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The Augusta News-Review - May 20,1976 -
Playin’
The Changes
By Stan Raines
AHMAD JAMAL:
The Prince of of Jazz Piano
Ahmad Jamal was bom in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on
July 2, 1930, and you can say
that from that day he was
destined to be a musician. As a
baby he would jump up and
down when he heard good
music on the radio. In early
conversations, his parents
would always tell their friends
that Ahmad (bom Fritz Jones)
was going to be a musician and
go places and that is exactly
what he did.
As a child, Ahmad Jamal
studied music with Mary
Caldwell Dawson, a noted
concert singer and teacher.
Later he studied with James
Miller who was also a noted
teacher and musician.
Ahmad attended
Westinghouse High School and
in his years there he made
quite a name for himself as a
Paine Workshop Views
Role Os Church In
Public Education
The Paine College program
entitled, “Equal Opportunity
in Public Education and the
Role of the Black Church” has
been funded by the National
Endowment for the
Humanities. The Project was
reviewed and approved by the
Paine College campus. William
Candley, instructor of
sociology at the school will
coordinate the program.
The four day conference to
be held May 19-22 at Paine
College will examine issues in
public education and will focus
on the factors associated with
making public education equal
for all citizens. The conference
will also examine the
educational opportunity as
well as the Black church's role
in influencing public
educational opportunity
especially in light of the public
responsibility to its citizens.
The purpose of the program
is to bring academic humanists
and the general public together
for dialogue on current issues
such as busing and race
relations among students,
parents, and teachers.
Thursday, May 20, Augusta
INFORMATION
LAUGHS,GAMES
SONGS,INTER
VIEWS,DANCE
TALK,HISTORY
COMEDY, STARS
FUN,IDEAS.
You always know what to expect when you
tune in to BLACK JOURNAL
SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY
MAY 23 MAY 23 MAY 23
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WCES WEBA WJBF ’
CHANNEL2O CHANNEL 14 CHANNEL 6
BLACK
Journal
Made possible
through a grant from gPEPSI]
Pepsi-Cola Company.
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pianist. It could be said that he
was one of the most popular
guys on the campus. Even then
he had ideas that were far
ahead of his time, ideas that
seemed strange to his
classmates, ideas that only he
could figure out.
Ahmad studied hard and was
determined that he was going
to be the finest musician
around. In what seemed like a
lifetime to him but seemed like
only a couple of months to his
friends he had grown into a
real fine pianist. It was at this
time and at Westinghouse High
that Ahmad made his
professional debut as a pianist.
Afterwards he toured with
the George Houston Orchestra.
Os course, Ahmad, as anyone,
liked this but he had bigger
things in mind. First he wanted
to form his own group. Not a
College Professor of History,
Dr. Robert Cannon will
deliver “The Black Church
and Educational Issues: Its
Meaning and Consequences for
Modem Man”.
Dr. Lloyd Yarbourgh, dean
of the Atlanta University
School of Social Work will
speak on “Equality and
Inequality: Structural
Dimensions of Education in
America” on Friday, May 21.
The Wednesday through Friday
session of the conference will
begin at 7 p.m. There will be
two sessions on Saturday, May
22, at 9 p.m. Dr. Creighton
Peden, calloway professor of
Philosophy at Augusta CoUege
will address the conference on
“Beyond Equality and
Inequality in Education”. The
final address, “The Legal
System and Education
Opportunity: A Moral
Question”, will be given by
Augusta Attorney Jack Ruffin.
Each speaker's address will
be followed by a question and
answer period and group
discussions.
The conference is free to the
general public.
large group but a small trio or
quartet. One of the thoughts
that ne had was that no matter
how large or small the group
was, he wanted to have a group
in which each musician could
be heard clearly. This also
meant that each musician had
to be a top-notch man on his
particular instrument.
Shortly after a hard search,
he formed a group known as
The Four Strings. In reality, he
didn't form this group. In fact,
he worked with the group as
pianist but, after he was
around for awhile the group
changed so much from his
influence that he was given
credit as its founder. He
worked with this group for two
years, 1949-50. He then toured
with a song and dance team
briefly while trying to find the
perfect personnel for his own
group, a group that he had long
dreamed of forming, a group
that would make the world of
music stop, sit back and listen.
In order to find a group such as
this it would take some very
hard to find musicians but
during this tour he was really
searching for these musicians
and was determined that he
would find them He did.
