Talk:Taj Mahal (musician)

Signatures
Please sign all Talk page entries using four tildes. David Spector (talk) 21:43, 14 June 2013 (UTC)

Punching up needed
I think all the information that I changed should be in the history. Seemed like ole Taj's page could use some punching up. :)

Born 1940 or 1942?
What's about the birth year? It has been flipping between 1940 and 1942 several times. Is there a motivation, or will it flip again? --LA2 10:44, 1 May 2006 (UTC)

Photos
Anyone mind helping me edit in the photo of him I uploaded? the filename is tajmahalblues.jpg When I try inserting it it looks pretty bad, considering I'm a novice, have at it folks.

I'm wondering why 3 of the photos show him playing right handed and 1 of them is left handed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 151.196.179.182 (talk) 01:23, 21 January 2010 (UTC)

There aren't any photos!! I came on here (to Talk: ) to try to find out why not. Anyone got any ideas? Nick Barnett (talk) 11:19, 16 October 2016 (UTC)

Stones?
"Cooder and Taj are most remembered, however, for their performance in 1968 on The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus." I would argue that Taj is most remembered for his own recordings. Surely, most people are unaware of his former connection to the Rolling Stones, and Cooder is much better known for the film and CD "Buena Vista Social Club." For both of them, the Stones connection is an important part of their history, but it was almost forty years ago, and is pretty obscure to the general public.
 * Absolutely. I've known about Taj since I was wee lad, but I've never heard of his Rock and Roll Circus connection. Jake b 03:11, 8 December 2006 (UTC)
 * First of all, I own the Rolling Stone Rock and Roll Circus on DVD, and Taj is not even that good in it. That event may have brought him into the spotlight (I'm not saying it did, I'm not sure), but it was also a near-debut performance for Jethro Tull.  Does anyone want to say that Jethro Tull is now "most remembered for their performance on the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus"?  I thought not.  Also, Ry Cooder did *not* play that event -- at least, he isn't on the DVD. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 134.139.24.117 (talk) 05:54, 12 December 2006 (UTC).

External link...
What's up with the cheesy fake external link? Should be removed I think. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 134.139.24.117 (talk) 05:52, 12 December 2006 (UTC).

Oops--I take it back. Cheesy though it may be, it looks like that webpage is actually official.

St. Kitts Woman
"His grandfather married a St. Kitts woman." That may be, and if true is likely the influence for the song Clara, but this statement unqualified seems pointless.

I would edit this line were I certain it was true, and the inspiration for the song in question.

Photo Flipped?
"Taj Mahal at the 1997 North Sea Jazz Festival" is most surely flipped. Taj Mahal plays right-handed. Rainbow-five (talk) 20:50, 25 March 2009 (UTC)

Personal Life
There isn't much mention of his personal life, such as children,

This is a link to one of his childrens bands. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.171.197.146 (talk) 13:39, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Strangely, his official biography also says nothing about personal relationships or children. David Spector (talk) 21:40, 14 June 2013 (UTC)


 * A bit player I knew in the early 1970s claimed to be Taj Mahal's brother-in-law. He was always scheming ways to get Taj to loan him money. I can't say that I believed him without reservation, but it's possible that the singer was married to this man's sister, at least in the early 1970s. I regret that I can't remember the actor's name. This does nothing to progress the article as it's only an unsubstantiated hint. Taj seems to keep his private life quiet. Thank you, Wordreader (talk) 05:26, 26 July 2015 (UTC)

Linkage to Sounder (film) Wikipedia page
There is a Wikipedia page for the film Sounder. Taj Mahal appeared in the film and performed the soundtrack. Mahal is mentioned on that page, but there is no linkage to his Wiki page, and there should be one. There should also be a mention there of the soundtrack album, released on the Columbia Masterworks label in 1972 (S 31944). MichaelZ302 (talk) 04:01, 31 August 2014 (UTC) MichaelZ302

