HARD TO BELIEVE, the year was 1980 and I saw a band called Gray at a NYC punk club. During a break in the show, I decided to strike up a conversation with the band's keyboard player, a guy called Samo. I was curious about his strange black and yellow synthesizer, which was called a WASP. We soon became friends and started hanging out together. We both had a passion for purple microdots, and we dropped acid a few times. Once I smoked a joint with him later to learn it had been DUSTED! (Never again). Funny thing! I thought of him as a good musician, and I knew he was interested in art, but I never dreamed I was doing dope with someone who would soon become America's answer to Rembrandt and Van Gogh Nor did I dream that by 2020, he would have 3 paintings--each valued at $100+ million. Although he liked music, it was obvious that Samo's first love was art. His apartment was covered with paintings and drawings. The walls and the doors were his canvas. Being an engineer and a scientist, I was especially struck by a surrealist type painting he had made on his closet door. It was actually 4 paintings laid out like a comic strip. Furthermore, I was impressed with his use of chemical equations and formulas. I thought, "this cat is a lot deeper than I originally thought!" I was fascinated with his desire to combine science and art, and make it relevant to modern culture. At that time, I was a big fan of the "ghetto art" that was featured on the show "Good Times" and I could tell Samo was into that too. Well, I graduated in the summer of 1980. Upon graduation, I was offered an excellent engineering job in Chattanooga, Tennessee and I left NYC in the fall of 1980. Unfortunately, I never saw Samo again. As my career in engineering took off, I kinda lost interest in art and the art world. (Chattanooga was not the mecca of the art world either. lol) In fact, it wasn't until 2012, that I became interested in art again. It was then when I first learned of this great American artist called Jean-Michel Basquiat. I soon became interested in him and his art. I felt kind of ignorant for having never heard of him before. Although I had yet to discover than Jean-Michel was my friend Samo, a couple of Jean-Michel's paintings did make me think back to that drawing on Samo's closet door that so fascinated me. One of them was a painting that had chemical formulas on it. The other one was a painting about slavery that incorporated an image that was lifted from The Egyptian Book of The Dead. (I remember Samo and I having multiple discussions about our mutual interest in Egyptology.) One day, I pulled up Jean-Michel's biography on Wikipedia. I read that the first painting he ever sold was a painting called "Cadillac Moon" that he sold to Debbie Harry of Blondie for $200. I then read he was in a band called Gray and played a strange yellow and black synth. At that moment, I realized that this legendary artist known as Jean-Michel Basquiat was my friend Samo. I was suddenly hit by a freight-train of emotions. I was thrilled to learn that Samo had became a huge success both financially and artistically. However, I was saddened to learn that my friend was dead and I'd never see him again. I was especially crushed to learn that he lost his life at such an early age. However, I was happy and amazed that he accomplished so much in such a short amount of time. But then again, he had been working toward his goal since he was a young kid. I was upset at myself for not keeping in touch. Actually, I had tried to look him up a couple of times, but he was a guy that didn't stay in one place for too long. Furthermore, I had no roots in NYC. It was a place where I went to college for 2 years of my life. Most of the people I met there, probably moved on like me. Although that's the end of my SAMO story, for those of you who are not familiar with Jean-Michel, let me tell you about his paintings. Jean-Michel aka Samo was a GENIUS. Even though he left us at the ripe age of 28, he left us with several lifetimes of master pieces. Most of these were produced in the years 1981, 1982, 1983, and 1984., but his most prolific year was the year 1982. In 1982 alone, he produced 83 significant pieces of art. Although 15 or the 83, have never left the hands of private collectors or museums, the remaining 68 have been sold in various auctions over the past 25 years and every one of these paintings have been sold for a price that ranges between $1.4 million (for a painting sold in a 1999 auction) to $110.5 million (for a painting sold in a 2017 auction). (I'm sure the painting sold in 1999 for $1.4 million would probably cost $8 or $9 million today. Let me explain. First of all, there is the cost of inflation (just think about how much the price of a hamburger has increased over the past 24 years), Inflation alone, might justify a price jump of $1.4 million to $2.2 million. Secondly, the value of Jean-Michel's paintings has increased exponentially with time. Much of this is due to the fact that his fan base has continued to expand in the years after his death, yet he only produced 258 paintings before he