Freedom

American disco-funk band from Jackson (MS), formed in the late 1970s.

Core members are:
Larry Addison: Keyboards & Lead Vocals
Ray Smith: Bass, Percussion & Vocals
Robert Black: Trumpet & Percussion
David Thigpen: Saxes, Percussion & Vocals
Joe Short: Lead Vocals & Percussion (d. 1981)
Tyrone Armstrong: Guitars
Victor Mason: Drums & Percussion
Adolph Adams: Lead Vocals & Percussion.

Additional Members:
Charles Gilliam: Flute
Carl Marsh: Synthesizers
Chalmers Davis: Keyboards
Robert Scott: Moog Synthesizers
Richard Morgan: Trombone
Henry Rogers: Trumpet

Founded by Victor Mason, Caleb Armstrong and Ray Smith in 1976 while they were students at Jackson State. Signed up by Malaco Records, Freedom hit the radio stations and clubs in NYC with their second single "Get Up and Dance" from their debut album Farther Than Imagination in 1979. The track immediately found its way into the old school hip-hop community as being one of the key samples used by the DJ's like Grandmaster Flash, Darryl Calloway (DJ Darryl C) of The Crash Crew, just to name a few (the song was also covered by West Street Mob in 1981). "Dance Sing Along" was a minor hit from the same album. The group released three more albums into the 80's, however without success. They slowly dissolved in the mid-80's after the percussionist and falsetto vocal Joe Leslie Short was tragically killed in 1981.