Charles Gayle was born February 28, 1939 in Buffalo, New York and his childhood was influenced by religion, and his musical roots trace to black gospel music.  He began his musical education on piano then added tenor and alto saxophone. Much of his history is murky, he spent an apparent homeless period of about twenty years playing saxophone on street corners and subway platforms around New York City.

A multi-instrumentalist playing pianist, bass clarinetist and percussion, his music is spiritual, heavily inspired by the Old and New Testaments, explicitly dedicated several albums to God. Gayle credits…