Charlie Haden: "Song for Che"?

Fabrizio Sebastiani

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May 2, 1994, 10:42:28 AM5/2/94

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Some time ago, I seem to have read that Charlie Haden has written a
piece dedicated to Che Guevara, and once, quite corageously, performed
it in front of a fairly Anti-Cuban crowd. Anyone can confirm this
episode, or specify better what happened? Also, I would like to know in
which album this piece appears.

Fabrizio

Michael Mann

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May 2, 1994, 4:00:47 PM5/2/94

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In article <Cp6JI...@dcs.gla.ac.uk> fabr...@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk (Fabrizio Sebastiani) writes:

>Some time ago, I seem to have read that Charlie Haden has written a
>piece dedicated to Che Guevara, and once, quite corageously, performed
>it in front of a fairly Anti-Cuban crowd. Anyone can confirm this
>episode, or specify better what happened? Also, I would like to know in
>which album this piece appears.

Haden has recorded this several times. I don't know which one was first.
It appears on an Ornette Coleman album "Crisis" on Impulse, but I
don't think it is out on CD. At one spot on this recording Ornette
goes to the bridge too soon but quickly recovers. It is also I
believe on the first Liberation Music Orchestra album. There are other
recordings too, but I'm drawing a blank remembering them. I think it
might be on the album he did with the Spanish guitarist (who's name I
can't think of either). Maybe someone else can fill in the blanks.

Michael Mann

Jeff Beer

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May 2, 1994, 5:19:46 PM5/2/94

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I think what the original note inquires about is the story of when Charlie Haden
dedicated a tune to the "liberation movements in Mozambique" and other
African countries, while at a concert in Portugal. I think it was Song
For Che, but not sure. That would be the most likely tune for this
dedication, I think. At the time, Portugal was run by a
fascist government, and Mozambique was formally a Porguguese
colony, so it didn't go over with the authorities. It was on Ornette's
gig, and Ornette had given Haden permission. According to Litweiller's
biography, after their set, they knew something was up, and Ornette told
Charlie to "go out there and take that back", apparently as a joke. The
Portuguese dicks picked him up, and took him away to somewhere. Charlie was
scared, because he thought they were going to kill him. I think Ornette went to
the American embassy, or maybe Charlie was able to call them, but they
told him that "well, you shouldn't be saying that, because the Portuguese
govenerment is our 'friends'". But apparently they did something
because they let Charlie go, and but the Porguese government cancelled
the rest of the jazz festival.

Charlie told this story on NPR's Fresh Air. I hope I remembered it
correctly. And as I said, there is info about this in Ornette's bio by
Litweiller.

Jeff