Eddie Gale’s ‘Black Rhythm Happening’ Reissued Through Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series
His second album for Blue Note, recorded in 1969, presented eight originals with support from the Noble Gale Musicians and Noble Gale Singers.
Trumpeter, composer, and longtime Sun Ra Arkestra member Eddie Gale’s 1969 album Black Rhythm Happening is the latest LP to receive a reissue through Blue Note’s Classic Vinyl series. Black Rhythm Happening was Gale’s second release for Blue Note, the follow-up to 1968’s radical Ghetto Music.
Recorded at the label’s home studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, it paired Gale with his Noble Gale Musicians outfit (rounded out by saxophonist-cum-flutist Russell Lyle and two bassists, Judah Samuel and Henry Pearson). Saxophonist Jimmy Lyons and drummer Elvin Jones rounded out the orchestral section. The record also featured vocals from the Noble Gale Singers, a troupe that at the time included Joann Gale Stevens and Fulumi Prince.
The session saw this group lay down eight Gale originals, all of which grappled with themes of justice, determination, and honesty. The LP is perhaps best-remembered for its defiant title track and “Song Of Will.” The album would mark Gale’s final release as bandleader on Blue Note; the same year, he also appeared as a sideman on Larry Young’s Of Love and Peace. As the ‘60s closed out, Gale began to work more consistently with Sun Ra, touring with the Arkestra extensively throughout the ‘70s and remaining close to the frontman until his death in 1993.
Later in his career, Gale continued to influence nascent iterations of Black revolutionary music. He played frequently with the Oakland hip-hop outfit The Coup, layering his trumpet over their breakbeats. Gale released his final solo album, In Love Again, in 2007. He died at the age of 78 in 2020.
Like all Blue Note Classic Vinyl LPs, the new edition of Black Rhythm Happening has been mastered from original analog tapes by specialist Kevin Gray, and pressed onto high-quality, 180-gram vinyl at Optimal. Other recent additions to the series include The Three Sounds’ Soul Symphony, Lee Morgan’s hard-bop masterclass Lee-Way, and Freddie Hubbard’s Goin’ Up.
