Rhythm, in music, is the placement of sounds in time. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, “In its most general sense, rhythm - from the Greek rhythmos, from rhein, ‘to flow’ - is an ordered alternation of contrasting elements.” In life, the rhythm of our days and lives may change, but we are never without this rhythmic order. We carry it in our hearts and breath, a hushed and personal ‘theme music’ to which we walk the earth.

We lost a lot of rhythm last year, but I mean to get it back. More than three million heartbeats fell silent in our country, and several of my favorite drummers laid down their sticks and moved on to that great gig in the sky. One of America’s first professional female percussionists, Viola Smith, who drummed from the 20’s through the 70’s, died last year at 107. Beloved Nigerian Afrobeat legend, Tony Allen, also took his cue last April, and beat it, but the knell that hit the hardest here at Oakland Yard was the death of the master of funky disco, Bohannon.

Hamilton Frederick Bohannon was born on March 7th, 1942, in Newnan Georgia, and began leading bands in high school, one of which featured a young Jimi Hendrix, before Jimi started playing with Little Richard. In 1964, Bohannon was recruited to drum in 13-year-old Stevie Wonder’s touring band, and in 1967, he moved to Detroit to worked at Motown with The Supremes, The Tempations, Marvin Gaye, and all the big names, until Berry Gordy moved Motown to L.A. and Bohannon decided to stay in Detroit. His drumming had a hard-hitting, infectious drive; Bohannon used to say there were just two musicians who truly had soul: himself, and James Brown. The albums he recorded on Dakar and Mercury Records from 1973 to 1980 are some of the deepest, heaviest, most smokin’ funk grooves ever laid on wax, and I challenge anyone to listen to side A of Too Hot To Hold, or the eponymous Bohannon album, without moving your feet, or otherwise succumbing to the beat.

I touched on our love of Bohannon’s music in a 2019 newsletter, and, around that time, we at Oakland Yard collectively wrote Bohannon a post card, and sent it to his fan club in Georgia. We told him his records were on heavy rotation in the shop and that they brought us great joy. I like to think he might have gotten our card in time to put a smile on his face. We’ll be dusting off some of his old gems to spin this Sunday, to celebrate what would have been Bohannon’s seventy-ninth birthday, and to feel the spirit of the music, that rhythm that will continue to move us forward while we pay tribute to those we’ve lost.

Cheers,
Max


For BOHANNON'S BEAT: Click HERE