died. By contrast, Salvador Dali lived to be 79 and produced 1,500 paintings before he died. When the supply doesn't keep up with the demand, the price will continue to increase. Of those 68 paintings Jean-Michel made in 1982, they have total sales exceeding $1.25 billion (over a 24 year span--since 1999). This would mean that the average painting cost $18.4 million (for that time span). (Remember, this is based on a span of 24 years so those purchased in a 2004 auction have probably went up considerably whereas one purchased in 2022, has went up very little). If you factor in inflation and the fact that the demand is greater than the supply, I bet the average price of a Samo painting sold today would be between $25 and $30 million/painting. In 1981, Jean-Michel produced 25 major pieces of art that have been sold at auctions for prices that range between $4.0 million and $37.1 million. In 1983, he produced 36 major pieces of art. Each of these have fetched prices that range from 1.6 million to 93.1 million. In 1984, he produced 28 major paintings, the most expensive fetching 45.3 million in 2018. From 1985 until his death, he produced 37 more paintings including one that sold for $37.2 million in 2021. Plus, he collaborated with Andy Warhol on 20 paintings. One of these, titled "Olympics", sold for $105 million in 2012. Based on all this, I can safely say that the entire Samo collection is worth over $2 billion. Not bad especially when you take into account that I used to drop acid with this guy!
When I first met Samo he was very young and homeless, Lower East Side Artist. I recall smoking joints, followed by a very deep conversations in my parked car and me saying to him, "You are sure to hit it big!" I whispered that into his ear when we hugged at his big show at the Whitney Biennial. At the start, It was obvious to everyone he had the magic. That dude really worked it hard, Constantly Creating Original Art. He was a very possessed, Artist Exploding... When we first met he was painting T-shirts, selling them on the street, then SNAP Whitney show and then a big loft in the heart of SoHo. The last time the two of us hung out togeather was in his BIG loft - LOTS OF ART EVERYWHERE and many Talked for hours about poetry-art-the sounds of letters. The last thing I said to Samo as I was leaving his loft was, "Dude, I lov U He smiled.
His work is worth millions now.He was a sweet,talented, and fragile young man. Wish we were still in a time where we believed we could just be creative and not get sold out.
@@stillweavin6507 I know in the end he wasn't doing well but I will always love his work and his spirit. He was a good painter; intelligent and funny...and reminded me of good friends I've known up in the northeast. The 80's was a heady and unreal time for the arts...It's weird now because it's so blinkin politically correct....Peace and have a good Friday.
Sick song, with sick lyrics! :D x333 Makes me wanna built a time machine, and go back at the time the old-school hip-hop fever was spreading every corner of the world. :)
Tom Zatar Kay Jean-Michel Basquiat Unreleased Photos This Art is From a Video Shoot I produced with Jean-Michel Basquiat - Adventures of Zatar Samo Same-Oh When I first met Samo he was very young and homeless, Lower East Side Artist. I recall smoking joints, followed by a very deep conversations in my parked car and me saying to him, "You are sure to hit it big!" I whispered that into his ear when we hugged at his big show at the Whitney Biennial. At the start, It was obvious to everyone he had the magic. That dude really worked it hard, Constantly Creating Original Art. He was a very possessed, Artist Exploding... When we first met he was painting T-shirts, selling them on the street, then SNAP Whitney show and then a big loft in the heart of SoHo. The last time the two of us hung out togeather was in his BIG loft - LOTS OF ART EVERYWHERE and many Talked for hours about poetry-art-the sounds of letters. The last thing I said to Samo as I was leaving his loft was, "Dude, I lov U He smiled.
Wow!! Thank you for sharing that!! I always imagined what it was like being around him, and knowing him. I am waiting and hoping that someone will write a book about his life. I did read “Widow Basquiat” it was good, but there aren’t many that speak to his personality. I’m fascinated, like most on how his mind worked to create the work he did and generally what kind of person he was. May Rest In Peace. Take Care All.
@@TomZatarKay Yes he did!! The fact that We’re acknowledging him, his Art work and contributions to humanity and society as a whole, is what makes his story touching. We the people get to experience his Pain, Joy, and Accomplishments 30 years later… STILL! How awesome is that? I know this is off topic but one of my favorite sitcoms is the Jeffersons. I watch it every Saturday on TV ONE. I’ve loved this show since I was a little girl. All those amazing actors are gone except Marla Gibbs. BUT THE WORK LIVES ON.. as long as you put in the time and energy..The legacy continues for generations to come. True artistry always lives on.
