Nate "Mrafu" Morgan (February 9, 1953

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

February 13, 2013) – November 21, 2013) was an American

jazz pianist Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the Musical ...

and composer.

Biography

In Junior Highschool, Nate Morgan played in various bands and studied with

Joe Sample Joseph Leslie Sample (February 1, 1939 – September 12, 2014) was an American jazz keyboardist and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Jazz Crusaders in 1960, whose name was shortened to "The Crusaders" in 1971. He remained a p ...

and

Hampton Hawes Hampton Barnett Hawes Jr. (November 13, 1928 – May 22, 1977) was an American jazz pianist. He was the author of the memoir ''Raise Up Off Me'', which won the Deems-Taylor Award for music writing in 1975. Early life Hampton Hawes was born on No ...

. In highschool, he was part of the cooperative

Union of God's Musicians and Artists Ascension The Union of God's Musicians and Artists Ascension (UGMAA) was a collective of African American jazz musicians formed by Horace Tapscott in the late 1960s. It was part of his work with the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (PAPA), founded in 1961, which ...

(UGMAA). In the following years he worked mainly in the Los Angeles jazz community, playing with

Horace Tapscott Horace Elva Tapscott (April 6, 1934 – February 27, 1999) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He formed the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (also known as P.A.P.A., or The Ark) in 1961 and led the ensemble through the 1990s. Early lif ...

, Rufus and

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...

Renée Geyer Renée Rebecca Geyer (11 September 195317 January 2023) was an Australian singer who was an acclaimed jazz, soul and R&B musician.* 1st edition nline * 2nd edition rint She released 15 studio albums with '' Moving Along'' (1977) and ...

and

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony Bone Thugs-n-Harmony (formerly known as B.O.N.E. Enterpri$e and also referred to as simply Bone Thugs or Bone) is an American hip hop group formed in 1991 in Cleveland, Ohio. Consisting of rappers Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie ...

. He was influenced by Stanley Cowell and McCoy Tyner, and often played in Charlie O's music club in

Van Nuys Van Nuys ( ) is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1 ...

and in Encino, alongside

Arthur Blythe Arthur Murray Blythe (July 5, 1940 – March 27, 2017) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and composer. He was described by critic Chris Kelsey as displaying "one of the most easily recognizable alto sax sounds in jazz, big and round, with a ...

, John Heard, Charles Owens, Nedra Wheeler and Sonship Theus, and in a piano duete with Elias Negash. One of his compositions, "Tapscottian Waltz", in honor of Tapscott, was never recorded by him. Morgan also wrote the score for the documentary ''I Build the Tower'' (2006). Morgan recorded three albums, was conductor of the Ujaama Ensemble and a member of the

soul jazz Soul jazz or funky jazz is a subgenre of jazz that incorporates strong influences from hard bop, blues, soul, gospel and rhythm and blues. Soul jazz is often characterized by organ trios featuring the Hammond organ and small combos including sa ...

group, Build an Ark. He participated in 16 recording sessions between 1972 and 2008,

Tom Lord Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name. Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film * ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...

''The Jazz Discography'' (online, reference November 22, 2013) alongside artists such as

Sweet Baby J'ai J'ai J. Michel, known professionally as Sweet Baby J'ai, is an American contemporary jazz singer, songwriter, producer, arranger, and playwright. Background She grew up in Kansas City. She wrote songs at age of five and three years later mana ...

Bobby Bradford Bobby Lee Bradford (born July 19, 1934) is an American jazz trumpeter, cornetist, bandleader, and composer. In addition to his solo work, Bradford is noted for his work with John Carter, Vinny Golia and Ornette Coleman. In October 2009, Brad ...

/ John Carter,

Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant (born January 24, 1944) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback who played for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the South Carolina Gamecock ...

(''Flowers Stolen from the Yards of Old Folks'', 2002) and in 2008 with

Azar Lawrence Azar Lawrence (born November 3, 1952) is an American jazz saxophonist, known for his contributions as sideman to McCoy Tyner, Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, and Woody Shaw. Career Lawrence released ''Summer Solstice'' on Prestige Records in 1975, ...

(''Speak the Word''). In 2008, Morgan suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

which ended his career. A tribute concert in honor of Morgan's 50th birthday was played by Kamau Daa'ood,

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

, Ojenke, Otis O’Solomon Smith and Arthur Blythe.

Discography

* ''Retribution, Reparation'' (Nimbus, 1982), with Danny Cortez, Jesse Sharps, Joel Ector, Fritz Wise * ''Journey into Nigritia'' (Nimbus/Vivid Sound, 1983), with Dadisi Komolafe, Jeff Littleton, Fritz Wise * ''Live in Santa Barbara'' (Nimbus, 1996), with Geoff Littleton, Fritz Wise

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Nate 1953 births 2013 deaths Jazz-blues musicians Jazz-blues pianists American jazz pianists