Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal has spent more than 40 years exploring the roots and branches of the blues. Grounded in the acoustic pre-war blues sound but drawn to the eclectic sounds of world music, he revitalized a dying tradition and prepared the way for a new generation of blues men and women. While many African Americans shunned older musical styles during the 1960s, Mahal immersed himself in the roots of his past. "I was interested in the music because I felt something [got] lost in that transition of blacks trying to assimilate into society." He had no intention of repeating what had come before, however, and drew deeply from the wells of the ethnic music of Africa, South America, and the Caribbean.

Taj Mahal was born Henry Saint Claire Fredericks in New York City in 1942. His father, who had emigrated from the Caribbean, wrote arrangements for Benny Goodman and played piano. His mother, Mildred Shields, had taught school in South Carolina. "Even though I have Southern and Caribbean roots, my background also crossed with indigenous European and African influences," Mahal told Down Beat. "My parents introduced me to gospel, spiritual singing, to Ella, Sarah, Mahalia Jackson, Ray Charles." Mahal also listened to music from around the world on his father's short-wave radio, and developed a love for blues artists like Leadbelly and Lightnin' Hopkins, and early rock-n-rollers like Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley.

Mahal's family moved when he was a young boy and he grew up in Massachusetts. Growing up in Springfield, Mass., Mahal was a rarity--"a young African American who immersed himself in the study of his cultural heritage. At age 11 he witnessed the death of his father in a farming accident, but he found solace in music. When his mother remarried, he discovered his stepfather's guitar in the basement and learned to play it with a broken comb. He also took lessons from Lynnwood Perry and absorbed the radio sounds of jazz players like Illinois Jacquet and Ben Webster. Although he is primarily known as a guitarist, Mahal mastered an arsenal of instruments including piano, banjo, mandolin, and harmonica.

Mahal studied agriculture and animal husbandry at the University of Massachusetts. A dream inspired him to change his name from Fredericks, and he formed Taj Mahal and the Elektras in the early 1960s. He was lucky enough to have his ideas coincide with the '60s and the resurgence of the blues. He attended the Newport Folk Festival in the early 1960s to witness the folk and blues revival first hand. The opportunity to watch traditional blues players perform and meet the artists in person reinforced his decision to play acoustic guitar.

After graduating in 1964 Mahal moved to Los Angeles and formed the Rising Sons with Ry Cooder. The group signed with Columbia, but the label was unsure how to market the eclectic group. The band was unmatched on the L.A. scene, with a repertoire including electrified country blues and traditional folk tunes, although the Rising Sons released one single, the rest of the band's recorded material remained locked away in Columbia's vaults until 1992.

After the Rising Sons broke up, Mahal remained with Columbia and recorded his self-titled debut album, “Taj Mahal.” The album was a startling statement in its time and has held up remarkably well. The follow-up album, “The Natch'l Blues,” was equally well received. Mahal, however, soon revealed his penchant for going his own way, recording the half electric, half acoustic double album “Giant Step,” in 1969. Those three records built Mahal's reputation as an authentic yet unique modern-day bluesman.

Mahal continued to explore new directions in the 1970s. “Happy Just to Be Like I Am,” surveyed Caribbean rhythms, while “The Real Thing,” added New Orleans tubas. In 1973 he recorded the soundtrack for the movie “Sounder,” and the following year released “Mo' Roots,” an album heavily influenced by reggae. In 1976 Mahal left Columbia for Warner Brothers, where he recorded three albums in 1977 alone.

After remaining relatively silent through much of the 1980s, Mahal recorded the well-received “Taj,” in 1987. He then released “Shake Sugaree,” the first of several children's albums, and recorded a musical score for Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston's lost play, “Mule Bone,” for which he received a Grammy nomination.

He signed with Private Music and released “Dancing the Blues” in 1993 and “Phantom Blues,” in 1996. Mahal is a fine interpreter, breezy and light on love tunes, righteous and randy on cheatin' songs, and soulful and shouting on the dance numbers. “Phantom Blues,” also included high-profile guest appearances by guitarist Eric Clapton and singer Bonnie Raitt. In 1997 he won a Grammy for "Señor Blues." He followed up with another Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album for “Shoutin' in Key: Taj Mahal and the Phantom Blues Band Live” in 2000.

