Rahsaan Roland Kirk – The Seeker
Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Sweet Fire
Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Baby Let Me Shake Your Tree
Part of what might have helped me to finally solve the existential crisis around volume 10 of Melting Pot’s “Deepest Digs,” was the fact that today is a sacred day on this site, where we always pay tribute to the patron saint of Melting Pot, Rahsaan Roland Kirk. Today would have been Rahsaan’s 84th birthday, and looking at all the records I’ve already shared from him, I was actually surprised that I had never posted about the album where Rahsaan debuted as “Rahsaan!” 1970’s Rahsaan Rahsaan, finds Kirk at the full height of his power, as he leads “The Vibration Society,” and claimed his distinctive name, which like so many other things in his life, initially came to him in a dream, as he explains on the back cover liner notes.
Most of the album is a live performance, from which the subtly funky “Sweet Fire,” overtly salacious (though, it should be noted, with a focus on affirmative consent) “Baby, Let Me Shake Your Tree,” come from, but the real highlight of this set is the studio created “The Seeker.” In a way, the track is the strongest statement of Rahsaan’s musical mission. Though often misunderstood because of his insane virtuosity and showmanship, Rahsaan in many ways was a musical ambassador, archivist and activist. There are few who could blend traditional sounds, the avant-garde, soul jazz and contemporary pop music seamlessly together. In “The Seeker,” we get one of his fullest expressions of all the beautiful bright moments “Black Classical Music” was capable of. After a wild opening, where Rahsaan raps a variety of lines, both crazy and insightful, (personal fave is “Listen back, you’ll be able to hear what’s happening up. If you listen up, you’ll be able to take what’s going down.”) the song starts to cook as it goes from section to section “The Seeker,” “Thank You Bird,” and “New Orleans,” with Rahsaan presenting his own style, while also paying tribute to heroes of the past. It’s an audacious recording, but that was Rahsaan…and audacity of his musical vision is a major part of why he remains my favorite musician of all-time. Bright Moments y’all!