He formed a trio known as
the Three Strings. They played
at the Famous “Blue Note” in
Chicago from 1951-52. From
there they went to New York
City where they played at The
Embers. It was here that they
were heard by John
Hammonds of Downbeat
magazine who called them...
“unbelieveably subtle”.
Shortly thereafter, he joined
the Mohammedan faith and
changed his name from Fritz
Jones to Ahmad Jamal. He also
changed the name of the trio
to The Ahmad Jamal Trio. The
turning point for the trio was
its recording of an album at
The Pershing Hotel, the hit
tune “But Not For Me” won
national acclaim and overnight
the trio was in such demand
that it could not accept all of
its engagements. This group
was highly praised by Miles
Davis. (Miles usually keeps his
comments pertaining to
musicians to himself.)
Ahmad’s other big dream
was to open a night club of his
own. In 1960 he returned to
“The Windy City” to fulfill
this dream and in 1961 he
opened the doors of the very
beautiful Alhambra. Ahmad
Jamal's Alhambra was a very
unique club as it boasted a
completely imported interior,
continental cuisine and the
best of entertainment, Ahmad
Jamal’s Alhambra was in
reality a dream standing on
Chicago’s once elegant
Michigan Boulevard. This
edifice was more than a brick
and mortar symbol; it was a
symbol of success, a fairly tale
come true which was owned by
the Prince of piano, Ahmad
Jamal.
MAXWELL FURNITURE
DOWNTOWN
Clearence Sale
Reg. Price Sale Price
6 Pc
1199. 95 Living Room Group $549.95 I
Sofa, 2 Chairs, 2 End Tables, Coffee Table
229. 95 Queen Mattress $138.88
And Box Spring Sets Only
499- 95 $299.95
Group - Sofa, Loveseat And Chair
149.95 Single Bed $99.95
Maple Only - Matress And Boxspring
Full Large Group Os Living Room l-l 3lf I
PriPP Tables, Sofa Tables, p ■
rllLc End and Cofee Tables rilCc
933 Broad Street
DOWNTOWN AUGUSTA
WIF CP IS
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MWWw InRWI M| w > 1
From left to right - Mrs. Mattie Braxton, George Hicks, Debra Copeland, Mr. B.J. White 11, Bobbie Watts, Tommy Newberry, and Dr.
Justine Washington.
Dr. Justine Washington,
professor of education and
chairperson of the Division of
Tau-ette Tea
wBliIWMil
f? . - 11
4 v * * * 1 X
A. Bk
From left to right - Aquetta Sullivan, Sonya Duggans, Ms. Missouri B. Banks,
Debra Salley, Vanessa Cooper and Honoree, Mrs. Lucy O. Williams, Basileus.
Photo by Frank Bowman
The Tau-ettes of Tau
Gamma Delta Sorority, Inc. of
Kappa Chapter of Augusta,
held a Tau-ette Tea on
Saturday, May 15, at the
Pilgrim Civic Center.
The honoree of the program
was Mrs. Lucy O. Williams,
basileus of the sorority.
Persons appearing on the
program are as follows: guest
speaker, Mrs. Ollie Lee;
introduction of speaker, Mrs.
Connie Duggans. All Tau-ettes
who attended" the program
received certificates. Mrs.
Williams was awarded a
certificate. Ms. Missouri B.
Banks, advisor of the Tau-ettes,
was a recipient of an award for
Gomillion Chapter Os NEA Elects Officers
Teacher Education at Paine
College presented the out-going
members of the Charles G.
outstanding services rendered.
Miss Debra Salley was
crowned as Miss Tau-ette for
1976-77. First runner-up was
Sonya Duggans, second
runner-up was Aquentta
Sullivan and forth runner-up,
Vanessa Cooper, president of
the Tau-ettes Club. Advisers,
Ms. Missouri B. Banks, Mrs.
Booker Appointed
John Booker Hl has been
appointed equal opportunity
officer at the CSRA Economic
Opportunity Authority,
director Lois J. Bums
announced this week.
Booker, a native Augustan,
advert isinlg
Pays ! lAI
Perform a
death~
defying act.
Stop smoking.
Georgia Heart Association J
Gomillian Chapter of the
Student Georgia and National
Education Association with
Ethel Jenkins, Mrs. Lucy 0.
Williams and Miss Rozel
Turner.
The committee would like
to express their wholeheartly
appreciation to all sorors,
parents, friends, and
participants that attended the
program.
is married to the former Miss
Betty J. Johnson. He attended
Lucy C. Laney High School as
well as Paine College before
receiving his L.L.B. degree in
1974, from North Carolina
Central University Law School
in Durham, N.C.
