★Impulse!
Universal Consciousness / Lord Of Lords
Two seminal early 70s Alice Coltrane albums on one CD. "It may seem unfair at first to mention John Coltrane -- Alice's beyond-famous husband -- when talking about her music, but listening to Alice Coltrane, you get the impression you can't mention her without talking about John. In an interview with Alice Coltrane -- originally from the September 1968 issue of Jazz and Pop magazine, but later reprinted in the liner notes for then 1998 Impulse! reissue of her first solo record, A Monastic Trio -…
Live In San Francisco
A great counterpart to some of Archie Shepp's studio albums for Impulse – a live date recorded in San Francisco, with a slightly freer, sharper edge! The sound is almost free at times, but always with that strong sense of focus that Archie brought to his brilliant work of the time – and the group's a well-honed ensemble who really understand each others motivations and inspirations – Roswell Rudd on trombone, Donald Garrett and Lewis Worrell on bass, and Beaver Harris on drums – all almost worki…
World Galaxy
''My Beloved Brothers and Sisters: I am overwhelmed with joy to see the entire youth of America gathered here in the name of the fine art of music. In fact, through the music, we can work wonders. Music is a celestial sound and it is the sound that controls the whole universe, not atomic vibrations. Sound energy, sound power, is much, much greater than any other power in this world. And, one thing I would very much wish you all to remember is that with sound, we can make—and at the same ti…
Astro Black
Awesome re-edition for this legendary 1973 spacey album, killer sound quality. One of a handful of albums Sun Ra released on Impulse in the early '70s, Astro-Black provides a comprehensive picture of where the Arkestra was around the time, drawing to the end of their ultra-free period and beginning to investigate some traditional jazz forms. The opening title track explores some of Ra's spacier side, sounding a bit like a calmer alternative to his well-known "Space Is the Place" with June Tyson'…
The Magic Of Ju-Ju
Gatefold 180 gram reissue of tenor saxophonist Archie Shepp's 1967 "tour de force." "...combining free jazz tenor with steady frenetic African drumming. Shepp's emotional and fiery tenor takes off immediately, gradually morphing with the five percussionists -- Beaver Harris, Norman Connor, Ed Blackwell, Frank Charles, and Dennis Charles -- who perform on instruments including rhythm logs and talking drums. Shepp never loses the initial energy, moving forward like a man possessed as the dr…
Jewels of Thought
No one navigates a stormy sea and subsequent repose quite like avant garde pilot Pharoah Sanders. We are invited here to join the personnel in transcendental affirmations of peace, reassured by the yodeling of Leon Thomas and happy, revelatory ... Full Descriptionpiano work of the one and only Lonnie Liston Smith. Chimes, African thumb piano, and the talking hourglass drum are just some of the other elements which make this album musically and culturally compelling. The compositional minimali…