Malachi Richard Thompson (August 21, 1949 – July 16, 2006) was an American avant-garde jazz and freebop trumpeter and bandleader from Princeton, Kentucky. After hearing Count Basie at age 11, Thompson performed in the Chicago rhythm and blues scene before joining the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in 1968. Thompson performed with the Operation Breadbasket Big Band and graduated from Governors State University in 1974. In New York City, Thompson collaborated with Joe Henderson, Jackie McLean, and Archie Shepp. Thompson formed the Freebop band in 1978 and later founded Africa Brass in Washington, D.C.. In 1991, Thompson established the Sutherland Community Arts Initiative to preserve the Sutherland Theater. Discography as a leader includes the albums The Seventh Son (1980), Spirit (1989), and Lift Every Voice (1993). Thompson also performed in Lester Bowie’s Brass Fantasy ensemble. Thompson died in Chicago on July 16, 2006, following a diagnosis of T-cell lymphoma.
