Although Lateef's main instruments are the tenor saxophone and flute, he is known for his innovative blending of jazz with Eastern music. In addition to the oboe and bassoon, both rare in jazz, Lateef plays various non-Western instruments, notably the bamboo flute, shanai, shofar, arghul, sarewa, and koto.
Throughout his early life Lateef came into contact with many Detroit-based jazz musicians who would gain prominence, including vibraphonist Milt Jackson, bassist Paul Chambers, drummer Elvin Jones, and guitarist Kenny Burrell. Lateef was a proficient saxophonist by the time of his graduation from high school at age 18, at which point he launched his professional career and began touring with a number of swing bands.
In 1949, Lateef was invited by Dizzy Gillespie to tour with his world-renowned orchestra. At this time, Lateef was known by the name William Evans, thereby making him one of three well-known jazz musicians (besides the pianist and the tenor saxophonist) bearing this name. Notably, all three played with Miles Davis during their careers.
In 1950, Lateef returned to Detroit and began his studies in composition and flute at Wayne State University. It was during this period that Lateef converted to Islam as a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.
Lateef began recording as a leader in 1957 for Savoy Records, a non-exclusive association which continued until 1959; the earliest of Lateef's album's for the Prestige subsidiary New Jazz overlap with them. Musicians such as Wilbur Harden and Hugh Lawson were among his collaborators during this period.
In 1960, Lateef again returned to school, studying flute at the Manhattan School of Music in New York. He received a Bachelor's Degree in Music in 1969 and a Master's Degree in Music Education in 1970. Starting in 1971, he taught courses in "autophysiopsychic" music at the Manhattan School of Music, and he became an associate professor at the Borough of Manhattan Community College in 1972.
Autophysiopsychic Music, Lateef's term, refers to music which comes from one's physical, mental, and spiritual self. Lateef has written extensively on the topic and includes it in his book Method To Perform Autopsyiopsychic Music. In this view, it should be the goal of every musician to combine their theoretical knowledge with their life experience, and to offer to and accept knowledge from their personal source of strength, inspiration and knowledge.
Yusef's teaching of autophysiopsychic music is very simple. It strays from what has become the standard dorian mode over the two chord, mixolydian over the five, and ionian over the one chord. You learn what works for you, and you embellish those notes.
By 1961, with the recording of Into Something and Eastern Sounds, Lateef's dominant presence within a group context had emerged. His 'Eastern' influences are clearly audible in all of these recordings, with spots for instruments like the rahab, shanai, arghul, koto and a collection of wooden Chinese flutes and bells along with his tenor and flute. Even his use of the western oboe sounds exotic in this context; it is not a standard jazz instrument. Indeed the tunes themselves are a mixture of jazz standards, blues and film music usually performed with a piano/bass/drums rhythm section in support. Along with trumpeter Don Cherry, Lateef can lay claim to being among the first exponents of the world music jazz subgenre. Lateef also made numerous contributions to other people's albums including his time as a member of saxophonist Cannonball Adderley's Quintet during 1962-64.
Lateef's sound has been claimed to have been a major influence on the saxophonist John Coltrane, whose later period free jazz recordings contain similarly 'Eastern' traits. For a time (1963-66) Lateef was signed to Coltrane's label, Impulse. He had a regular working group during this period, with trumpeter Richard Williams and Mike Nock on piano. They enjoyed a residency at Pep's Lounge during June 1964; an evening of which was issued across several albums.
In the late 1960s he began to incorporate contemporary soul and gospel phrasing into his music, still with a strong blues underlay, on albums such as Detroit and Hush 'N' Thunder.
In 1975, Lateef completed his dissertation on Western and Islamic education and earned a Ed.D. in Education from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
In the early 1980s Lateef was a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Nigerian Cultural Studies at Ahmadu Bello University in the city of Zaria, Nigeria. Returning to the US in 1986 he took teaching positions at the University of Massachusetts and Amherst College. Presently, he continues to teach at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and Hampshire College in western Massachusetts.
In 1992, Lateef founded YAL Records, his own label for which he records today. In 1993, Lateef was commissioned by the WDR Radio Orchestra to compose the African-American Epic Suite, a four part work for orchestra and quartet based on themes of slavery and disfranchisement in the United States. The piece has since been performed by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
Lateef has expressed a dislike of the terms "jazz" and "jazz musician" as musical generalizations. As is so often the case with such generalizations, the use of these terms do understate the breadth of his sound. For example, in the 1980s, Lateef experimented with new age and spiritual elements. His 1987 album Yusef Lateef 's Little Symphony won the Grammy award for Best New Age Album. His core influences, however, are clearly rooted in jazz, and in his own words: "My music is jazz."
Lateef has written and published a number of books including a novella entitled A Night in the Garden of Love and the short story collections Spheres and Rain Shapes. Along with his record label YAL Records, Lateef owns Fana Music, a music publishing company. Lateef publishes his own work through Fana, which includes Yusef Lateef's Flute Book of the Blues and many of his own orchestral compositions.
Sites: Discogs and Wikipedia
Don't Blame Me
Yusef Lateef Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've hung around you just like a fool
Falling head and heels in love like a kid out of school.
My poor heart is in an awful state now
But it's too late now to call a halt
So if I become a nuisance it's all your fault!
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I'm under your spell but how can I help it!
Don't' blame me!
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling,
Don't blame; me.
Ican't help it if that doggoned moon above
Makes me need someone like you to love!
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
But don't blame me.
I like every single thing about you
Without a doubt you are like a dream
In my mind I find a picture of us as a team
Ever since the hour of our meeting
I've been repeating a silly phrase
Hoping that you'll understand me one of these days.
