From Greywoulf: 04/10/03

On Baba Olatunji's passing...

I first met Baba in 1990. He was my first drumming instructor at my first
big drumming workshop, a weeklong class at Omega, in Rhinebeck, NY.
I arrived at his class with a lot of enthusiasm, a cheap set of bongos, a
small balafon, and almost no knowledge of West African drumming. Luckily
there was someone there who was making Ashikos, and he graciously lent me
one of his drums to use during the workshop.
Gun-go-do, gun-go-do, gun-go-do, and I went wild with the rhythms, playing
the borrowed Ashiko, pounding on the huge oil-barrel djun-djun, confusing
everyone with my wildly undisciplined creativity... In no time at all my
hands were blistered and bleeding.
I knew nothing of drumming etiquette. Baba was playing his usual tall
Ashikos, one hand bare, the other with a stick. I admired his drums... When
he walked out of the room for a break, well, you know what happened... Yep,
I walked over and started playing his drums, even using his stick which he'd
left there! People stared at me open-mouthed; Sanga and Imani, horrified,
both ran over to get me off of those drums before Baba came back into the
room!
But it was too late... Baba walked in as I was playing, just before Imani
and Sanga got me to stop. He never said a word to me. But I got a look that
could've melted a candle...

I didn't see Baba again for many years after that, although I bought his
tapes and listened to his music and continued to take lessons with Sanga,
who at that time was teaching in a fourth floor warehouse studio in
Greenwich Village, NYC. And the next time I saw Baba was in Long Branch, NJ,
in 1998 I believe. A friend, Basha Alade, writes and produces an annual drum
and dance play there using musicians from NYC combined with adult and
children amateur actors from the Asbury Park-Long Branch area of NJ. And
there was Baba, up on the stage, having himself a great time playing the
role of the chief village elder in this play, a role he was so aptly suited
for; the important role he actually had in real life for so many of us!

After that it again was several years before I saw Baba once more. This time
it was at his 75th birthday party at the Paramount Theatre in Middletown,
NY.
Beverly Nadelman, Happy Shel, myself, and a nice guy (whose name escapes me
at the moment), stayed at my house in NJ the night before the party and then
drove up to Middletown NY in a convoy. The performance at the theatre was a
blast, with Babatunde Olatunji, Mickey Hart, and Giovianni Hildago all up on
the stage at the same time, jamming and dancing together... This is
something I'll never forget seeing!

But the best for me at this party was the workshops. Mickey Hart and Arthur
Hull did their usual fine things, and my good friend Barkman also gave a
fine showing as one of our newer drum circle facilitators.
It was great fun, but the highlight for me was the quiet hour we drummers
spent sitting around Baba listening to him speak, listening to him tell us
how important it still was to promote love and respect and good will in the
world. Baba was obviously ill; he seemed frail and could not speak very
loudly. But we all heard him. In one way or another, through the years,
we've all heard him. And we will surely miss this...

At the end of the workshop I met Mrs. Olatunji and one of Baba's daughters.
Mrs. Olatunji shared some nice things with me about Baba, and asked me to
drive a longtime family friend back to NYC when I left Middletown. I was
glad to do it, if only in some small way to repay Baba for all of the
inspiration he's given me over the years.

A few small contacts here and there. Drumming and listening. Laughing.
Dancing. Thinking. Only a few short times spent together and I probably
never said more than a few sentences to this wise and gentle man, yet I
always felt as if Baba was my friend. A good friend, a loving man, a great
musician and teacher, and our own village elder. He will be missed by oh so
many of us...

Greywoulf
(Skip Leib)