The Dissensus Poorly Titled Spiritual Jazz Thread

Phaedo

Well-known member

is this kind of thing just described as jazz, or is there some kind of definition/sub genre? would love to find more stuff similar but dont know where to start! any recommendations would be lovely

credit to ben ufo for playing it on rinse btw
 
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Client Eastwood

Well-known member
Wow. Stuff like this is playing on Rinse. Will have to check Ben's show. Have a listen to Alice Coltrane's albums Journey Into Satchidananda or Ptah The El Daoud. Both have have Pharaoh Sanders on them. Mindblowing music. Then if you like that check out Pharaoh Sanders' Karma, it's a bit harder than his work with Alice Coltrane, but I would put it on par with A Love Supreme.
 

blacktulip

Pregnant with mandrakes
It's really hard to recommend more albums like that, because I've found the "soul jazz" kind of things that rip Pharaoh's sound are nowhere near as successful. My favourite of his is Black Unity. There's nothing else like it. A friend of mine's favourite is Summun Bukmun Umyun - Deaf Dumb Blind, which is also really special. All Alice Coltrane records are your next logical step, as already stated. Then loads of John Coltrane - it's hard to go wrong there and very much a journey of discovery you should make for yourself. Loads of purists would disagree but I think the records that Alice tampered with like Cosmic Music and Infinity might be a good starting point for you (some crossover in material with her records like A Monastic Trio there IIRC).

And for records that are just as listenable, unique, and spiritualish in their own right (which generally, but not universally, means loads of bells and incense a-burning), I would recommend:

Philip Cohran And The Artistic Heritage Ensemble - On The Beach
Marion Brown - Afternoon of a Georgia Faun
Dave Holland Quartet - Conference of the Birds
Sun Ra - Languidity (there are loads of his records that would qualify - just picked this one for the groove)
Sam Rivers - Streams
Julian Priester - Love, Love
Julius Hemphill - Dogon A.D.
Bennie Maupin - The Jewel In The Lotus

This is a really mixed bag of styles but no single one of these will let you down.
 

matt b

Indexing all opinion
Not mentioned yet, but also amazing:

Joe Henderson & Alice Coltrane- The Elements

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Trillhouse

Well-known member
That period Pharoah Sanders is what I'd class as 'spiritual jazz' (basically modal jazz with a modern flavor) a sound from the John Coltrane school, who's band Sanders played tenor sax in.
It runs parallel with the 'free jazz' movement, so the music can be avant-garde, improvisational and pretty out there. Coltrane, Sanders, Albert Ayler & Ornette Coleman being the key figures in free jazz.
But spiritual jazz isn't really a style in the same way as free jazz, its more of an infusion of late 60s hippie elements like effects of psychedelic drugs and spiritual awakenings.

A very short list of musicians who also worked with Coltrane during this period who's solo work is work checking out - McCoy Tyner, Archie Shepp, Freddie Hubbard.

A short list of musicians who worked with Sanders during this period who's solo work is work checking out - Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry, Lonnie Liston Smith, Stanley Clarke


There are a fair few comps about to give you a good taster of this sound if you don't want to wade straight into full lps or catalogs of the various artists.

Oh, and you might want to check out the Strata-East label, it's the pretty seminal spiritual jazz label. Or other small labels like Black Jazz or Tribe. Maybe try; Doug and Jean Carn on Black Jazz, Harold McKinney on Tribe & Descendants of Mike and Phoebe on Strata East.

Further random listening;
Idris Muhammad - 'peace and Rhythm'
Leon Thomas - 'Spirits Known and Unknown'
Doug Hammond - 'Reflections in the Sea of Nurnen'
Noah Howard - 'Red Star'
Billy Gault - 'When Destiny Calls'
Yusef Lateef - 'Jazz Mood on Savoy'
Norman Connors - 'Dance of Magic'
Infinite Sound - 'S/T'
Stan Clarke - 'Children of Forever'
Charles Sullivan - 'Genesis'
Mary Lou Williams 'Mary Lou's Mass'
 
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matt b

Indexing all opinion
Right, first things first, a decent name for this thread, please.

Secondly, would The Necks fit in here?
 

Leo

Well-known member
Secondly, would The Necks fit in here?

i love the necks but i don't think they fit. this stuff seems to be a little more free-flowing/cosmic/psychedelic/spiritual (and also often from the 50s/60s/70s), where the necks seem to focus on minimalism, restraint and repetition. both can be uplifting, but coming from different places.
 

STN

sou'wester
Another vote for Coltrane's Impressions.

Also, listened to Andrew Hill, Compulsion last night. Not sure it quite fits with this (too early 60s and too hard-edged) but still worth investigating.

Also there's that run of 70s Freddie Hubbard ones: Red something and Straight Life...

Conference of the Birds also wonderful.
 

blacktulip

Pregnant with mandrakes
I think a good title for this thread would be Astral Travelling, a beautiful track by Pharoah which was sampled by Photek on the great Rings Around Saturn - kind of a Dissensus-type connection.


 

IdleRich

IdleRich
Random question. Years and years ago someone put a link to an absolutely killer kinda discordant spiritual jazz thing, (I think maybe Pharoah Sanders but maybe not) but the link disappeared and I've always wanted to hear the track again. Maybe the title had the word "colours" in it. Does that mean anything to anyone? Would be very grateful if someone could spot it for me.
 

luka

Well-known member
yeah sufi did it. it was pharoah sanders with some morroccon fella. its amazing.
 

bruno

est malade
i love gania and gnawa generally, that must be incredible.

something not mentioned yet is late seventies walt dickerson, the vibraphone in his hands has a shimmering, transcendent quality, as spiritual as one can imagine and (maybe?) a good fit for this thread. i recommend his beautiful, cathartic trio recording to my son, and the solo disc shades of love, which is meditative, cosmic music of the highest order.
 
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