I listen to this in my home on broome and wonder...I look bak at the chainmaille im working on my sketch pad... to the left and the wine glass full of frozen mango... tiles with nails burnt in... up above at my wall with hair extensions dangling off chicken wire... where is he..
holman for sure, maybe with nicholas taylor as well, since it recalls "the old days". i assume JMB is already gone at this point, but they are sampling the original "gray" (instrumental) music, which was mostly improvisational, and includes JMB
Not counting works that are clearly by other artists, Warhol, Dubuffet, Clemente, Haring, etc. I counted at least four fake JMB paintings. Look for the ones that are too polished, too balanced and too un-cancelled. Superficial and predictable imitations.
If you are not familiar with him I suggest watching Jean-Michel Basquiat: Radiant Child a fantastic documentary. There is the film Basquiat directed by Julian Schnabel from 95 but the documentary is definitely better. And this is coming up later this month. www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20140501/upper-east-side/rare-basquiat-drawings-being-shown-at-upper-east-side-gallery
No it was somebody else who maybe worked w the band or something but it doesnt have to be basquiats vocals there were sooo many other people round there doing these tapes
Michael Holman is a friend of mine and old friend of Basquiat , its is voice your listening . Gray was a band formed by Jean-Michel , Nick and Michael .
+bauhaus suahuab "Downtown" they were involved with No Wave and it's weird sister genre I've heard called "Mutant Disco." See also Liquid Liquid and ESG
@2:46 it says SUN GOD/TRICKSTER and in egypt they have Ra. Ra (Re) was the primary name of the sun god of Ancient Egypt? it means this world is running by satan not illuminati or freemason or what.
HARD TO BELIEVE, the year was 1980 and I saw a band called Gray at a NYC punk club. During a break in the show, I decided to strike up a conversation with the band's keyboard player, a guy called Samo. I was curious about his strange black and yellow synthesizer, which was called a WASP. We soon became friends and started hanging out together. We both had a passion for purple microdots, and we dropped acid a few times. Once I smoked a joint with him later to learn it had been DUSTED! (Never again).
Funny thing! I thought of him as a good musician, and I knew he was interested in art, but I never dreamed I was doing dope with someone who would soon become America's answer to Rembrandt and Van Gogh Nor did I dream that by 2020, he would have 3 paintings--each valued at $100+ million.
Although he liked music, it was obvious that Samo's first love was art. His apartment was covered with paintings and drawings. The walls and the doors were his canvas. Being an engineer and a scientist, I was especially struck by a surrealist type painting he had made on his closet door. It was actually 4 paintings laid out like a comic strip. Furthermore, I was impressed with his use of chemical equations and formulas. I thought, "this cat is a lot deeper than I originally thought!" I was fascinated with his desire to combine science and art, and make it relevant to modern culture. At that time, I was a big fan of the "ghetto art" that was featured on the show "Good Times" and I could tell Samo was into that too.
Well, I graduated in the summer of 1980. Upon graduation, I was offered an excellent engineering job in Chattanooga, Tennessee and I left NYC in the fall of 1980. Unfortunately, I never saw Samo again. As my career in engineering took off, I kinda lost interest in art and the art world. (Chattanooga was not the mecca of the art world either. lol) In fact, it wasn't until 2012, that I became interested in art again. It was then when I first learned of this great American artist called Jean-Michel Basquiat. I soon became interested in him and his art. I felt kind of ignorant for having never heard of him before. Although I had yet to discover than Jean-Michel was my friend Samo, a couple of Jean-Michel's paintings did make me think back to that drawing on Samo's closet door that so fascinated me. One of them was a painting that had chemical formulas on it. The other one was a painting about slavery that incorporated an image that was lifted from The Egyptian Book of The Dead. (I remember Samo and I having multiple discussions about our mutual interest in Egyptology.)
