Isaias Gamboa (music producer)
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Isaias Gamboa (born April 21, 1963) is an Afro-Costa Rican-American music producer, songwriter, musician, arranger, author and filmmaker. Born in San Jose,
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
to parents of
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
and
Afro-Caribbean Afro-Caribbean people or African Caribbean are Caribbean people who trace their full or partial ancestry to Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of the modern African-Caribbeans descend from Africans taken as slaves to colonial Caribbean via the ...
ancestry. His mother, Carmen Gamboa Beckles, was born in the coastal Costa Rican city of Puerto Limon, and his father, Danilo Gamboa Mora, born in the interior province of
San Ramón, Costa Rica San Ramón is a district in the canton of San Ramón in Alajuela Province in Costa Rica. The central municipality (''distrito'') of San Ramón covers an area of Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN), 2001 and has a population of 10,710. Together ...
. Gamboa has written, performed, produced and or arranged more than 200 songs for recording artists including,
Shalamar Shalamar () is an American R&B and soul music vocal group active since the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Shalamar's classic line-up on the SOLAR label consisted of Howard Hewett, Jody Watley, and Jeffrey Daniel, together with dancer ...
,
Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American R&B, soul and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early 1950s. Starting out as simpl ...
,
Tavares Tavares may refer to: Places Brazil *Tavares, Paraíba *Tavares, Rio Grande do Sul *Rodovia Raposo Tavares, the longest highway in São Paulo *Tavares Bastos (favela), a favela in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil *Tavares River Jamaica *Tavares Garden ...
,
The Brothers Johnson The Brothers Johnson were an American funk and R&B band consisting of American musicians and brothers George ("Lightnin' Licks") and Louis E. Johnson ("Thunder Thumbs"). They achieved their greatest success from the mid-1970s to early 1980s, ...
,
Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
,
The Pointer Sisters The Pointer Sisters are an American pop and R&B singing group from Oakland, California, that achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Their repertoire has included such diverse genres as pop, jazz, electronic music, bebop, b ...
, and five albums for
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...
recording artists
The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...
. Three of these include, '' For Lovers Only'', '' Phoenix Rising'', which received a
Platinum certification Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
, and the
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
winning CD ''
Ear-Resistible ''Ear-Resistible'' is the 57th studio album by American vocal group the Temptations. It was released by Motown on May 16, 2000. Featuring the Top 20 Urban Adult Contemporary singles "I'm Here", which peaked at #3, and "Selfish Reasons", which peak ...
'', which won the 2001
Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance The Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance is an accolade presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally named the Gramophone Awards, to performers of quality traditional R&B vocal performances. ...
. In 1994. Gamboa produced the remix of "Pain" by the late,
Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the Li ...
for the
Multi-Platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
, ''
Above the Rim ''Above the Rim'' is a 1994 American sports drama film co-written and directed by Jeff Pollack in his directorial debut. The screenplay was written by Barry Michael Cooper, adapted from a story by Benny Medina. The film stars Duane Martin, Tupac ...
'' Isaias Gamboa grew up during the 1960s and 70s in the primarily
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
community of
West Adams, Los Angeles West Adams is a historic neighborhood in the South Los Angeles region of Los Angeles, California. The area is known for its large number of historic buildings, structures and notable houses and mansions throughout Los Angeles. It is a youth ...
. He was first introduced to the piano by his mother at age 5, and by age 11, played several musical instruments. In the early '70s, he was taught to play the guitar by noted
Jump blues Jump blues is an up-tempo style of blues, usually played by small groups and featuring horn instruments. It was popular in the 1940s and was a precursor of rhythm and blues and rock and roll. Appreciation of jump blues was renewed in the 1990s as ...
guitarist, Edgar Rice of the Alexander Nelson Trio, and under Rice's tutelage, learned
Honkey tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, or tonk) is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons and the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano (tack piano) ...
guitar and a particular style of
West Coast blues West Coast blues is a type of blues music influenced by jazz and jump blues, with strong piano-dominated sounds and jazzy guitar solos, which originated from Texas blues players who relocated to California in the 1940s. West Coast blues also ...
called,
Jump blues Jump blues is an up-tempo style of blues, usually played by small groups and featuring horn instruments. It was popular in the 1940s and was a precursor of rhythm and blues and rock and roll. Appreciation of jump blues was renewed in the 1990s as ...
. At the age of 13, Gamboa accompanied Los Angeles-based Blues singer,
Ernie Andrews Ernest Mitchell Andrews Jr. (December 25, 1927 – February 21, 2022) was an American jazz, blues, and pop singer. Life and career Andrews was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but grew up in Los Angeles, and is said to have been discovered b ...
on the blues guitar, at an outdoor event in Los Angeles. In 1980, at age 17, Isaias was introduced by pop singer,
Foster Sylvers Foster Emerson Sylvers (born February 25, 1962) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known for being a member of the family act The Sylvers and his hit single "Misdemeanor". Biography Foster ...
to his older brother, R&B music producer
Leon Sylvers III Leon Frank Sylvers III (born March 7, 1953, Memphis, Tennessee) is an American singer, songwriter, disc-jockey, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. He was a member of the family group The Sylvers and became one of the most successful pro ...
, who signed him to his music production and music publishing companies. While still in his teens, Gamboa was signed by music industry executive,
Clive Davis Clive Jay Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer, A&R executive, record executive, and lawyer. He has won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer, in 2000. From 1967 to 1 ...
as a member of the 1980s R&B band, Real To Reel (
Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...
). Notably, five-time Grammy Award-winning music producers,
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III (born June 6, 1959) and Terry Steven Lewis (born November 24, 1956) are an American R&B/pop songwriting and record production team. They have enjoyed great success since the 1980s with various artists, most ...
