for a title that ...
'' compilation ''Heavy Soul'' in 2010. Their self-titled 1970 debut album was chosen as one of "Detroit's greatest hits that should have been" by the Detroit ''Metro Times'' (November 10, 2010, Music Issue).


Discography

Albums * '' Black Merda'' (Chess, 1970; reissued by Funky Delicacies, 1996, Lillith 2006) * '' Long Burn the Fire'' (Janus, 1972; reissued by Funky Delicacies, 1996) * ''The Folks from Mother's Mixer'' (Funky Delicacies, 2005; compilation) * ''Mary Don't Take Me On No Bad Trip'' – Fugi featuring Black Merda (Funky Delicacies, 2005) * ''The Psych-funk of Black Merda'' (Funky Delicacies, 2006; rarities) * ''Renaissance'' (Black Merda LLC, 2006) * ''Force of Nature'' (Vampi Soul, 2009) Singles * "
Foxy Lady "Foxy Lady" (or alternatively "Foxey Lady") is a song by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. It first appeared on their 1967 debut album '' Are You Experienced'' and was later issued as their third single in the U.S. with the alternate spelling. It is ...
" – The Soul Agents (precursor to Black Merda, 1968) * "Mary Don't Take Me On No Bad Trip" – Fuji featuring Black Merda (Cadet, 1969) * "Cynthy-Ruth/Reality" (Chess 1970) * "Prophet/Cynthy-Ruth" (Chess 1970) * "Revelations" – Fuji featuring Black Merda (Cadet, 1970) * "Red Moon" – Fugi featuring Black Merda (Grand Junction, 1971) * "Take a Little Time" – (Vampi Soul, 2009)


Notes


References


Further reading

* Aarstad, Paul
"Black Merda"
Lost In The Grooves, August 1, 2006, accessed August 2006. * Bauer, Matt
"Black Merda: Forces Of Nature"
Exclaim.ca. June 26, 2009. accessed July 1, 2009. * Bush, John, Huey, Steve. "Black Merda Biography"All Music Guide 2006. * Coulon, Sylvain
"An interview with VC L. Veasey From Black Merda: The first black rock band!"
Digi Fanzine accessed 2006. * Digs, A. "In celebration of Black History Month, I would like to recognize the first black rock group, Black Merda". Digs Daily Online. * Edmond, Ben. "70s Psych-Funk Outfit Black Merda Will Take Detroit Stage For The First Time in 30 Years" ''Detroit Free Press'', p. 1E, January 21, 2005. * Edmonds, Ben. "My Soul's Been Psychedelicised. Section about Black Merda" ''Mojo Magazine'', p. 110, February 15, 2005. * Familton, Chris
''Force Of Nature by The First All Black Rock Band!''
The Dwarf.com.au. Accessed on the Internet, June 29, 2009. * Flor, Dana; Oppenheimer, Toby. ''The Nine Lives Of Marion Barry'' HBO, August 10, 2009, 9 am EST. * Fricke, David. "Review of Black Merda's The Folks from Mother's Mixer". ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, p. 152, November 28, 2005. * Heron, W. Kim. Gallert, Jim. Holdship, Bill. Hurtt, Michael. Smith, Brian. Turner, Khary kimani. Waller, Don. Wasacz, Wallter
"The 100 Greatest Detroit Songs Ever!"
Featuring Black Merda's song Cynthy-Ruth, as number 100 the Detroit ''Metro Times'', p. 32, November 21–27, 2007. * Mills, Fred. "Black Merda: It's a Detroit Rock Thing". ''Harp Magazine'', p. 68, November 2005. * Mills, Fred
"The Merda Files"
''Metro Times'', p. 10, December 1, 2004. * Niesel, Jeff. "A Funkadelic Relic: Black Merda's First Show Outside Detroit In 30 Years". ''The Cleveland Freetimes'', January 18, 2006. * Nishimoto, Dan. "Back In Black: A Twist Of Fate For Pioneers Black Merda". ''Wax Poetics Magazine'', p. 67, August–September 2008. * Porter, James and Nishimoto, Dan. Liner notes to ''The Folks from Mother's Mixer'', 2004. * Rule, Ja. Exodus, 2005. * Spinner.com Staff
"In Living Color: 20 Important Black Rockers Past and Present"
Spinner.com February 2010. * Tompkins, Dave. "Fugi Wonderland. Featuring Black Merda". ''Mojo Magazine'' p. 22, April 2002. * Weisbard, Eric
''The Guide" Review of Black Merda's "The Folks From Mother's Mixer''
'Blender Magazine'', p. 119, March 2006.


External links

*
Black Merda's official Myspace site
*
Black Merda "Cynthy-Ruth" LIve Video

VC L. Veasey's Myspace site
*

{{Authority control African-American rock musical groups American blues rock musical groups Musical groups from Detroit Psychedelic rock music groups from Michigan Psychedelic soul music groups American soul musical groups American funk musical groups 1968 establishments in Michigan