Members Os Southwest Georgia
Project Pledged To Stand Firm
Just south of Jimmy Carter’s
home county of Sumter a
group of Blacks is also raising
peanuts - but they, according
to Congressman Andrew
Young, “expect to build a new
society in the South based on
justice and humanitarian
concerns.”
They are settled on 6,000
acres in Lee County, which is
in the heart of Southwest
Georgia’s “badlands” for
Blacks, and they call their
I 1 TOM and f , B
5 JILL Lover s Girl M
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(BOX OFFICE OPEN 12:45 PM CONTINUOUS SHOWS(
awards and certificates as the
newly elected officers took
their positions.
Those officers receiving
certificates for outstanding
service were: George Hicks,
president; Tommy Newberry,
vice-president; Debra
Copeland, secretary; Ann
Graham, treasurer; Henry
Armstrong, reporter and
Bobbie Watts, historian.
The newly elected officers
AC Alumni Meet
May 29
Two members of the Class
of 1926 at the old Junior
College of Augusta have
received special invitations to
attend the annual meeting May
29 of the Augusta Alumni
Association.
On the alumni roster for the
Class are William M. Sells of
North Augusta and William
Heffernan of Augusta.
Life at the Junior College a
half-century ago will be
brought to life at the annual
meeting as special recognition
is given to those celebrating the
College’s golden anniversary.
JAC president was George P.
Butler, “Whose sincere efforts
in building a greater Richmond
County educational system are
largerly responsible for the
high standards of the Academy
and the existence of the Junior
College of Augusta,” wrote the
editors of the “First Rainbow”,
the combined yearbook of the
Academy of Richmond County
and the Junior College - when
both schools were housed in
the same facility.
The faculty included such
well-known educators as James
Lister Skinner, who was to be
the next president; Julia A.
Flisch, June N. Ramstoru,
Charles Guy Cordle, George M.
Dasher, John M. Ellis, John E.»
Eubanks, Eric West Hardy,
settlement New Communities,
Inc. As they dream of the just
society they plant, aside from
peanuts, com, sugar cane,
soybeans, strawberries, grapes,
watermelons, and assorted
vegetables, they also herd 250
cows, tend pigs, and fish in the
bountiful streams and ponds
on their cooperative farm.
Their venture has enlisted
the support of Coretta Scott
King, the Rev. Martin Luther
King Sr., Julian Bond, Jessee
are: Tommy Newberry,
president; Wilbert Wilcher,
vice-president; Bobbie Watts,
secretary; Marsha Tucker,
assistant secretary; Debra
Copeland, treasurer; and Ann
Graham, reporter. Others
present at the meeting were
B.J. White, 11, instructor of
Education at Paine College and
faculty adviser to the
organization and Mrs. Mattie
Braxton, founder of the
chapter.
another future president;
Anton Paul Markert, another
president; Henry Osgood Read,
George Milton Scott, Chester
Sutton, and Joseph Leconte
Talley to name a few.
Other reunions scheduled
include the Classes of 1931,
1936, 1941, 1946, 1951,
celebrating its 25th
anniversary; 1956, 1961, 1966,
and 1971. Special invitations
have been extended to
members of the classes.
A highlight of the annual
meeting will be the recognition
of this year’s Distinguished
Alumna/Alumnus, a former
student chosen on the basis of
loyality and service to the
College, character and personal
life, professional achievement,
and services on a local, state, or
national level. Last year, the
award was won by Paul B.
Bailey of Augusta.
The Association will also
elect and install a new slate of
officers and name new
Executive Board members.
Jackson, Ella Baker, as well as
Congressman Young, among
others.
It has also met with the]
hostility of white racists in
Southwest Georgia. In one
instance, this hostility
attracted national attention. A
14 year old girl, Dorothy
Young, was arrested in her
school on charges of having
told a white boy, “Kiss my
Sl.e was sentenced to
seven years in prison by the
local court - and served three
months in jail before being
released on appeal.
Other incidents have not
received national publicity.
The home of the Rev. Charles
Sherrod, vice president and
guiding spirit of New
Communities, was burned to
the ground. So was the home
of the Bass family. Rev.
Sherrod’s father-in-law, Josiah
Miller, was shot and killed by a
white farmer. A 12 year old
boy was beaten severely when
he insisted on getting his
correct change at a local
market.
Despite these and other
instances of terror and
harassment, the settlers are
See “PROJECT”
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