One day, I pulled up Jean-Michel's biography on Wikipedia. I read that the first painting he ever sold was a painting called "Cadillac Moon" that he sold to Debbie Harry of Blondie for $200. I then read he was in a band called Gray and played a strange yellow and black synth. At that moment, I realized that this legendary artist known as Jean-Michel Basquiat was my friend Samo. I was suddenly hit by a freight-train of emotions. I was thrilled to learn that Samo had became a huge success both financially and artistically. However, I was saddened to learn that my friend was dead and I'd never see him again. I was especially crushed to learn that he lost his life at such an early age. However, I was happy and amazed that he accomplished so much in such a short amount of time. But then again, he had been working toward his goal since he was a young kid. I was upset at myself for not keeping in touch. Actually, I had tried to look him up a couple of times, but he was a guy that didn't stay in one place for too long. Furthermore, I had no roots in NYC. It was a place where I went to college for 2 years of my life. Most of the people I met there, probably moved on like me.
Although that's the end of my SAMO story, for those of you who are not familiar with Jean-Michel, let me tell you about his paintings. Jean-Michel aka Samo was a GENIUS. Even though he left us at the ripe age of 28, he left us with several lifetimes of master pieces. Most of these were produced in the years 1981, 1982, 1983, and 1984., but his most prolific year was the year 1982. In 1982 alone, he produced 83 significant pieces of art. Although 15 or the 83, have never left the hands of private collectors or museums, the remaining 68 have been sold in various auctions over the past 25 years and every one of these paintings have been sold for a price that ranges between $1.4 million (for a painting sold in a 1999 auction) to $110.5 million (for a painting sold in a 2017 auction). (I'm sure the painting sold in 1999 for $1.4 million would probably cost $8 or $9 million today. Let me explain. First of all, there is the cost of inflation (just think about how much the price of a hamburger has increased over the past 24 years), Inflation alone, might justify a price jump of $1.4 million to $2.2 million. Secondly, the value of Jean-Michel's paintings has increased exponentially with time. Much of this is due to the fact that his fan base has continued to expand in the years after his death, yet he only produced 258 paintings before he died. By contrast, Salvador Dali lived to be 79 and produced 1,500 paintings before he died. When the supply doesn't keep up with the demand, the price will continue to increase.
Of those 68 paintings Jean-Michel made in 1982, they have total sales exceeding $1.25 billion (over a 24 year span--since 1999). This would mean that the average painting cost $18.4 million (for that time span). (Remember, this is based on a span of 24 years so those purchased in a 2004 auction have probably went up considerably whereas one purchased in 2022, has went up very little). If you factor in inflation and the fact that the demand is greater than the supply, I bet the average price of a Samo painting sold today would be between $25 and $30 million/painting.
In 1981, Jean-Michel produced 25 major pieces of art that have been sold at auctions for prices that range between $4.0 million and $37.1 million. In 1983, he produced 36 major pieces of art. Each of these have fetched prices that range from 1.6 million to 93.1 million. In 1984, he produced 28 major paintings, the most expensive fetching 45.3 million in 2018. From 1985 until his death, he produced 37 more paintings including one that sold for $37.2 million in 2021. Plus, he collaborated with Andy Warhol on 20 paintings. One of these, titled "Olympics", sold for $105 million in 2012. Based on all this, I can safely say that the entire Samo collection is worth over $2 billion. Not bad especially when you take into account that I used to drop acid with this guy!
Wow
Hé made a lot more then 83 painting lol
And hé did not die as a 28 year old but 27
Wow that's such a beautiful story.
When I first met Samo he was very young and homeless, Lower East Side Artist. I recall smoking joints, followed by a very deep conversations in my parked car and me saying to him, "You are sure to hit it big!" I whispered that into his ear when we hugged at his big show at the Whitney Biennial. At the start, It was obvious to everyone he had the magic. That dude really worked it hard, Constantly Creating Original Art. He was a very possessed, Artist Exploding... When we first met he was painting T-shirts, selling them on the street, then SNAP Whitney show and then a big loft in the heart of SoHo. The last time the two of us hung out togeather was in his BIG loft - LOTS OF ART EVERYWHERE and many Talked for hours about poetry-art-the sounds of letters. The last thing I said to Samo as I was leaving his loft was, "Dude, I lov U He smiled.
People get romantic bout the past about it
R.I.P. Jean Michel Basquiat you gave us so much art in your short life
His work is worth millions now.He was a sweet,talented, and fragile young man.