Mahal's next music project grew out of his 15-year residency in Hawaii during the 1980s and 1990s. Joining with the Hula Blues Band, he recorded “Sacred Island,” in 1998, and followed it with “Taj Mahal and the Hula Blues” the same year and “Hanapepe Dream,” in 2003. This recording would also be the first of his albums to be released on his on label, Kan-Du. In 2005 he released “Taj Mahal and the Phantom Blues Band in St. Lucia.” This was followed with “Mkutano,” where he joined up with musicians from Zanzibar, displaying once again his versatility and global scope in music.

If the mixing of genres such as blues, Zydeco, gospel, and Latin music seems natural today, it is because of pioneers like Mahal. He opened up myriad possibilities for young artists who wanted to expand their musical palette beyond traditional blues. In the '90s, Guy Davis, Keb' Mo', Corey Harris, and Alvin Youngblood Hart, all flowing out of the surge in cultural consciousness that ensued as the offspring of the civil rights generation came into their own, prove Taj Mahal a pioneer.

While proud of his accomplishments, Mahal has remained more interested in pursuing current projects. He has recorded more than 25 albums and traveled throughout the world, continuing to explore new musical veins, playing as many as 200 dates a year, and releasing a steady stream of albums. Whether he's with a full band playing pop arrangements or stripped-down roots, Mahal has asserted himself as a keeper of the faith and a still vital force that continues to roam past musical boundaries.

The latest album from Taj Mahal, “Maestro,” features 12 new tracks, and is his first domestic release in 5 years.The record features guest appearances by: Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, Ziggy Marley, Angelique Kidjo, Los Lobos,with superb backing by the Phantom Blues Band.

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Taj Mahal: Savoy

by Steve Yip
June 10, 2023

Folk/blues practitioner Taj Mahal's Savoy is to be savored. As one of the custodians of the blues, Mahal has long been a legend in his own time. This collection traverses a cultural-musical continuum in an indispensable residency in the annals of Black American music. The namesake of this album--the Savoy on Lenox Avenue in Harlem--was known as The World's Finest Ballroom and Home Of Happy Feet. In the pre-Civil Rights era, the North claimed formal equality, but segregation ...

Album Review

Taj Mahal: Savoy

by Dave Linn
May 3, 2023

Savoy, from Taj Mahal, is the latest entrant in the crowded field of pop music artists trying their hand at the fertile songbook of old big-band, swing-era standards. Unlike most, Mahal's roots show he's well suited to the task. He was born in Harlem in 1942. He grew up in a musical family, and his parents were both involved in the arts. His father was a jazz pianist and arranger, working with Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, and Fletcher Henderson among ...

Album Review

Ry Cooder and Taj Mahal: Get on Board: The Songs Of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee

Read "Get on Board: The Songs Of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee" reviewed by Nenad Georgievski

by Nenad Georgievski
April 9, 2022

There is an African proverb that says “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." The intimacy and the dynamics of the duet setting have long appealed to virtuoso guitarist Ry Cooder. During his expansive six decade career, he has released several adventurous duets and collaborative albums with luminaries such as guitarist Ali Farka Toure, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt or Manuel Galban, to name but a few. Get on Board is ...

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Live Review

The Taj Mahal Trio at Higher Ground

by Doug Collette
July 4, 2009

The Taj Mahal Trio Higher Ground South Burlington, Vermont June 18, 2009

Given the pre-show buzz in the ballroom, it is quite likely Taj Mahal had the Higher Ground crowd in the palm of his hand before he even ambled onstage on June 18th. He didn't take their loyalty for granted, however, or just go through the motions--he only made it look that easy.

More a stylist than an innovator, Taj Mahal has nevertheless ...

