Residents of the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center’s community share their memories in the passing of an inspired bassist, who made friends through the sound of music.
Leonard “Funky Lynn” Walker played the bass with various incarcerated people at musical events within San Quentin.
His primary house band was named “New Syndicate Funk,” where he wooed crowds with his bass-generated funk.
To San Quentin resident and fellow musician Lee “Jazz” Jasper, there are people who believe music is something that happens when you turn on a radio, but there are those in this world whom God has elected to reveal Himself through.
Jasper said that people are charged with separating their own souls from their mind and body in the form of music.
“These most beautiful of creations must be vulnerable in this way if they are to accomplish that for which they were sent,” said Jasper. “Funky Lynn was one of those beautiful creations. We will remember the sound and love that came from [his] heart and who sent [him].”
Ammea Shinh said, he remembered Funky Lynn playing his heart out. Lynn listened to Walker’s thunder funk and slap techniques, and whenever he heard the bassist’s sound, it reminded him of the revered Hall of Fame bassist Stanley Clark.
“I recognized his talent and his feel for funk, and gospel, which he applied generously to every song he played,” said Shinh. “We became acquaintances creating original songs together, including [playing] concert platforms such as Music Cambia and church services.”
Shinh added that whenever he heard the name Funky Lynn, he remembered his musical passion playing his signature sound, becoming one with the bass.
Vocalist Paul Comauex added that he and Walker knew each other since the 1980s, where they played in a band together at the Q.
“He [Funky Lynn] was truly a good friend,” Comauex said. “I am going to truly miss his laughter and joy, his smile, and the way he always made other people smile in his own special way.”
Gordon “Flash” Kimbrough, a percussionist for San Quentin’s Greater Good band, said he knew Funky Lynn for over 14 years. He stated that his experience with the bassist was connective and positive. Kimbrough had the pleasure of playing with him at San Quentin and Solano State Prisons.
Kimbrough recalls his last encounter with Walker was sharing a meal.
“I cooked him one of my famous double-shelled burritos with extra cheese. I will never forget how he held it like a baby with a look of sheer delight,” Kimbrough said. “Funky Lynn will be missed, and I know that he is sharing his gift of the bass with the angels up above.”
Walker was a beacon of light to people around the prison. He had multiple spiritual encounters, making him well respected throughout San Quentin.
Michael Adams, a vocalist with the prison’s Christian choir stated that Funky Lynn played the bass for the choir, stating that Walker’s musical direction always “kept them on time.”
“He loved God, and was not ashamed of who he was. He brought it all to the Lord,” Adams said. “He was as real as they come, rest in peace, your bass live[s] on.”
According to Muslim Chaplain Imam Muhammad Fasih, Funky Lynn was both a brother and an elder. Whenever the Spiritual Leader called upon Walker, he shed light wherever it was needed.
The San Quentin Muslim community paid their respect to him by performing a Janazah, an Islamic funeral where parishioners stand in rows and the prayer leader recites a portion of the Holy Qur’an.
“His [Walker’s] presence is already missed, and he will always be remembered as a pillar in our community,” Fasih said.
