Scullery Department<\/a> (from Jazz Epistle Verse 1, 1960)<\/strong><\/p>\n Born Adolph Johannes Brand in Cape Town in 1934, Abdullah Ibrahim spent his six-decade career defining the heartfelt sound of South African jazz. Making his professional debut as a pianist at 15 under the name Dollar Brand, it was his co-founding of the group the Jazz Epistles in 1959 that laid the groundwork for his journeying career. South Africa\u2019s first Black jazz group, featuring trumpeter Hugh Masekela who would go on to become a star bandleader in his own right, the Jazz Epistles\u2019 first and only album Jazz Epistle Verse 1 is a sprightly document of the South African take on bebop. Although album opener Dollar\u2019s Moods is named for Ibrahim, it\u2019s the record\u2019s closing number Scullery Department that highlights his nascent skills. Heavy-swinging over a bluesy motif, Ibrahim\u2019s playing artfully skips through an opening polyrhythm before taking a solo that refigures Thelonious Monk\u2019s wonky melodic motifs into an earthy sense of groove that would go on to feature throughout his hundreds of recordings to come.<\/p>\n
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