Person from Topanga California?
The categories at the foot of the page include "People from Topanga California". He was born in NY, this wiki page does not mention Topanga, he lived in for a period in Santa Monica, but to say he was from Topanga or anywhere else in Calif is surely inaccurate — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.219.58.241 (talk) 12:19, 2 October 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/20090211101012/http://blues.org:80/bluesmusicawards/pastyears.php4?YearId=29 to http://www.blues.org/bluesmusicawards/pastyears.php4?YearId=29

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Edit needed? (Ry Cooder)
In re Career (". . . an album was never released . . ."):

album at cduniverse : Rising Sons Featuring Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder CD http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=7613750

album at discogs.com: Rising Sons (2) Featuring Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder‎– Rising Sons Featuring Taj Mahal And Ry Cooder https://www.discogs.com/Rising-Sons-2-Featuring-Taj-Mahal-and-Ry-Cooder-Rising-Sons-Featuring-Taj-Mahal-And-Ry-Cooder/master/305002

-- Jo3sampl (talk) 21:52, 3 October 2016 (UTC)

Birth name and father's name
The book Blues: A Regional Experience by Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc - which is usually a reliable source, though not infallible - gives his birth name as Henry St. Claire Fredericks III, and his father's name as Henry St. Claire Fredericks, Jr. ( [sic] throughout - that is, "St." not "Saint", "Claire" not "Clair", and "III" not "Jr.") I'm sure that other editors have read more about this artist than I have, and these are fairly minor points, but I wonder whether the current details should be amended. Eagle and LeBlanc also favor the May 17, 1942 birth date over 1940. Ghmyrtle (talk) 10:23, 27 October 2016 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20120308045918/http://brudda.com/kilohana/taj.html to http://brudda.com/kilohana/taj.html

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External links modified
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WP:BLPNAME and recent restorations
and - you have both restored material to this article that does not seem to align with our policy on privacy of names for non-notable individuals. Just because the material was removed by someone who has a COI, or has otherwise behaved disruptively does not automatically mean that the removal was wrong. In this case we have various children listed who do not have their own article (and therefore could be presumed to be non-notable), and information about a marriage sourced to "distractify.com", which appears to be some sort of celebrity gossip publication - hardly a reliable source for BLP matters. Please be careful when reverting edits, particularly on BLPs - check the underlying content on the merits.

That said, - I have temporarily partially blocked you from editing the article as you evidently have a conflict of interest and appear to be displaying ownership tendencies (e.g. your edit summary "I am the personal business manager for Mr. Mahal. He would prefer [...]"). Individuals do not have special control over their Wikipedia articles or what they say about them - we detail what reliable, independent sources say about article subjects. While I agree in this case that the removed material is unlikely to be suitable for a BLP, you are effectively "right for the wrong reasons" in this case. I would strongly recommend that you disclose your COI as detailed here, and submit edit requests for any changes you wish to see made.

Thanks, firefly  ( t · c ) 15:11, 1 August 2022 (UTC)
 * , understood. I got a notification on my talk page as well detailing the guidance and policies surrounding this, and I'll be sure to keep this in mind moving forward. I appreciate your laying out and making it easier to understand. Thanks again! SPF121188  (talk this way) (contribs) 15:14, 1 August 2022 (UTC)
 * TIL. Thanks for the education @Firefly. I hadn't been aware that we typically don't include the children's name in those circumstances and that's something I'll keep in mind moving forward. Every day I'm learning more and more, but it always feels like there's still so much more to learn. Hey man im josh (talk) 15:32, 1 August 2022 (UTC)
 * Thanks both. BLPNAME is one of those times where the presumption is in favour of not including something even if otherwise reliable sources (e.g. reputable news media) mention it once or twice, if omitting it doesn't significantly lessen the reader's understanding. Here I don't think that threshold is met, as the subject here is a musician - knowing the names of his otherwise non-notable children doesn't add anything for our readers. As for learning things, you always will. I've been here for a long while and still learn something new every day :) firefly  ( t · c ) 15:47, 1 August 2022 (UTC)
 * A non-notable spouse can be included, if sourced (and in the infobox per the template instructions). On the other hand the non-notable children and relatives should be removed. At least one child with a wiki article has no sourcing here or at the target article, that the two are relatives.-- ☾Loriendrew☽  ☏(ring-ring)  16:30, 1 August 2022 (UTC)