Biography
-
Born
16 August 1944 (age 80)
Dr. Samuel L. Waymon, an award-winning composer, musician, singer, pianist, arranger/producer, has composed Broadway and off-Broadway music for the late Joe Papp, for documentary film “Duke Ellington Boulevard” and was a lead actor in America’s first black soap opera entitled “Personal Problems.” He has also shared the concert stage with Miles Davis, Odetta, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, Quincy Jones, Donny Hathaway, Phyllis Hyman, and Max Roach.
Sam was the manager, confidante, organist and best friend to his sister, Nina Simone. Touring the world together they played for the King of Morocco and the President of France, Francois Mitterrand.
Sam also composed a song for the Academy Award-winning film “Philadelphia” directed by Jonathan Demme that starred Denzel Washington and Tom Hanks. Likewise, his talents include the music to the movie “Ganja & Hess” directed and written by Bill Gunn of which Sam also had a starring role. This film won the Cannes Film Festival Award as one of the Ten Best Films of the Decade in 1973 and is now in the Museum of Modern Art’s Library Archives.
Sam has been a civil rights activist and marched in Philadelphia, Mississippi and Alabama. He sang at Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral, became friends with Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz and with his sister Nina, marched, performed and protested at many anti-discrimination events across America.
Recently his composition “You’ve Got to Learn” can be heard in Spike Lee’s new film “Da Sweet Blood of Jesus” (a remake of Ganja & Hess), a current work in progress of Sam’s memoir that he is writing with Bill Batson, local Nyack author, and as co-producer on the recent documentary “The Amazing Nina Simone” directed by Jeff Lieberman. Additionally, Sam has written the score to the silent film “Hell-Bound Train” (Library of Congress) written/produced in 1932 now remastered and out on DVD/Blu-ray and various media outlets. Furthermore, he has performed tribute concerts to his sister Nina entitled “A Brother’s Love” produced by his business partner and producer, Dylan Kelehan.
Currently Sam is writing the score to a new feature Documentary Film “Secrets of the Hallow” (an original film by Alice and Alicia Crow scheduled for a 2019 National Release).
Also in the works is Sam’s first new album in 7 years - as yet to be titled. Scheduled for a 2019 world release.
He is also working on his memoir.
https://soundcloud.com/sam-waymon
www.facebook.com/SamWaymonFanClub
www.twitter.com/sam_waymon
www.instagram.com/samwaymon
www.youtube.com/channel/UCc6UfyalE6RvIt507l9DLfg
For Booking/Inquiries: samwaymon@hotmail.com
Artist descriptions on Last.fm are editable by everyone. Feel free to contribute!
All user-contributed text on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