, after having met Leon Sylvers III at a celebrity basketball game in Los Angeles, produced their first-ever professional recordings; "Can You Treat Me Like She Does", and "Don't Keep Me Hangin' On" for Gamboa's band, Real To Reel. Sylvers produced the rest of the album. Isaias Gamboa was also a founding member of the 1990s neoclassical R&B singing group, "Double Action Theatre" (
Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
, which he also produced. ). In the 1990s, Gamboa was discovered by music producer,
Richard Perry Richard Van Perry (born June 18, 1942) is an American record producer. He began as a performer in his adolescence while attending Poly Prep, his high school in Brooklyn. After graduating from college he rose through the late 1960s and early 1970 ...
, who mentored him, and with whom he worked closely with on '' For Lovers Only''. In June 2010, Gamboa released a solo CD entitled, "Don't Lie To Me". Featuring his own vocal and instrumental performances. The 12 song collection was written, produced, performed and arranged by himself. The CD also includes performances by famed guitarist,
Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...
,
The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...
; drummer, Trevor Lawrence Jr., singer, Vida Jafari and saxophonist, Donald Hayes. Gamboa is a licensed Christian minister. His mother was a Baptist and his father, Catholic. He also strongly identifies with his Jewish ancestry through his Jamaican maternal grandmother, Louise Teitelbaum. This background is written about in Gamboa's 2012 book, '' We Shall Overcome: Sacred Song On The Devil's Tongue''. Published in 2012, '' We Shall Overcome: Sacred Song On The Devil's Tongue'' tells the previously undocumented history of the protest anthem, We Shall Overcome, and is also the biography of Louise Shropshire (1913-1993). According to evidence revealed in Gamboa's book, Shropshire - a hymn writer, civil rights activist and close friend of the Reverend Doctor
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
, Rev.
Fred Shuttlesworth Frederick Lee Shuttlesworth (born Fred Lee Robinson, March 18, 1922 – October 5, 2011) was a U.S. civil rights activist who led the fight against segregation and other forms of racism as a minister in Birmingham, Alabama. He was a co-founder o ...
and Rev.
Thomas A. Dorsey Thomas Andrew Dorsey (July 1, 1899 – January 23, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and Evangelism, Christian evangelist influential in the development of early blues and 20th-century gospel music. He penned 3,000 songs, a third of them ...
, played an important role in the creation of the iconic freedom anthem, "
We Shall Overcome "We Shall Overcome" is a gospel song which became a protest song and a key anthem of the American civil rights movement. The song is most commonly attributed as being lyrically descended from "I'll Overcome Some Day", a hymn by Charles Albert Ti ...
." The song, popularized by Pete Seeger and others, has been credited to "Unknown" for more than half a century. Newly-discovered facts presented in Gamboa's book, trace Shropshire's uncredited involvement with the freedom standard to her hymn, "If My Jesus Wills", more commonly known as "I'll Overcome" from which ''prima facie'' and other evidence indicates "
We Shall Overcome "We Shall Overcome" is a gospel song which became a protest song and a key anthem of the American civil rights movement. The song is most commonly attributed as being lyrically descended from "I'll Overcome Some Day", a hymn by Charles Albert Ti ...
" was derived. The book was featured at the Author's Pavilion at the 2015
NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
National Convention. An abridged, dramatized audiobook version of the book, also named, We Shall Overcome: Sacred Song On The Devil's Tongue was released on Plum Recordings in 2011. Narrated and produced by, Isaias Gamboa on his own music label, the four-hour collection also features slave narratives and negro spirituals. Through the efforts of, Dr. P. Eric Abercrumbie, Director of Ethnic Programs and Services and the African American Culture and Resource Center at the University of Cincinnati, Louise Shropshire's papers and artifacts were acquired in 2014 by the
University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...
and are preserved in the Rare Books Archives. According to ''the University of Cincinnati, The Louise Shropshire Family Papers'' collection includes photographs, family memorabilia, letters, sheet music and other documents. The collection is held in UC's Archives and Rare Books Library, located on the eighth floor of Blegen Library. In September of 2010, Gamboa began producing and directing a documentary film, which would track his real-time journey of discovery into the true origins of We Shall Overcome. The film was originally scheduled to be completed by fall 2015, that is until The Richmond Organization,the music publishing company that claimed rights to the song, informed Gamboa that he would not be able to use the song in his film. On April 12, 2016, the We Shall Overcome Foundation (WSOF), a non-profit organization founded and led by Gamboa, filed a lawsuit seeking clarification of the
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...
status of "We Shall Overcome". The Richmond Organization and Ludlow Music (TRO-Ludlow) had asserted copyright on the song based on copyrights registered in 1960 and 1963, but the suit alleged that only specific arrangements and that a version published in 1948 under the title "We Will Overcome" had expired due to lack of renewal. In September 2017, a judge issued an opinion that there were insignificant differences between the first verses of the 1948 and registered versions for copyright to exist in it. On January 26, 2018, Judge Denise Cote of the Southern District of New York filed an order in which Ludlow Music and The Richmond Organization—the defendants in the lawsuit—agreed to a settlement stipulating: "Defendants agree that hereafter they will not claim copyright in the melody or lyrics of any verse of the song We Shall Overcome ("the Song"), included in the registration Nos. EU645288 (1960) and EP 179877 (1963). Defendants agree that the melody and lyrics of those verses of the Song are hereafter dedicated to the public domain".


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamboa, Isaias 1963 births Living people People from San José, Costa Rica Costa Rican musicians Costa Rican male writers People from West Adams, Los Angeles