Michael Earl Henderson (July 7, 1951 – July 19, 2022) was an American bass guitarist and vocalist. He was known for his work with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

in the early 1970s and on early

fusion Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole. Fusion may also refer to: Science and technology Physics *Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...

albums such as '' Jack Johnson'', '' Live-Evil'', and '' Agharta'', along with a series of his own R&B/soul hits and others featuring him on vocals, particularly the

Norman Connors Norman Connors (born March 1, 1947) is an American jazz drummer, composer, arranger, and producer who has led a number of influential jazz and R&B groups. He also achieved several big R&B hits of the day, especially with love ballads. He is pos ...

-produced hit "

You Are My Starship ''You Are My Starship '' is an album by the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania jazz drummer Norman Connors. Released in 1976 on Buddah Records, it featured bass player/vocalist Michael Henderson and Philadelphia vocalist Phyllis Hyman. The album reache ...

" in 1976 and other songs in the mid to late-1970s.

Early life

Michael Earl Henderson was born on July 7, 1951, in

Yazoo City, Mississippi Yazoo City is a U.S. city in Yazoo County, Mississippi. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe living near the river's m ...

. In the early 1960s he moved to

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, playing as a session musician.

Career

Henderson was one of the first notable bass guitarists of the fusion era as well as being one of the most influential

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

musicians of the past 40 years. In addition to Davis, he played and recorded with

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

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 ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

the Dramatics The Dramatics are an American soul music vocal group, formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1964. They are best known for their 1970s hit songs " In the Rain" and "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get", both of which were Top 10 Pop hits, as well as their late ...

, among many others. Before working with Davis, Henderson had been touring with Stevie Wonder, whom he met at the Regal Theater in Chicago while warming up for a gig. Davis saw the young Henderson performing at the Copacabana in New York City in early 1970 and reportedly said to Wonder simply "I'm taking your fucking bassist." After almost seven years with Davis, Henderson focused on

songwriting A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

and singing in a solo career that produced many hit songs and albums for

Buddah Records Buddah Records (later known as Buddha Records) was an American record label founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's foundin ...

until his retirement in 1986. Although known primarily for

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

s, he was an influential

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

player whose riffs and songs have been widely covered. He is also known for his ballad vocalizing on several

hit recordings, including "You Are My Starship" and "Valentine Love", performed with Jean Carn.

Personal life and death

At the time of his death, Henderson was in a relationship with DaMia Satterfield, and separated from his wife, Adelia Thompson. He had three children, and lived in the Atlanta suburb of

Dallas, Georgia Dallas is a city in, and the county seat of, Paulding County, Georgia, United States. The estimated population, as of 2010, was 11,544. Dallas is a northwestern exurb of Atlanta, located approximately from the downtown area. It was named for G ...

, where he died from cancer on July 19, 2022, aged 71.

Solo discography

Studio albums

Singles

Collaborations

With Miles Davis

* ''

The Cellar Door Sessions ''The Cellar Door Sessions 1970'' is a boxed live album released in 2005. It was recorded over several nights in 1970 at the Washington D. C. nightclub The Cellar Door. Despite similar formatting to The Miles Davis Series of box sets, it is not ...

'' (1970) * ''

A Tribute to Jack Johnson ''Jack Johnson'' (also known as ''A Tribute to Jack Johnson'' on reissues) is a studio album and soundtrack by American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Miles Davis. It was released on February 24, 1971, by Columbia Records. The album ...

'' (1971) * '' Live-Evil'' (1971) * ''

On the Corner ''On the Corner'' is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer Miles Davis. It was recorded in June and July 1972 and released on October 11 of the same year by Columbia Records. The album continued Davis's exploration o ...

'' (1972) * '' In Concert: Live at Philharmonic Hall'' (1973) * '' Big Fun'' (1974) * ''

Get Up with It ''Get Up with It'' is a compilation album by American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer Miles Davis. Released by Columbia Records on November 22, 1974, it compiled songs Davis had recorded in sessions between 1970 and 1974, including those f ...

'' (1974) * '' Agharta'' (1976) * ''

Pangaea Pangaea or Pangea () was a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. It assembled from the earlier continental units of Gondwana, Euramerica and Siberia during the Carboniferous approximately 335 million y ...

'' (1975) * ''

Dark Magus ''Dark Magus'' is a live double album by American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Miles Davis. It was recorded on March 30, 1974, at Carnegie Hall in New York City, during the electric period in the musician's career. Davis' group at ...

'' (1977) * ''

The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions ''The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions'' were recorded in April 1970 by Miles Davis, and released in September 2003. These sessions formed the basis for the 1971 album '' Jack Johnson'', as well as some of the studio portions of '' Live-Evil''. Tra ...

'' (Columbia Legacy, 2003) * '' The Complete On the Corner Sessions'' (Columbia Legacy, 2007) * '' Miles Davis at Newport 1955–1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4'' (Columbia Legacy, 2015)

With Stevie Wonder

* '' Live at the Talk of the Town'' (1970)

With The Dramatics

* ''

Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get may refer to: * "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get" (album), a 1971 album by The Dramatics ** "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get" (song), the title track from the album * '' Stand by Me (Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get)'', 1971 album by P ...

'' (1971)

References

External links

*
Funk: United States
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Michael 1951 births 2022 deaths 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century African-American musicians 20th-century American bass guitarists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American male singers 21st-century African-American musicians 21st-century American bass guitarists 21st-century American male musicians African-American guitarists American blues singers American funk bass guitarists American jazz bass guitarists American male bass guitarists American male jazz musicians American male singers American rhythm and blues bass guitarists Ballad musicians Deaths from cancer in Georgia (U.S. state) Guitarists from Detroit Guitarists from Mississippi Jazz musicians from Michigan Jazz musicians from Mississippi People from Dallas, Georgia People from Yazoo City, Mississippi Singers from Detroit Singers from Mississippi The Lucky Strikes members