Montego Joe, 1975 - 1989

Item — Multiple Containers

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Scope and Contents

Jamaican-style percussionist and drummer Montego Joe (birth name Roger Sanders) delivered 5 lectures. He spoke on 11/23/1982 (2015-0002/RR200), 10/23/1984 (2015-0002/RR201), 10/1/1985 (2015-0002/RR202), 2/4/1975 (2015-0002/RR324), and 11/28/1989 (2015-0002/AC10).

AC 10 Montego Joe is joined by Linda Randall and Joseph Lindquist for this lecture. The subject of this presentation was how to create own recording whether it be a single 45 rpm or an album.

RR 200 Hale Smith made several announcements before introducing percussionist Montego Joe. Montego Joe shares that although he still plays, he is teaching more to ensure that the skills are shared and passed along with the culture of Africa, Caribbean and South America.

RR 201 Edward O'Connor makes several announcements before introducing Montego Joe (Percussionist). He demonstrates the music of Africa and parts of South America.

RR 202 Edward O'Connor introduces the evening's speaker, Montego Joe (Percussionist). The theme is rhythm; eveything that we do in our everyday life is based on rhythm.

RR 324 The theme of Montego Joe's lecture demonstration is about rhythm, with a second part about how the conga drum, American drums and other related instruments are interwoven. [sound is fuzzy and goes in and out]

Dates

1975 - 1989

Conditions Governing Access

Links to digitized content are included in the finding aid.

Biographical / Historical

Roger "Montego Joe" Sanders was born 1929 in New York City. As a teenager, Sanders played with a number of bands, led by top jazz musicians, including Babatunde Olatunji's (Drums of Passion, 1959) Art Blakey's Afro-Drum Ensemble (African Beat, Blue Note 1962), also with Ted Curson, Max Roach, Monty Alexander, Phil Upchurch, Dizzy Gillespie, Willis Jackson, Herbie Mann, Harold Vick, Teddy Edwards, George Benson, Jack McDuff, Rufus Harley (Kings/Queens) and Johnny Lytle. Under his own name he recorded the album Arriba! Con Montego Joe for Prestige Records. Pior to that he worked with Chick Corea with Eddie Gómez and Milford Graves, followed by the album Wild & Warm.

During the 1960s he worked with a group of Black youth in Harlem, known as HAR-YOU (Harlem Youth Unlimited), founded by sociologist Kenneth Clark. Montego Joe worked with the Harlem Youth Percussion Group for four years before taking them into the studio to record their debut album, HAR-YOU Percussion Group: Sounds of the Ghetto Youth for ESP-Disk in 1967. The reunion album was released in 1996 featuring many of the same personnel that were on the debut album. He subsequently worked with Cornell Dupree, Ralph MacDonald and Curtis Mayfield on the album Voices of East Harlem: Right On, Be Free, which was released by Elektra Records in 1970.

Montego Joe died June 28, 2010, in Brooklyn, NY.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montego_Joe / https://www.discogs.com/artist/262417-Montego-Joe / https://jazzdiscography.com/Leaders/MontegoJoe-ldr.php]

Extent

4 Reels (Magnetic tape audio recordings ) : RR 200 01:06:22; tape speed 3¾ IPS; track position ½-Track Mono; Substrate: Polyester. RR 201 01:31:22; tape speed 3¾ IPS; track position ½-Track Mono; Substrate: Polyester. RR 202 01:27:50; tape speed 3¾ IPS; track position ½-Track Mono; Substrate: Polyester. RR 324 1:04:02; 0:10:56; tape speed 3¾ IPS; track position ½-Track Mono; Substrate: Polyester. The recordings were combined for ease of listening. The combined run time of the digital recording is 1:04:31

1 Cassettes (audiocassette recording) : AC 10 0:47:46; 0:42:00; The combined run time of the digital recording is 1:29:42.