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Chris Guiton<\/strong>\u00a0discusses the Attica prison riot of September 1971, and Archie Shepp’s creative response to it<\/em><\/p>\n In September 1971, the bloodiest prison riot that the United States has ever experienced took place at the Attica Correctional Facility in Attica, New York. Archie Shepp, one of the great American jazz saxophonists, was outraged by its brutal suppression. He quickly went on to record Attica Blues, one of his finest albums, in January 1972. He viewed the riot as a courageous rebellion against the shocking failings of the prison system. And dedicated the album to Black Panther member George Jackson and those killed in the riot.<\/p>\n The riot\u2019s origins lay in the barbarous, dehumanising conditions imposed on the inmates, compounded by the overtly racist behaviour of the prison officers. Its spark was the fatal shooting a few weeks before of George Jackson, regarded by many as a political prisoner, at San Quentin State Prison.<\/p>\n Attica prisoners raise fists in support of demands made during prison uprising, Sept. 10, 1971.<\/em><\/p>\n Attica’s inmates took control of the prison, taking 42 members of staff as hostages. They demanded to be treated with dignity and justice. The prisoners maintained calm and ensured the safety of the hostages. But negotiations broke down, and Governor Nelson Rockefeller (with the full support of President Nixon) told the state police to storm the prison and take back control. What resulted was a massacre; 29 prisoners and 10 hostages were killed in a hail of police and National Guard bullets.<\/p>\n Attica\u2019s prisoners paid a high price for their rebellion. They faced beatings, torture and the denial of medical care. This was all accompanied by a media blackout designed to suppress the truth. In a later interview, Shepp commented on the significance of the uprising, which had become a symbol of the racial and political tensions which existed at that point,<\/p>\n It was a political time\u2026the civil rights movement was happening, and of course the Attica Prison riot heralded the changing times. There was a lot of shit happening in that place, in that jail with the guards and everything\u2026It affected a lot of people\u2026.It happened at a time when people were really beginning to pay attention to repressive regimes in the prisons, but also poverty and the lack of social opportunity. So, when it happened, a lot of people were enraged.<\/em><\/p>\n Shepp\u2019s lengthy career has seen him span avant-garde jazz, R&B and the blues. He became a key figure in New York City\u2019s thriving free-jazz scene in the 1960s, playing alongside Cecil Taylor and John Coltrane. He continued to push the boundaries, incorporating an increasingly Afro-centric approach as well as spoken word in his recordings. He also harked back to older jazz and blues traditions. In his later years, his style has become more reflective and he\u2019s now something of an elder statesman of jazz. But he\u2019s never lost the ability to produce powerful music that provides a sonic journey through the Afro-American experience.<\/p>\n He\u2019s always been a politically engaged artist. And he has spent his life fighting for civil rights. Challenging the racism that disfigures American society. Asserting the original, and hugely creative role, that jazz plays in American culture. And damning its appropriation and commodification by the mainstream. As he once said,<\/p>\n In my heart I\u2019m an African. They stole my land, but they\u2019ll never steal my culture or my identity.<\/em><\/p>\n Attica Blues is a superb example of how he seamlessly weaves together his wide-ranging musical sensibility with a radical political message. In the process, he created something utterly unique.\u00a0 Intriguingly, Shepp defied expectations by refusing to create a simplistic musical polemic. The album offers the deep soul of his finest albums. But is also characterised by shifts of tone, poetry readings and an emotional power that underpins the content of every track. It highlights jazz’s ability to act as a vehicle for social commentary whilst also creating great music.<\/p>\n You know you\u2019re in for a treat with the title track, \u201cAttica Blues\u201d. Opening with the line, \u201cI\u2019ve got a feeling that something ain\u2019t going right\u201d, it balances righteous anger with a storming funk-based call for black liberation. Jo Armstead, once part of The Ikettes, delivers the lyrics as if possessed,<\/p>\n If I would have had the chance to make the decision<\/em> William Kunstler, the lawyer who helped represent the Attica prisoners, reads \u201cInvocation: Attica Blues\u201d, a short poem about civil rights,<\/p>\n Some people think they are within their rights<\/em> “Steam” offers a complete mood change. A lush, slow number, given two haunting, string-soaked outings. \u201cInvocation to Mr Parker\u201d opens with a wandering bass line by Jimmy Garrison before asking, \u201cwhere\u2019s that driving music man who used to wail out back?\u201d. \u201cBlues for Brother George Jackson\u201d is a lament as well as a classic groover, which pays tribute to the murdered George Jackson.<\/p>\n Kunstler features again, reading another poem \u201cInvocation: Ballad For A Child, \u201cI would rather be a plant than a man in this land\u2026I would rather be a tree with branches and leaves that can grow free.\u201d The theme is taken up in the tender, wistful \u201cBallad of a Child\u201d. This is followed by the breath-taking \u201cGood-Bye Sweet Pops”, written by Cal Massey. It\u2019s actually a homage to Louis Armstrong but feels absolutely right in this context. The album closes with another lovely Cal Massey tune, “Quiet Dawn”, sung, in a slightly off-key and rather other-worldly style, by the composer’s seven-year-old daughter.<\/p>\n![\"CG](\"images\/culture\/Misc\/CG_3_atticaprisonriot.jpg\")
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Every man could walk this Earth on equal condition.<\/em>
Every child could do more than just dream on a star<\/em>
\u2026And I would put an end to war.<\/em><\/p>\n
When on command they take a black man\u2019s life.<\/em>
Let me give you a rundown on how I feel.<\/em>
If it ain\u2019t natural it ain\u2019t real.<\/em><\/p>\n