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Album Review

Taj Mahal: Maestro

Read "Maestro" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins

by Woodrow Wilkins
November 15, 2008

With a forty-year track record of recording the blues, Taj Mahal has earned the label of maestro. Now, he celebrates four decades with an album that uses that word as its theme.Born Henry St. Clair Fredricks in 1942, Mahal has mixed a variety of cultural influences in making his music. Although primarily a vocalist, he also plays a variety of instruments, including guitar, banjo and harmonica. The two-time Grammy winner has performed with or opened for Otis Redding, ...

270

Album Review

Taj Mahal: Maestro

Read "Maestro" reviewed by Doug Collette

by Doug Collette
October 2, 2008

Maestro is the perfect title for this Taj Mahal album. No matter who the star cameo is on a given track--and there is a famous name on almost every one--it's quite clear that the source of direction (not to mention the original inspiration) comes from Mahal himself. Not surprisingly, the best moments arise in his role as a bandleader.

His own Phantom Blues Band accompanies him on a salty take on “Scratch My Back," the steady ...

210

Live Review

Goin' Up the North Country: Taj Mahal in Vermont

by Doug Collette
March 26, 2006

The Taj Mahal Trio Flynn Center for The Performing Arts Burlington, Vermont March 8, 2006

The perfectly unassuming way Taj Mahal came on stage March 8th and began to play without formal introduction set an understated tone for this evening at the Flynn Center. The low-key approach may have undercut the potency of the bluesman's music too, but that may be more of a comment on the times than the show itself.

Mavis ...

Festival

Taj Mahal To Headline On Opening Night June 21 At Rochester International Jazz Festival

Source: Dalmath Associates Inc.
February 13, 2024

The CGI Rochester International Jazz Festival is proud to present legendary blues guitarist, Taj Mahal, on the Festival's opening night Friday, June 21, at 8 a.m. at Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. The Festival's 21st Edition will be held June 21 to 29 at 20 indoor and outdoor venues in downtown Rochester, New York. Tickets for Taj Mahal are $93 / $83 / $63 / $43 plus service charges and go on sale Friday, February 16 at 10 a.m. only ...
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Event

Interschool Orchestras Of New York Presents Its Gala Celebration: A Tribute To Howard Johnson on September 18th at Kaufman Music Center’s Merkin Hall

Source: All About Jazz
September 11, 2019

InterSchool Orchestras of New York (ISO) is proud to announce its 2019-2020 gala celebration, A Tribute to Howard Johnson, at Kaufman Music Center’s Merkin Hall, September 18, 2019 at 7:30 pm. The special event will honor the musical legend, who, in his five-decade career, has played alongside luminaries in multiple genres and pioneered the voice of the tuba in jazz. The event will also feature the talents of two-time Grammy-winning musician Taj Mahal and students of ISO. All proceeds from ...
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Performance / Tour

Tribute To Howard Johnson At Merkin Hall On September 18th Featuring Taj Mahal And More! Presented By The Interschool Orchestras Of New York!

Source: Scott Thompson Public Relations
July 23, 2019

InterSchool Orchestras of New York Presents Its Gala Celebration: A TRIBUTE TO HOWARD JOHNSON Featuring Taj Mahal, Gravity, The Levon Helm Horns, the Beartones, and Students of InterSchool Orchestras of New York InterSchool Orchestras of New York (ISO) is proud to announce its 2019-2020 gala celebration, A Tribute to Howard Johnson, at Kaufman Music Center's Merkin Hall, September 18, 2019 at 7:30 pm. The special event will honor the musical legend, who, in his five-decade career, has played alongside luminaries ...
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Event

Robert Johnson Tribute: Roots, Taj Mahal, Keb' MO', Todd Rundgren

Source: JamBase
December 14, 2011

ALL-STAR ROBERT JOHNSON CENTENNIAL TRIBUTE CONCERT CONFIRMED FOR MARCH 6 AT THE APOLLO THEATER Producers announced today the first artists confirmed to play a special March 6 tribute concert at NY's historic Apollo Theater, celebrating the centennial of legendary bluesman Robert Johnson. The initial, star-studded lineup includes The Roots, Shemekia Copeland, Bettye LaVette, Taj Mahal, Keb' Mo,' Sam Moore and Todd Rundgren, with more to be announced soon. Net proceeds from the concert, co-produced by Steve Berkowitz, Michael Dorf, Joe ...
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Recording

