Ben Branch - Motherless Child
Today's offering of gospel funk comes from Ben Branch who began his career playing with B.B King. I generally try and stick to what it says on the record label when it comes to artist and track titles, but I figured Ben Branch & the Operation Breadbasket Orchestra & Choir was a bit much. And, it's actually the SCLC Operation Breadbasket Orchestra & Choir who are joining Branch, a tenor saxophonist, on this version of the traditional spiritual, Motherless Child. SCLC is an acronym for Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a civil rights organisation whose first president was Dr Martin Luther King Jr. Branch was an active member of SCLC and was also reportedly the very last person King spoke to before being assassinated. King's last words were to ask Branch to perform the gospel tune Take My Hand, Precious Lord at an event he was due to attend, and to "play it real pretty". Motherless Child, featuring Rev. Clay Evans on vocals, comes from an album recorded a little over a week after that fateful day. The album is called The Last Request and features an image of King on the cover.
Labels: gospel, jazz funk, traditional