Biography

Back in the early 70’s, drummer Mike Clark and bassist Paul Jackson were best friends, living in East Oakland, playing flatbed gigs at Black Panther rallies and generally raising hell. Bill Summers worked with Jackson at the local record store, and he jumped at an opportunity to open a show for Herbie Hancock in the Bay Area. 
 When Hancock took a new turn in the the towards funk, he handpicked a new band and sound for his record “Head Hunters.” The result was the first platinum selling Jazz album in history. The lineup on that first album: @Bennie Maupin, Paul Jackson, Harvey Mason, and Bill Summers. Mike Clark replaced Mason afterwards, and the lineup continued on several key Herbie Hancock releases such as “Thrust” and “Flood.” 
 Mike Clark and Bill Summers are two of a kind - they share a love for music that never dies. The pair has kept The Headhunters alive, releasing “Survival of the Fittest” in 1975 and “Straight From The Gate” in 1977 followed by “Return of the Headhunters” in 1998, “Evolution Revolution” in 2003, and “Platinum” in 2011. 
 11 years after their last release, The Headhunters’ new offering is “Speakers In The House,” featuring Summers, Clark, and NEA Jazz master Donald Harrison. The Headhunters spirit is alive and well on the album, which fuses the band’s African and New Orleans influences with their ever-present technical jazz-funk.