Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre

by Al CampbellMulti-reedist Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre is one of the founding members of Chicagos AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians). McIntyre has the ability to not only play free jazz but he also spent many years playing rhythm & blues with musicians including J.B. Hutto and Little Milton. It was his blues roots mixed with avant-garde technique that shaped the sound of McIntyres tenor playing. McIntyre was born in Clarkville, AR, but his family moved to Chicago when he was very young. Music was an intergral part of his upbringing; his parents insisted he play an instrument. He started on drums at age seven and switched to saxophone shortly after. Upon high school graduation McIntyre attended the Chicago College of Music. Instead of copying the strict hard bop tenor sound prominent at the time, he developed his own musical concept based on freedom instead of molded restriction. Luckily McIntyre hooked up with like-minded musicians in bassist Malachi Favors and multi-reedist Roscoe Mitchell. In the early 60s the first AACM configuration was formed. Originally called the Experimental Band, this community-based movement was mentored by pianist Muhal Richard Abrams. In 1966 the first of this new music was unleashed; Sound, under the leadership of Roscoe Mitchell, signaled the initial ation of the free jazz movement out of Chicago. Chicagos Delmark Records began ing this new sound, releasing classic works including Abrams Level and Degrees of Light and Humility in Light of the Creator, McIntyres first solo effort released in 1969. In the late 60s McIntyre continued to play original music and worked as a session musician for Delmark with appearances on guitarist George Freemans Birth Sign and J.B. Huttos Hawk Squat. McIntyres second project Forces and Feelings featured his band the Light and was released in 1970. By that time many of the AACM musicians had moved out of the Windy City with hopes of conquering Europe and New York and being able to play more frequent gigs. While making his home in New York City throughout the 70s, McIntyre played the burgeoning loft scene with many dates taking place at Riveba studios, opened by tenor saxophonist Sam Rivers. He also spent time teaching at vibraphonist Karl Bergers Creative Studio and occasionally traveled to Europe playing with Abrams, where they gained a large following. In 1979 McIntyre released his third album Peace and Blessings on the Black Saint label. While maintaining his skills as a multi-instrumentalist and percussionist, his recorded activity slowed down immensely for the next several years. Rams Run, a live date for the Cadence label in 1981 was his only issued date as a leader in that decade. During this dry period McIntyre spent most of his time trying to play live as often as possible, which included the streets and subways of New York. He finally reappeared on disc in 1998 with the strong CIMP release Dream Of… featuring drummer Pheeroan Ak Laff and bassist Michael Logan. The following year Delmark issued the collaborative Bright Moments CD, reuniting McIntyre with AACM members Joseph Jarman, Malachi Favors, Steve Colson, and Kahil El Zabar.