Michael Henderson (July 7, 1951 – July 19, 2022) – Time (1976)
For the first single from his own debut solo LP Solid, Henderson wrote, produced and arranged this funk masterpiece which sadly did not chart.
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Michael Henderson was a prolific bass guitarist who joined Stevie Wonder’s band at age 16, then helped shape 70s jazz-funk during the almost seven years he spent playing with Miles Davis. All the while, he appeared on numerous iconic funk and soul records as a session musician, and later enjoyed a successful solo career of his own.
Born in Mississippi, he moved to Detroit in the early 1960s. Starting at age 13, he played bass with the city’s R&B groups Fantastic Four, the Detroit Emeralds, and eventually Motown acts. He joined Stevie Wonder’s backing band when he was just 16, after meeting him at the Regal Theater in Chicago.
After Miles Davis saw him playing with Wonder at the Copacabana in Manhattan in early 1970, he poached him for his own band. The first record he played on with Miles his landmark Jack Johnson soundtrack, mostly recorded on April 7, 1970. For more on this album, see our post from May on Davis and the LP’s epic “Right Off,” which grew out of an impromptu jam session between Henderson, guitarist John McLaughlin, and drummer Billy Cobham.
While he was playing with Davis for nearly the next seven years, Henderson appeared as a session musician on iconic tracks by other artists. Some of these included “Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get” (1971) by the Dramatics, and Marvin Gaye’s legendary “You’re The Man” (1972), the title track from his unreleased followup album to What’s Going On.
After leaving Davis’ band in the mid-seventies, Henderson signed with Buddah and collaborated with producer Norman Connors. He made his vocal debut on a slow jam duet with Jean Carne titled “Valentine Love,” released on Connors’ LP Saturday Night Special (1975). It went to #10 R&B.
For his own debut solo LP Solid, released the following year in 1976, he produced, arranged, and wrote every track, including the funk masterpiece “Time.” Issued as the album’s first single, it sadly did not chart.
However, his next single fared much better, the heartfelt love song “Be My Girl,” which reached #23 R&B. The LP itself sold fairly well, peaking at #10 on the R&B album charts, and ensured Henderson would release another seven full-length LP’s over the course of the next decade.
Further info:
“In Memoriam: Michael Henderson,” by Kevin Johnson, No Treble, July 20, 2022.
#soul #funk #jazz #MichaelHenderson