"Master" Henry Gibson (August 9, 1942 – December 18, 2002) was an American percussionist, appearing on about 1200 albums, spanning a career of four decades. Born in the United States, Gibson began playing on the streets of Chicago. While a young man, he performed for

Operation Push Rainbow/PUSH is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization formed as a merger of two nonprofit organizations founded by Jesse Jackson; Operation PUSH (People United to Save Humanity) and the National Rainbow Coalition. The organizations pursue socia ...

with Rev. Jesse Jackson. Later, he became an integral member of Phil Cohran's Artistic Heritage Ensemble. Gibson also played and recorded with the jazz ensemble Odell Brown and the Organizers. He spent a lot of time in Chicago recording studios, which allowed him to be noticed and picked up by professional musicians who took him on tour. Eventually, he was playing and recording with well-known artists such as

Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American soul singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and arranger whom ''Rolling Stone'' described as a "soul legend". His most popular songs include " The Ghetto", "This Christmas ...

('' Everything Is Everything'') and Curtis Mayfield. Gibson chose to go on the road with Curtis Mayfield, leading to his success and recognition for his skill on the bongo and conga drums. Henry Gibson performed in the Hawaiian Islands in the mid-70s and 80s and lived on the island of Oahu. He teamed with musician, songwriter, and producer Kirk Thompson to record the iconic '' Lemuria'' album and collaborated with many of the top local Waikiki musicians of that era, including vocalist, Azure McCall and pianist, Tennyson Stevens. He was an integral part of Kirk Thompson's 'Super Session' with Michael 'Papabax' Baxter on keyboards, John Gallarde on bass, and Ron Felix on drums. Gibson was a popular addition to the Waikiki music scene in those years. While performing at a Hard Rock Cafe in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, he met and later married his wife Anne. He died in Stockholm of a heart attack at age 60. His last concert appearance was with Khaled Habib and

Zak Keith Zak Keith is a British multi-genred guitarist, based in Stockholm, Sweden, since 1998. He was band leader for Bob Manning's Soul Enterprise until 2001. Active internationally, he has performed with artists such as Angélique Kidjo, Julius E. Gre ...

at the Lydmar Hotel in Stockholm. His distinctive style can be heard among other recordings on Curtis Mayfield's "Pusherman." An unsung Soul artist, Gibson felt he had more than paid his dues. In his later years, he was less and less content with being a sideman and began asserting himself as the main attraction, placing his percussion at the forefront of shows. He was known for getting upset with audiences in noisy venues — after demanding their silence and full attention, he would instantly regain his focus and proceed to put on spellbinding performances on the bongos. Months after his death in 2002, friends and musicians got together to organize a tribute concert at the Fasching jazz club in Stockholm. His music can still be heard daily on the radio, especially on recordings by Curtis Mayfield.

Film

Henry appeared on several

blaxploitation Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president o ...

movies such as '' Super Fly''.

Recordings

* Sonny Stitt And Bennie Green (My Main Man 1964) * Odell Brown & the Organ-izers (Ducky 1967: No More Water in the Well, Tough Tip, She's Coming My Way) *

Ahmad Jamal Ahmad Jamal (born Frederick Russell Jones, July 2, 1930) is an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and educator. For six decades, he has been one of the most successful small-group leaders in jazz. Biography Early life Jamal was born Fr ...

(Poinciana Revisited, live 1969: Poinciana; Ahmad 1975: Superstition) *

(Everything Is Everything 1970) * Curtis Mayfield (Curtis Live!; Live at The Bitter End 1971) * Kool & The Gang (Live At P.J.'S 1971: Dujii) *

The Rotary Connection Rotary Connection was an American psychedelic soul band, formed in Chicago in 1966. In addition to their own recordings, including their 1967 debut album ''Rotary Connection'', the band is notable as the backing band for Muddy Waters on his 1968 ...

(Hey Love, 1971: If I Sing My Song, Sea & She, I Am the Black Gold of the Sun) *

Eddie Harris Eddie Harris (October 20, 1934 – November 5, 1996) was an American jazz musician, best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone. He was also fluent on the electric piano and organ. His best-k ...

('' Instant Death'', Atlantic 1971) * Roy Ayers (The Boogie Back 1974) * Leroy Hutson (Hutson 1975; Hutson II 1976: Love the Feeling, Situations, I Do, I Do, All Because of You, I Bless the Day, It's Different, Paradise, Closer to the Source 1978: Where Did Love Go?, Closer to the Source) * Natalie Cole (Natalie 1976) * Ben Sidran (Free in America 1976) * Ebony Rhythm Funk Campaign (Watchin' You, Watchin' Me 1976: Giving Me Less Love, Understanding, Watchin' You) * The Staple Singers (Pass It On 1976: Real Thing Inside of Me/Party, Take Your Own Time, Sweeter ...) * Curtis Mayfield (Super Fly 1972; Short Eyes 1977; Live at Montreux 1987: Introduction, Ice 9 Instrumental, Back to the World; Live in Europe 1987: Introduction, Ice 9, Back to the World; Never Say You Can't Survive/Do It All Night 1999; Curtis Mayfield & Linda Clifford 2000: Rock You to Your Socks, Right Combination, I'm So Proud) * Loleatta Holloway (Loleatta 1977: Hit And Run, Is It Just A Man's Way?, We're Getting Stronger) * Lemuria Lemuria Kirk Thompson : Honolulu, Hi. *

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

(Almighty Fire 1978: Almighty Fire (Woman of the Future), Lady, Lady, More Than... ) * Walter Jackson (Good to See You 1978) * Minnie Riperton (Minnie 1979: Memory Lane, Lover and Friend, Return to Forever, All Of It, Lonely Girl, Happy New Love) * Paulette McWilliams (Never Been Here Before 1979: Don't Let Love Go, I'll Never Make You Cry, Main Squeeze) *

(Sessions 1989: Shaw 'Nuff) * Nohelani Cypriano (Around Again 1995: Livin' Without You, Moon Of Monakoora, South Sea Island Magic) * Tyrone Davis (Best Of 1996: Let's Be Closer Together, In The Mood, Heart Failure, Close to You) *

Bob DeVos Bob DeVos (born 1946) is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, and teacher from New Jersey. Early life DeVos failed a "music appreciation" class in his first year of college, which he later dropped out from. Career His style combines blues, r ...

(Breaking the Ice 1999: Breaking The Ice, Walk On By, You Don't Know What Love Is) * Gball da Godfather ("G"Street Remix 2000) * Stanley B (All For Love 2002: This Is 'B', Do You?, All For Love) *

Charles Earland Charles Earland (May 24, 1941 – December 11, 1999) was an American jazz organist. Biography Earland was born in Philadelphia and learned to play the saxophone in high school. He played tenor with Jimmy McGriff at the age of 17 and in 1960 form ...

* Phil Upchurch * Kenny Burrell *

Earth Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million ...

* Red Rodney (Shaw 'Nuff) * Gipsy Kings * ...''and about 1,170 more albums''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibson, Henry American soul musicians American percussionists 1942 births 2002 deaths Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery American session musicians Bongo players Conga players American expatriates in Sweden 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians American emigrants to Sweden R&B percussionists