Idris Ackamoor Explained

Idris Ackamoor
Birth Name:	Bruce Baker
Birth Date:	9 January 1951
Birth Place:	Chicago, Illinois, US
Origin:	Yellow Springs, Ohio, US
Genre:	Jazz, afrobeat
Current Member Of:	The Pyramids

Idris Ackamoor (born Bruce Baker, January 9, 1951)^{[1] [2]} is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, actor, tap dancer, producer, administrator, and director.^[3] He is also artistic director of the jazz ensemble The Pyramids.^[4]

The Pyramids

He founded the band The Pyramids in the early 1970s at Antioch College in Ohio as part of Cecil Taylor's Black Music Ensemble. The band toured Africa in the 1970s, adding musicians and new instruments, before settling in San Francisco in the US. Exploratory self-releases Lalibela (1973), King Of Kings (1974), and Birth / Speed / Merging (1976) had very limited runs, being sold only at concerts out of the trunks of their cars.^[5]

The band split up in 1977, but Ackamoor has reformed the Pyramids several times.^[6] Strut Records released new studio albums by the band in the 2010s: We Be All Africans and An Angel Fell.^{[7] [8]} Their 2023 album Afro Futuristic Dreams refers to the work of science fiction writers Octavia E. Butler and Samuel R. Delany.^{[9] [10]}

Discography

• Portrait (1998)
• Centurian (2000)
• Homage to Cuba (2004)
• An Angel Fell (2018)
• Shaman! (2020)
• Afro Futuristic Dreams (2023)

With Earl Cross, Rashied Al Akbar, and Muhammad Ali

• Ascent of the Nether Creatures (NoBusiness, 2014) recorded in 1980

External links

• Cultural Odyssey

Notes and References

1. Web site: Idris Ackamoor . AllMusic . October 24, 2023.
2. Web site: Idris Ackamoor: Biography . All About Jazz . October 24, 2023.
3. Web site: D/B 11+3 Interview with Idris Ackamoor from the Pyramids . Rosen . Michael. 11plus3.de . 19 January 2011 . 2020-03-04.
4. Web site: Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids: An Angel Fell review – stately and lyrical . . 13 May 2018 .
5. Web site: Review: Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids' 'Shaman!'. Postgenre.org. 14 August 2020.
6. http://www.thewire.co.uk/galleries/gallery-the-1970s-journey-of-idris-ackamoor-the-pyramids "Gallery: the 1970s journey of Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids"
7. News: Denselow . Robin . June 2, 2016 . Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids: We Be All Africans review – Afro-jazz-fusion veterans keep fire burning . . March 22, 2020.
8. News: Spencer . Neil . May 13, 2018 . Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids: An Angel Fell review – stately and lyrical . . March 22, 2020.
9. Web site: 2023-09-15 . Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids: Two-night residency . https://web.archive.org/web/20230914201104/https://www.westphillylocal.com/events/idris-ackamoor-the-pyramids-two-night-residency/ . 2023-09-14 . 2023-09-14 . West Philly Local.
10. Web site: May . Chris . 2023-09-08 . Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids: Afro Futuristic Dreams album review @ All About Jazz . https://web.archive.org/web/20230914200550/https://www.allaboutjazz.com/afro-futuristic-dreams-idris-ackamoor-and-the-pyramids-strut-records . 2023-09-14 . 2023-09-14 . All About Jazz . en.