Taj Mahal, Me'shell Ndegeocello, Others - 30th Annual John Lennon Tribute (2011)

Source: Something Else!
November 16, 2011

Taj Mahal, recording as part of the 30th annual John Lennon Tribute at the Beacon Theatre in New York City, finds the chest-bursting peril, the nakedly emotional plea, inside “Come Together"—giving it such a thunderously heartfelt makeover that you'd swear this old Beatles tune had been a blues shout first. And that's just one of what becomes a stirring series of remakes on this Lennon memorial project, to be issued today. Shelby Lynne ("Mother"), Me'shell Ndegeocello ("God"), Alejandro Escovedo ("Help!) ...
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Event

Flaming Lips and Taj Mahal Added to Tibet House US Benefit

Source: JamBase
February 1, 2011

MARCH 3, 2011 AT CARNEGIE HALL IN NEW YORK; TICKETS ON SALE NOW Tibet House US is thrilled to announce that The Flaming Lips and Taj Mahal have joined the bill of their 21st Annual Benefit Concert at Carnegie Hall on March 3, 2011. The Flaming Lips and Taj Mahal will join an esteemed line-up of artists curated by artistic director Philip Glass. The bill to date includes Michael Stipe, The Roots, Patti Smith with Jesse Smith and Michael Campbell, ...
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Festival

Crawfish Festival in New Jersey Galactic, Railroad, Taj Mahal

Source: JamBase
June 2, 2010

GOOD EATS, GOOD FOOD JUST THE TICKET TO MAKE YOU FORGET JERSEY SHORE

Railroad Earth by Dave Vann The 21st Annual Arnone's Crawfish Festival takes place June 4-6 at the Sussex County Fairgrounds in Augusta, New Jersey. Besides fresh boiled crawfish, jambalaya, alligator sausage, and red beans and rice, the festival features three stages and a dance tent, as well as camping with special concerts for campers.

The music lineup includes:

Galactic Railroad Earth ...
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Recording

Taj Mahal/David Hidalgo: Album

Source: JamBase
November 8, 2009

TAJ MAHAL AND DAVID HIDALGO COME TOGETHER WITH ROOTS GROUP LOS CENZONTLES FOR AMERICAN HORIZON

Taj Mahal Blues legend Taj Mahal and master guitarist/multi-instrumentalist David Hidalgo(Los Lobos) have collaborated with Mexican-American roots group Los Cenzontles (pronounced los senn-sont-less) to tell a timely story of hope, struggle and gratitude of the American worker. Traversing traditional Mexican, blues, cumbia and psychedelic rock styles, they create a distinctive, fresh and exciting sound. The November 3 release or American Horizon is available ...
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Performance / Tour

Bontaj Roulet: Bonnie Raitt & Taj Mahal @ Berkeley Greek

Source: All About Jazz
September 10, 2009

This summer, “Alone & Together", Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal two leading lights of modern blues are joining forces for their first-ever tour together.

The “BonTaj Roulet" tour a coast-to-coast, 30-date outing in August and Friday September 11th at the University of California Berkeley Greek Theater.

The show will feature Bonnie and Taj on stage alone and together. Bonnie, backed by her always-dazzling group, and Taj, with the six-piece, Grammy-winning Phantom Blues Band, will play full sets separately, ...
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Recording

Taj Mahal, Dave Hidalgo Unite on "American Horizon" with Los Cenzontles

Source: conqueroo
September 10, 2009

Legendary Bluesman and Los Lobos co-frontman join Bay Area roots group to craft an album of labor, love and the American Dream

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Blues legend Taj Mahal and master guitarist/multi-instrumentalist David Hidalgo (Los Lobos) have collaborated with Mexican-American roots group Los Cenzontles (pronounced los senn-sont-less) to tell a timely story of hope, struggle and gratitude of the American worker. Traversing traditional Mexican, blues, cumbia and psychedelic rock styles, they create a distinctive, fresh and exciting sound. The November ...
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