Home / Authors / Archie Shepp

Archie Shepp Quotes

Musical Artist

Archie Shepp, born on May 24, 1937, is an accomplished American jazz saxophonist and composer. His musical career began in the 1950s, and he is known for his unique playing style and innovative contributions to jazz.

Filter quotes by topic

All People Audience Elements Jazz Rap Young Avant Garde Black Culture Existential

Famous Archie Shepp Quotes

“To some degree, yeah, because I have to play a certain number of originals that might be considered avant-garde material. I realize though, that only a few people in the audience actually know what that music is, or understand it.”

People Knows Play Might Certain Realizing Numbers Audience Materials Degrees Music Is Originals Yeah Avant Garde

Author:Archie Shepp

“Rap actually took root in the Negro community, and then in the Hispanic community, long before it impacted on the larger American community as a whole.”

Long Whole Community Roots Rap Hispanic

Author:Archie Shepp

“It was a particularly interesting and exciting time, and the European political and artistic establishment was turned on by the Civil Rights Movement and the artistic revolution that was becoming a part of jazz.”

Political Interesting Rights Movement Revolution Becoming Exciting Jazz Civil Rights Artistic Establishment Civil Rights Movement Civil Right Movement

Author:Archie Shepp

“In rap music, even though the element of poetry is very strong, so is the element of the drum, the implication of the dance. Without the beat, its commercial value would certainly be more tenuous.”

Values Strong Elements Beats Rap Poetry Is Very Strong Implications Rap Music

Author:Archie Shepp

“Black music has become a commercial commodity. Live performances are not so accessible as they were previously. It use to be possible to go to the bar on the corner and hear music. It was available for a fifteen cent beer.”

Use Black Performances Corners Available Bars Beer Cents Fifteen Commodity Live Performance Black Music Use To Be

Author:Archie Shepp

“A whole generation of young whites have involved themselves with traditional Negro music.”

Whole Young Generations Involved Traditional

Author:Archie Shepp

“Music and culture are intrinsically improvisational, existential.”

Culture Jazz Existential

Author:Archie Shepp

“Music is a language, and it's like a dictionary that has a lot of words, but if you limited yourself to a couple of definitions you would be illiterate. If one limits oneself to a peculiar definition like 'new music,' 'avant-garde,' or something like that, I think it's like cutting out half the dictionary.”

Ifs Thinking Would Be Language Half Cutting Couple Limits Music Is Oneself Definitions Peculiar Dictionary Illiterate Avant Garde New Music

Author:Archie Shepp

“Negro music and culture are intrinsically improvisational, existential. Nothing is sacred. After a decade, a musical idea, no matter how innovative, is threatened.”

Ideas Matter Culture Sacred Musical Decades Existentialism Existential Threatened Innovative

Author:Archie Shepp

“All the tenets that I had grown up with were thrown out the window.”

Window Thrown

Author:Archie Shepp

“I find that here in the States, audiences are generally less knowledgeable, from the cognitive point of view, though they are emotionally more receptive.”

States Views Audience Point Of View Cognitive Knowledgeable Receptive

Author:Archie Shepp

“I can't see any separation between my music and my life. I play pretty much race music: its about what happened to my father, to me, and what can happen to my kids.”

I Can Play Happens Kids Father Race Happened Separation

Author:Archie Shepp

“In America, for a brief time, people who followed John Coltrane were studied and considered important, but it didn't last long. The result is that the kind of music I played in the '60's is completely dismissed in this country as a wrong turn, a suicidal effort.”

People Kind Long Important Country Lasts America Turns Results Effort Music Jazz Suicidal Jazz Music Coltrane Wrong Turn

Author:Archie Shepp

“So, I was just a young guy, maybe with an idea, and Cecil Taylor, himself a rebel, would take a chance on a guy like me. It turned out to be a very symbiotic partnership. I learned a lot from him.”

Ideas Young Guy Chance Like Me Rebel Partnership Take A Chance Young Guys

Author:Archie Shepp

“And when I met Cecil Taylor it was a complete transformation of musical identities. All the tenets that I had grown up with were thrown out the window.”

Identity Mets Window Transformation Musical Thrown

Author:Archie Shepp

“So, rap has that quality, for youth anyway; it's a kind of blues element. It's physical, almost gymnastic. It speaks to you organically. Rap grows out of what young people really are today, not only black youth, but white - everybody.”

People Kind Today Young Speak Grows Black White Quality Youth Elements Rap Black Youth

Author:Archie Shepp

“Yes, the audience is so important to Negro music, especially the element of call and response.”

Important Audience Elements Response

Author:Archie Shepp

“You get a show where people are jumping up and dancing, but it's not a critical event in the sense of profound catharsis. Essentially it's celebratory.”

People Shows Events Dancing Profound Critical Jumping Catharsis

Author:Archie Shepp

About the Author

Born: May 24, 1937
Known for: Musical Artist
Quotes: 18

Books & Sources

Similar Authors

Art BlakeyBrowse related quotes
Pat MethenyBrowse related quotes
Sonny RollinsBrowse related quotes
Wynton MarsalisBrowse related quotes
Thelonious MonkBrowse related quotes
John ColtraneBrowse related quotes
Paul DesmondBrowse related quotes
Duke EllingtonBrowse related quotes
Clark TerryBrowse related quotes
Albert AylerBrowse related quotes