Wish we were still in a time where we believed we could just be creative and not get sold out.
We gotta stop selling out so fast to the first $1 we see .
He was barely holding together, the use of drugs were how he coped.
@@stillweavin6507 I know in the end he wasn't doing well but I will always love his work and his spirit. He was a good painter; intelligent and funny...and reminded me of good friends I've known up in the northeast. The 80's was a heady and unreal time for the arts...It's weird now because it's so blinkin politically correct....Peace and have a good Friday.
"I recall a reahersal with the band called gray" . Goosebumps n nothing else to say.
Here is 2024... ohh man...Sooo beautiful
I feel puzzle has some Big influence fron samo
the song is so beautiful !
this my favorite song in all the world. I love it
Rest in paradise.
Man this is a sinister song, I like it though. Sounds a bit 90's
ahead of its time for sure
I may be completely wrong but this might be from the Gray remixes made in 2011
Beautiful video accompaniment. Thanks for this.
Sick song, with sick lyrics! :D x333
Makes me wanna built a time machine, and go back at the time the old-school hip-hop fever was spreading every corner of the world. :)
GOD DAM IM HAPPY THIS POPPED UP IN MY HEAD
I remember the 80's even though I wa only 5-6 yrs old in '88 lol.
Gosto muito da biografia desse artista plástico americano. Ele começou fazendo grafite, mas depois ficou famoso. Era um homem triste.
When I met Basquiat he died before I was born.
The world was too big and fast for him. He belonged in a better place.
God bless y'all
Cool and very interesting‼️
I saw a documentary of him back then a couple years ago. I heard a song from Rob Banks and now I wish I couldve taken tht movie serius
why dont you watch it again?
Haha, I just did yesterday
wait what song from rob banks also is it the Florida rob banks? lmao
leonardo echeverria yeah florida rob banks
Rob Banks- look like basquiat
Probably one of the best songs. Ever.
good song!
Here in December 2020
I just ate 3 giant hot dogs and married jack keroac
Me encanta !!!!!
R.I.P. Jean Michel Basquiat
are there any other released songs that aren't on the album?
Tom Zatar Kay
Jean-Michel Basquiat Unreleased Photos
This Art is From a Video Shoot I produced with Jean-Michel Basquiat - Adventures of Zatar Samo Same-Oh When I first met Samo he was very young and homeless, Lower East Side Artist. I recall smoking joints, followed by a very deep conversations in my parked car and me saying to him, "You are sure to hit it big!" I whispered that into his ear when we hugged at his big show at the Whitney Biennial. At the start, It was obvious to everyone he had the magic. That dude really worked it hard, Constantly Creating Original Art. He was a very possessed, Artist Exploding... When we first met he was painting T-shirts, selling them on the street, then SNAP Whitney show and then a big loft in the heart of SoHo. The last time the two of us hung out togeather was in his BIG loft - LOTS OF ART EVERYWHERE and many Talked for hours about poetry-art-the sounds of letters. The last thing I said to Samo as I was leaving his loft was, "Dude, I lov U He smiled.
Wow!! Thank you for sharing that!! I always imagined what it was like being around him, and knowing him. I am waiting and hoping that someone will write a book about his life. I did read “Widow Basquiat” it was good, but there aren’t many that speak to his personality. I’m fascinated, like most on how his mind worked to create the work he did and generally what kind of person he was. May Rest In Peace. Take Care All.
@@user-oy4ez6qs4f He did what he was supposed to do ... An artist of love and humanity...A Poet with a vision..
@@TomZatarKay Yes he did!! The fact that We’re acknowledging him, his Art work and contributions to humanity and society as a whole, is what makes his story touching. We the people get to experience his Pain, Joy, and Accomplishments 30 years later… STILL! How awesome is that? I know this is off topic but one of my favorite sitcoms is the Jeffersons. I watch it every Saturday on TV ONE. I’ve loved this show since I was a little girl. All those amazing actors are gone except Marla Gibbs. BUT THE WORK LIVES ON.. as long as you put in the time and energy..The legacy continues for generations to come. True artistry always lives on.
Was it true that Basquait was Gay-For-Pay for awhile being a member of the homeless community???
