Leon Thomas was born in East St. Louis, Illinois on Oct. 4 1937,
and studied music at Tennesseee State University, eventually moving to New York
City in 1958. Leon was one of the most unique and gifted of all jazz
vocalists, he shocked the jazz world with his amazing capabilities when he took
it by storm in the late 1960s with his collaborations with Pharoah
Sanders that continues to entrance listeners today.
Leon recorded on two of Sanders’ most renowned classics “Karma,”
(1969) and “Jewels Of Thought,” (1970) and his vocals on the cuts “The Creator
Has A Master Plan” and “Hum-Allah” have ensured his reputation. Just as Sonny
Sharrock's startling guitar was the unique foil for Pharoah's slashing
saxophone, so Leon Thomas had the virtuosity, intensity and blinding
originality to keep up with Sanders. It was on these recordings that Leon
revealed his unique vocal gift which might best be described as kind of
scat-yodelling, offbeat and wonderful sounds which seem to well up from his
inner being.
Having made his name with Pharoah, Leon was ready for a solo career
and the Flying Dutchman label stepped in with a deal. The label represented
total freedom and support for the artist and Thomas responded to this
environment with a series of great albums.
He started with the majestic “Spirits Known And Unknown,”(1969) followed
quickly by “The Leon Thomas Album.” A couple of engaging live albums followed
before the release of two excellent albums, “Blues And The Soulful Truth,”
(1972) and “Full Circle,” (1973) the first of these was an up blues-based LP
full of vivacity and humour which included a vocal take of “Gypsy Queen” which
is a testament to Thomas' invention.
These Leon Thomas albums were a heady brew of soul- jazz,
free-jazz and African rhythms.
Thomas was asked to join the Santana band in 1971, where he
remained for two years. Santana's 1973 tour was possibly the greatest in the
band's history and Thomas added a massive gravitas to Santana that helped to
shoot them into the Latin-soul-jazz stratosphere. Thomas had the role of
vocalist and multi-instrumentalist; for instance, as well as the maracas he is
credited with on the Lotus sleeve he brought a variety of whistles, flutes and
even conch shells to the live Santana sound.
The pace of the tour was too much for Thomas and he left Santana
at the end of the year and he entered a downward spiral of indulgence and
indolence that lasted quite a few years. He toured Europe with Freddie Hubbard
in 1979, a partnership that spawned the enjoyable “A Piece Of Cake,” (1980) and
later in the 1980s he resumed his relationship with Pharoah Sanders and cut
tracks with him on the albums “Shukuru,” (1983) and “Oh Lord, Let Me Do No
Wrong.” (1987) Shukuru included what might be the best Leon Thomas composition,
the exquisite “Sun Song” which is a paean to meditation but manages to transmit
feelings of peace, tranquillity and uplift to the listener. “Oh Lord, Let Me Do
No Wrong,” was more of a blues work out and found Thomas in great voice and
contributing new tunes like “If It Wasn't For A Woman.”
The most recent Leon Thomas release came in 1993 with the release
of “Precious Energy,” a live date recorded in conjunction with sax player Gary
Bartz. This includes a mammoth version of the great “Sun Song.”
The story gets a bit sad after this with Leon descending further
into the world of drugs and self-abuse until shaking himself out of it in 1994
and recording new material for an album which has, unfortunately, yet to be
released.
Leon Thomas died of heart failure on May 8, 1999 in New York, New
York.
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