Another episode of the impressive "Live At Fabrik" series by Jazzline and NDR Kultur featuring multi-instrumentalist Pharoah Sanders, considered a pioneer of free jazz and best known for his collaboration with John Coltrane. The stirring recordings are immortalized here as a quartet with instrumentalists John Hicks (Sonny Rollins), Curtis Lundy (Betty Carter, Johnny Griffin) and Idris Muhammad (Hair).
Pharoah Sanders grew up in Arkansas and played clarinet, then drums, before switching to tenor saxophone. The artist studied music in California, where he played as a saxophonist in various rhythm"n"blues bands, also to keep his head above water. In 1961 he went to New York to gain a foothold in the jazz scene, which initially failed. He made music with Sun Ra, among others, who also gave him the name Pharoah, and formed his own band. John Coltrane became aware of this formation and brought Sanders in the mid-60s as a second saxophonist in his quintet. At Coltrane"s side, Sanders composed one of the most influential jazz hits ever "The Creator Has A Masterplan", which has a total length of 33 minutes in the original and was also played in a shortened version live at the Fabrik Hamburg in 1980. Pharoah Sanders, who mastered a remarkably powerful as well as free saxophone playing, co-founded above all the Free Jazz and also coined the electro as well as Hip Hop scene with his special saxophone sequences. In addition, he created completely new sound worlds with his overblowing techniques and circular breathing, which he performed on more than 30 albums, of which his last work "Promises" was released in 2021. The live recordings from the Fabrik in 1980 are presented here for the first time to the general public, and at the same time represent the oldest recordings from the "Live At Fabrik" series. Furthermore, this concert was part of what was then called the New Jazz Festival, a summit meeting of German, European and US musicians*. An obituary to Sanders, which was originally intended as a reminder of this jazz era marked by upheaval, who passed away in September 2022.
Back catalogue
LP 78123
PHAROAH SANDERS QUINTET
Live At Fabrik Hamburg 1980 (Gatefold / 180 Gramm)