@@joebidens_touchyhands9477 No
LOVE
so nice
I wanna go back...
grew on me
I listen to this in my home on broome and wonder...I look bak at the chainmaille im working on my sketch pad... to the left and the wine glass full of frozen mango... tiles with nails burnt in... up above at my wall with hair extensions dangling off chicken wire... where is he..
what's the orchestral sample? it sounds so familiar
HOLY CRAP, IT’S DREAMCRUSHER!!! I love your music!
Panopticon!
at times i love this song and then at other times the doods voice gets me pissed
💜💜💜💜💜
🎉❤
*27✝*
Does anyone know if Basquiat, Holman or both wrote the lyrics to this song?
holman for sure, maybe with nicholas taylor as well, since it recalls "the old days".
i assume JMB is already gone at this point, but they are sampling the original "gray" (instrumental) music, which was mostly improvisational, and includes JMB
Nick Taylor & Michael Holman wrote lyrics
❤️✨
what song is this + where can I find it? Pleeeeease. Tnx
Are these his vocals? What all contributions does Jean have here?
He's the guy in the background on his knees suckn off the dj for a place to stay.
Love 😟
where on earth did you get this recording?? can't find any information on this.
I love The song
Not counting works that are clearly by other artists, Warhol, Dubuffet, Clemente, Haring, etc. I counted at least four fake JMB paintings. Look for the ones that are too polished, too balanced and too un-cancelled. Superficial and predictable imitations.
Sameness 🎤💕💎💎
Watch the movie basquiat
Where can I buy his work?
If you are not familiar with him I suggest watching Jean-Michel Basquiat: Radiant Child a fantastic documentary. There is the film Basquiat directed by Julian Schnabel from 95 but the documentary is definitely better. And this is coming up later this month. www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20140501/upper-east-side/rare-basquiat-drawings-being-shown-at-upper-east-side-gallery
LOL Bring your wallet!!! Basquiat's works cost a Pretty Penny ! I don't know your finances ; but you may want to check some of his prints first..
+Marietta Brown Christies
Basquiat's work is estimated in the millions today, and is only gonna get more and more expensive, soo yhh
In the sky or mc donalds
Go back.
damn
Personalísimo
I want to know what strings he sample
I don’t know for definite but it sounds like The Vertigo soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann
muitas obras mostradas aí não são dele...
Kokopelli's Angry & Frida's in love !!! Ali 1 pac Kausay 🦋\;*🫀.💙
reminds me of vada vada
what the?!? stfUU, sounds nothing like vada vada Newjack mf. ignorant
who it sing?
Que cancion mas bonica che
Where can I purchase this on vinyl or CD
Kiko, did you find the album? Not hard to find: look for it on Ubiquity Records facebook.com/watch/?v=429458161330047
is this really basquaits vocals ?
No it was somebody else who maybe worked w the band or something but it doesnt have to be basquiats vocals there were sooo many other people round there doing these tapes
it says his name on the album. did he play an instrument, i assumed he was singing.
he was on the synth and clarinet but I've never heard any gray songs with Clarinet yet
Michael Holman is a friend of mine and old friend of Basquiat , its is voice your listening .
Gray was a band formed by Jean-Michel , Nick and Michael .
👍
What kind of genre is Gray?
v
+bauhaus suahuab "Downtown" they were involved with No Wave and it's weird sister genre I've heard called "Mutant Disco." See also Liquid Liquid and ESG
+bauhaus suahuab just music
post punk
A genre called Noise Music?
Jean Michel Basquisat and another band member didn't even know how to play an instrument.
Does anybody know where to find this track?
its on youtube
Does anybody know how to reply to this comment
i've been looking for info on this track specifically. Not sure if this is a later Gray release with Micheal on vocals possibly?
Prada resort
Do you know which season?
Basquiat chante son désir de retourner à la vieille école.
good thing he didn't give up his day job :)
@2:46 it says SUN GOD/TRICKSTER and in egypt they have Ra. Ra (Re) was the primary name of the sun god of Ancient Egypt? it means this world is running by satan not illuminati or freemason or what.
It's most likely satire and it's making fun of you. Dont be a joke
Is that Basquiat singing?!
Tortured song from tortured soul.
This sucks. But Basquait was a genius of art.
Just about as mediocre as it gets.
Azagthoth what is mediocre
And I love it
Ahahaha envy people are everywhere I see...