175: “Like It Is” by Yusef Lateef
April 4, 2011 Leave a comment
Here’s a Calgon-take-me-away song by Yusef Lateef, the great jazz multi-instrumentalist, of the kind driven by breath. He’s still breathing today, at 90 years of age.
“Like It Is” can be found on The Blue Yusef Lateef (1968) and features Yusef on both sax and bamboo flute. The voice he can get with that flute is really amazing.
Yusef Lateef was born as William Evans in Chattanooga, TN before moving to Detroit at the age of 5. In his 30’s, he converted to Ahmadiyya, a flavor of Islam, due to the spiritual hole created in his life from 30 years of having a dull name.
Lateef is a man of deep thought. From Wikipedia:
Autophysiopsychic Music, Lateef’s term, refers to music which comes from one’s physical, mental, and spiritual self. Lateef has written extensively on the topic and includes it in his book Method To Perform Autophsyiopsychic Music. In this view, it should be the goal of every musician to combine their theoretical knowledge with their life experience, and to offer to and accept knowledge from their personal source of strength, inspiration and knowledge.
I wonder if he finds time to watch television. Here’s his current website.
Listen, and enjoy.
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