Featuring Pharoah Sanders & Black Harold
Encyclopedia
Featuring Pharoah Sanders and Black Harold is a jazz album by Sun Ra
, recorded live in 1964, but not released until 1976, on Ra and Alton Abraham's El Saturn label
.
The record documents the earliest known recorded performance of "The Shadow World" (here reverse-named as "The World Shadow"), a complex structured piece which was to feature on several of Ra's better known records of subsequent years, notably The Magic City
.
It is an unusual item in the Ra discography, because tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders
replaces John Gilmore
, a mainstay of the Arkestra for most of its existence; at the time, he was working in other contexts, with the pianists Paul Bley and Andrew Hill, and drummer Art Blakey. Before releasing the recording, Sun Ra said "It should be very interesting to the world to show what the pre-Coltrane Pharoah Sanders was like"
Also featured is the obscure flautist, Black Harold (Harold Murray) , who takes a solo, vocalising through his flute, Rashaan Roland Kirk-style, on 'The Voice of Pan' (continuing into 'Dawn over Israel.')
Despite being Sanders' only recording with Sun Ra, he is not a major presence, taking only one solo on the first track. Ra himself plays several short piano solos and introductions. Alan Silva also has a brief bass solo, and alto saxophonist Marshall Allen provides his customary fireworks. The music is mostly in the experimental, free-jazz mould, and though not quite as radical and challenging as 'The Magic City', it is mostly dense and uncompromising (though that is not to say there is no variety - there are plenty of quiet interludes as well).
Sean Westergaard's review on allmusic.com similarly describes it as "more of a curio than a great listening experinece, and probably best left for the Ra and Pharoah Sanders completists."
Additionally, it is an extremely rare album (although digitised versions have circulated on internet blogs and filesharing services), and is also very short in length (no more than 25 minutes).
The album was reissued by ESP Disk in 2009, adding 5 stereo live tracks to the 6 original mono tracks.
Catalogue Number: Saturn IHNY 165. Recorded live at the Cellar Cafe, New York 15/6/64, by Paul Haines
(just before the 'October revolution in jazz', which took place at the Cellar Cafe in October of that year, and in which both Haines and Sun Ra were involved). Date and location details supplied by Ahmed Abdullah in an interview on WKCR (1965 and 1968 are often incorrectly mentioned in discographies).
The ESP Disk reissue (ESP 4054) gives the recording date as December 31 1964 at Judson Hall, New York.
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
, recorded live in 1964, but not released until 1976, on Ra and Alton Abraham's El Saturn label
El Saturn Records
El Saturn Records is the name of an American record label. The label was one of the most active artist-owned record labels created in 1957 by Alton Abraham. Notable albums produced by the label include works by Sun Ra....
.
The record documents the earliest known recorded performance of "The Shadow World" (here reverse-named as "The World Shadow"), a complex structured piece which was to feature on several of Ra's better known records of subsequent years, notably The Magic City
The Magic City
The Magic City is an album by the American jazz musician Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra. Recorded in two sessions in 1965, the record was released on Ra's own Saturn label in 1966...
.
It is an unusual item in the Ra discography, because tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders
Pharoah Sanders
Pharoah Sanders is a Grammy Award–winning American jazz saxophonist.Saxophonist Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world." Emerging from John Coltrane's groups of the mid-60s Sanders is known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on...
replaces John Gilmore
John Gilmore (musician)
John Gilmore was an American jazz tenor saxophone player best-known for his long tenure as a member of Sun Ra's Arkestra...
, a mainstay of the Arkestra for most of its existence; at the time, he was working in other contexts, with the pianists Paul Bley and Andrew Hill, and drummer Art Blakey. Before releasing the recording, Sun Ra said "It should be very interesting to the world to show what the pre-Coltrane Pharoah Sanders was like"
Also featured is the obscure flautist, Black Harold (Harold Murray) , who takes a solo, vocalising through his flute, Rashaan Roland Kirk-style, on 'The Voice of Pan' (continuing into 'Dawn over Israel.')