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I'm under your spell but how can I help it!
Don't' blame me!
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling,
Don't blame; me.
Ican't help it if that doggoned moon above
Makes me need someone like you to love!
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
But don't blame me.
The lyrics of Yusef Lateef's song "Don't Blame Me" clearly convey the message of falling in love with someone and being unable to control the feeling. The song begins with the singer expressing how they have been foolishly hanging around their love interest ever since they found them. They have fallen head over heels in love like a kid out of school. The singer acknowledges that their heart is in an awful state and that it's too late to call a halt. They warn their love interest that if they become a nuisance, it's all their fault.
The second verse brings out the helplessness of the singer. They explain how they are under the spell of their love interest's charms, and they can't help what they are feeling. They blame the effect of the things that their love interest does, and their kiss that is as sweet as it can be. The singer says that they cannot help but be mesmerized by their love interest's the charms and cannot help but blame them for this feeling. The refrain of the song emphasizes the helplessness and the singer's acknowledgment that they cannot control their feelings.
Overall, the lyrics of the song "Don't Blame Me" are a heartfelt representation of the feeling of falling in love and being unable to control it. The singer acknowledges their helplessness and the inability to contain the thrill that their love interest brings. The song clearly brings out the feeling of being under the spell of one’s love interest.
Line by Line Meaning
Ever since the lucky night I found you
Since the night I met you, my life has been fortunate.
I've hung around you just like a fool
I've stayed close to you even when it wasn't wise.
Falling head and heels in love like a kid out of school.
I've fallen in love with you completely, like a young, inexperienced student.
My poor heart is in an awful state now
My heart is distressed and anguished because I can't have you.
But it's too late now to call a halt
It's too late to stop loving you, even though it may not be good for me.
So if I become a nuisance it's all your fault!
If I become bothersome or annoying, it's because you've captured my heart and won't let go.
Don't blame me for falling in love with you
I can't help loving you, so please don't hold it against me.
I'm under your spell but how can I help it!
You have mesmerized me, and I can't resist.
Can't you see when you do the things you do!
Your actions make me feel a certain way, and it's beyond my control.
If I can't conceal the thrill that I'm feeling,
I can't hide the excitement that comes from being near you.
Ican't help it if that doggoned moon above
The moon's pull on our emotions is irresistible and beyond our control.
Makes me need someone like you to love!
The moon's influence has made me desire someone like you in my life.
Blame your kiss as sweet as a kiss can be
Your kiss was so delightful and loving that it's responsible for the way I feel.
And blame all your charms that melt in my arms
Your enchanting qualities that captivate and comfort me are also to blame.
But don't blame me.
But don't blame me for my love, it's uncontrollable.
I like every single thing about you
I'm completely smitten with everything about you.
Without a doubt you are like a dream
You're everything I've ever dreamed of, without any uncertainty.
In my mind I find a picture of us as a team
I imagine us together, working together as one in harmony in my mind.
Ever since the hour of our meeting
Since we met, I've been infatuated with you.
I've been repeating a silly phrase
I keep saying foolish things and acting silly around you.
Hoping that you'll understand me one of these days.
I'm hoping you'll see how much I care for you and feel the same way someday.
Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DOROTHY FIELDS, JIMMY MC HUGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Rob Jones
Very elegant and refined version of an all-time classic.
Yusef was a very underestimated musician.
Douglas R. Ewart
Baba Yusef is a sonic colossus. He is beyond genre and categories. He is under known, and those of us that revere him and his stupendous works should never use the term unrated, as I/we frankly don’t care what others think about his musical abilities...skills, Baba Yusuf’s musical acumen is beyond reproach. He is a remarkable composer, musician, philosopher, poet, writer, visual artist, instrument maker, conceptualist, innovator, humanists and spirit-man.
If you are not familiar with his vast works and contributions you should become acquainted as soon as possible, as you are missing some vital musical, spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and inspirational nutrition.
Mrbrbusby .busby
Douglas R. Ewart As well as a great friend of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. His poem, “The Silly Leaves,” never leaves my mind driving over the covered bridges of Neue Deutschland in Strasbourg on the first day of Fruhling. May we reflect on his teacher Gautama who will remind all of us that this Great Art is also impermanent. But don’t blame me for saying it.
Mrbrbusby .busby
The great maestro even in the early Impulse! days recorded few standards. When he did, No One in the Known Universe, save the Pleiadeans (with whom he was in touch with) could marry ever touch him. Even when the great Psychicemotus covered Satie, the only response was: Never before and never since. Dr. Yusef Lateef, American Maestro.
casilet
This the most imaginative interpretation of this ballad I have heard. The enitre treatment is a virtual improvisation. I have had this album on 33 rpm for many years. Thanks for the post
Mrbrbusby .busby
casilet Once Dr. Lateef asked me "what's your Sgt. Pepper?" And I said: Eastern Sounds. PBUH.
Stuart Gerger
The interplay between Barry Harris and Yuself Lateef is like NO other duet I've ever heard. Finishing each others sentences, starting each others phrases, echoing each others sounds through their own instruments. I've listened to this HUNDREDS of times over the past 40 years and it remains, to me, as beautiful as the first time I heard it.
louis hamilton
YUSEFabsolutely KILLED this
Benny Good
Imagine thinking of how to recreate a song some friend told you about it and start grab your instrument and play this . The guy at the end being like . Whoa.... let’s record this and sell it .perhaps some people will love it .... decades later there is some guy falling asleep in front of tv with his dog listening this music ....
Marc Roig Cebrian
Great tenorman!with a sound similar to coltrane and Dexter gordon!