Black Merda

Black Merda formed as a funky rock ensemble whose sound drew heavily from Jimi Hendrix while blending fuzz-laden psychedelic blues-rock, acoustic folk interludes, and the soul sounds prevalent in the late 1960s. Guitarists Anthony Hawkins and Charles Hawkins, bassist VC Veasey (also known as Veesee L. Veasey), and drummer Tyrone Hite constituted the lineup. The musicians had previously performed together in the Soul Agents, where Veasey, Hite, and Anthony Hawkins supported Edwin Starr and Gene Chandler; after hearing Jimi Hendrix’s Are You Experienced?, they recruited Anthony’s younger brother Charles on second guitar and adopted the name Black Merda. Although the group attracted attention from figures such as Norman Whitfield and Eddie Kendricks within their Detroit circle, they secured a deal with Chess largely through the psychedelic soul artist Fugi (also called Ellington Jordan), on whose Chess release Mary, Don’t Take Me on No Bad Trip they also performed.

The band’s debut album conveyed a forward-looking quality, yet its members felt it failed to capture the intensity of their stage performances. They subsequently relocated to the West Coast to maintain their association with Fugi before returning to Chicago for a follow-up recording. Now operating under the shortened name Mer-Da, they issued the funk-oriented Long Burn the Fire in 1971, an album whose style echoed early Funkadelic. The group soon disbanded, though sustained collector curiosity over the ensuing thirty years prompted a reunion involving Veasey, both Hawkins brothers, and Fugi; Hite had passed away in 2004.