Despite being Sanders' only recording with Sun Ra, he is not a major presence, taking only one solo on the first track. Ra himself plays several short piano solos and introductions. Alan Silva also has a brief bass solo, and alto saxophonist Marshall Allen provides his customary fireworks. The music is mostly in the experimental, free-jazz mould, and though not quite as radical and challenging as 'The Magic City', it is mostly dense and uncompromising (though that is not to say there is no variety - there are plenty of quiet interludes as well).
Critical views
The recording is criticised by Pierro Scaruffi, who writes: "[During the 60s, Ra's] albums became more irrational and experimental. Strange Strings (1966)...was still accessible compared with Featuring Pharoah Sanders and Black Harold (June 1964), released in 1976, whose The Voice of Pan and Dawn Over Israel were childish orgies of random sounds."Sean Westergaard's review on allmusic.com similarly describes it as "more of a curio than a great listening experinece, and probably best left for the Ra and Pharoah Sanders completists."
Additionally, it is an extremely rare album (although digitised versions have circulated on internet blogs and filesharing services), and is also very short in length (no more than 25 minutes).
The album was reissued by ESP Disk in 2009, adding 5 stereo live tracks to the 6 original mono tracks.
Track listing
- "Gods on a Safari" (Ra)
- "The World Shadow (incl. Rocket Number 9)" (Ra)
- "The Voice of Pan" (Ra)
- "Dawn over Israel (incl. Space Mates)" (Ra)
Personnel and Recording details
- Pharoah SandersPharoah SandersPharoah Sanders is a Grammy Award–winning American jazz saxophonist.Saxophonist Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world." Emerging from John Coltrane's groups of the mid-60s Sanders is known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on...
- Sax (Tenor); - Black Harold - flute;
- Sun RaSun RaSun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
- Piano, electric celeste; - Al Evans - trumpet, flugelhorn;
- Chris Capers - trumpet;
- Teddy Nance - trombone;
- Bernard Pettaway - trombone
- Robert NorthernBob NorthernRobert "Bob" Northern , known professionally as Brother Ah, is an American jazz French hornist.Born in North Carolina and raised in The Bronx, Northern studied at the Manhattan School of Music and at the Vienna State Academy in the 1950s...
- French horn; - Marshall AllenMarshall AllenMarshall Belford Allen is an American free jazz and avant-garde jazz alto saxophone player. He also performs on flute, oboe, piccolo, and EVI ....
- alto sax, flute; - Danny Davis - alto sax, flute;
- Robert Cummings - bass clarinet;
- Pat Patrick - baritone sax;
- Alan SilvaAlan SilvaAlan Silva is an American free jazz double bassist and keyboard player.-Biography:...
- bass, cello; - Clifford JarvisClifford JarvisClifford Jarvis was an American hard bop and free jazz drummer.After studying at Berklee in the 1950s he established himself in jazz between 1959 and 1966 by recording with Chet Baker, Randy Weston, Yusef Lateef, Freddie Hubbard, Barry Harris, Jackie McLean, and Elmo Hope, and playing with Grant...
- drums; - Art Jenkins- space voice
Catalogue Number: Saturn IHNY 165. Recorded live at the Cellar Cafe, New York 15/6/64, by Paul Haines
Paul Haines (poet)
Paul Haines was a poet and jazz lyricist. Born in Vassar, Michigan, Haines eventually settled in Canada, after spending time in Europe, India, New York City, as well as a long stint as a French Teacher at Fenelon Falls Secondary School, in Ontario, Canada.Haines's best-known work is Escalator over...
(just before the 'October revolution in jazz', which took place at the Cellar Cafe in October of that year, and in which both Haines and Sun Ra were involved). Date and location details supplied by Ahmed Abdullah in an interview on WKCR (1965 and 1968 are often incorrectly mentioned in discographies).
The ESP Disk reissue (ESP 4054) gives the recording date as December 31 1964 at Judson Hall, New York.