Curtis Mayfield

Born: 3 Jun'42, Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Immersed in music from an early age, MAYFIELD was a self-taught guitarist and lyricist, strongly influenced by the sounds of the Northern Jubilee Gospel Singers (a local group that included JERRY BUTLER). In 1957, BUTLER asked MAYFIELD to join a newly formed group. The ROOSTERS, who would soon evolve into The IMPRESSIONS under the management of Eddie Thomas. As a songwriter for the group, MAYFIELD had his first hit in '58 with 'FOR YOUR PRECIOUS LOVE', prior to butler's departure. The IMPRESSIONS scored their first Top 20 hit in '60 with 'GYPSY WOMAN', MAYFIELD's prolific writing career taking off via a new contract with 'A.B.C.' records. During the 60's, he penned a wealth of hits, including 'WE'RE A WINNER', the lyrical content highlighting MAYFIELD's awareness of the civil rights movement and the increasing confidence and self-determination of the African-American community. The decade also saw the soul man writing for record labels such as Okeh and Veejay as well as Chicago based artists including GENE CHANDLER and MAJOR LANCE. This work inspired CURTIS to set up his own label, 'Curtom' (distributed through 'Buddah'), releasing material by a number of successful acts, among them DONNY HATHAWAY. Leaving The IMPRESSIONS to go solo in 1970, his critically acclaimed self-titled debut set was characterised by his trademark funky organic sounds blended with socially aware lyrics. This album was followed by 'ROOTS', a record which included the groove-laden, 'KEEP ON KEEPING ON'. The turning point from acclaimed artist to international stardom arrived in 1972 when MAYFIELD was asked to score and perform the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film, 'Superfly'. The movie was a massive hit, MAYFIELD's soundtrack complementing the film perfectly and producing hits in the form of the title track and 'FREDDIE'S DEAD'. Still regarded as one of contemporary black music's most momentous recordings, 'SUPERFLY' represented the pinnacle of MAYFIELD's solo career. Although the man released some above average albums in the 70's and continued to oversee the creative development of the 'Curtom' imprint (now distributed by 'Wamers'), he didn't really come close to matching the soundtrack's power. Arguably his finest post-'Superfly' work, 'SHORT EYES' was another soundtrack, written for a movie in which MAYFIELD also had an acting role. The 80's saw MAYFIELD touring regularly and scoring intermittent hits, a reunion tour with The IMPRESSIONS seen the return of his old sparring partner, BUTLER. The beginning of the 90's saw tragedy strike when in August 1990, MAYFIELD was hit by a lighting rig that had been dislodged by high winds during an open air concert in Brooklyn; he was paralysed from the neck down. The next few years saw MAYFIELD elected into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and various lifetime achievement awards bestowed on him, so it was all the more remarkable when his comeback album, 'NEW WORLD ORDER', was released in '96. The recording process involved was time consuming, although the result was worth the wait, MAYFIELD achieving his best solo work since the early 70's. Tragically, it would be CURTIS' swansong as the great man died of (a long suffering) cancer on Boxing Day, 1999.

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