A reference point of the St Louis scene was the Human Arts Ensemble, founded by drummer Charles Bobo Shaw in 1971. They released Whisper of Dharma (october 1972) and Under the Sun (july 1973). The latter (with Smith, trumpeter Lester Bowie, alto saxophonists Marty Ehrlich and James Marshall, a reed player, a tuba player, a cellist, a bassist, a percussionist and a vocalist) contained two side-long improvisations, A Lover's Desire and Hazrat the Sufi, that contaminated free jazz with funk music.

After a long hiatus, they recorded Junk Trap (may 1978).