Mayfield Memorial Is, Like Him, Upbeat

The revolution may not have been televised, but the soundtrack of the 1960s and 1970s went something like this:

“People Get Ready . . . Keep on Pushin’ . . . It’s Alright . . . Superfly!”

That, at least, is how more than 300 musicians and parishioners heard it when they gathered Tuesday at the First AME Church in South Los Angeles to pay homage to pop star Curtis Mayfield, the man whose soulful lyrics and silky voice inspired millions of fans.

Mayfield, who died in December at age 57, urged anyone within earshot to pursue self-assertion and social justice. His call resonated with several Grammy Award-winning musicians who came Tuesday to sing his songs in tribute.

Stevie Wonder told how Mayfield’s music inspired him as a boy to pursue the complex arrangements that mark his own music. Then he launched into a rendition of “Gypsy Woman,” an early hit by Mayfield when he was with the Impressions in the 1960s.

“I can say without question that as significant as, yes, the Grammys are, this opportunity is even more [rewarding],” Wonder said.

Eric Clapton echoed that sentiment before he sang Mayfield’s “Keep on Pushin’,” along with the Impressions, who still perform with a mix of new and original members.

Lauryn Hill, who sang “The Makings of You,” said Mayfield “had a huge impact on the way I grew up, on my perception of the world.”

With his gospel style and occasional lyrical references to God, Mayfield was a mix of singing minister and the funk guru of his “Superfly” film soundtrack.

The crowd clapped and swayed to Mayfield’s music, performed against the backdrop of a church mural depicting the cultural pride, slave history and social triumphs of African Americans.

“He touched me!” the Rev. Steven Johnson shouted to the crowd. “He was a gentle genius. He walked through the social travails of inequality and met them with indignation and strength.”

Mayfield’s eulogy, delivered by longtime friend and manager Marv Heiman, revealed a boy enamored of the gospel music of his grandmother’s traveling church in Illinois.

While growing up in Chicago during the 1940s, Mayfield experienced racism and discrimination, but chose to emphasize life’s positive side through his music, Heiman said. He mastered the guitar as a teenager, forging an R&B; style that was to influence many other players.

Even after a freak 1990 stage accident that left Mayfield a quadriplegic, Heiman said, the singer remained an optimist. Mayfield recorded his last album, “New World Order,” while lying on his back.

Uplifting songs like “You’re a Winner” inspired Jaii Grayson of West Covina to find a new focus after dropping out of high school during the 1960s.

“He planted that kernel in my head and I told myself: ‘Maybe I can chew on this kernel for a while and be a winner,’ ” said Grayson, a civil engineer.

Keana Hall, 28, said she uses Mayfield songs like “Keep on Pushin” as a source of strength while raising her 11-month-old son Maharri-Ra alone.

Depressed over his own paralysis when he met Mayfield in Chicago during the early 1990s, Bob Dillard said the singer gave him strength.

“We just talked,” the 56-year-old Dillard said while pushing his wheelchair after the memorial.

“Before long,” Dillard added, “he had me feeling good. He was just an inspiration, with or without his music.”