Sonny Sharrock Black Woman/People Get Ready-The Freedom Sounds CD

Jimmy benson (baritone saxophone, flute); Harold Land, Jr. (piano); Pancho Bristol (electric bass); Paul Humphrey (drums); Moises Oblagacion (congas); Ricky Chemelis (timbales); Max Garduno (bongos, bells).

As formats go, the compact-disc feels like the sad, red-headed stepchild to vinyl LPs; nowhere is this more apparent than the hastily assembled CD reissues and repackagings dotting the budget section of music retailers. Occasionally, if not by design, through sheer luck, the music industry's nostalgia machine gets it right--or wrong, depending on your view--allowing an exquisite, unpolished gem to slip through its cracks. The Collectables label ought to be commended for unearthing the two rare, and very different, jazz sessions found on the 2-in-1 set presented here: Sonny Sharrock's, BLACK WOMAN (1969) and the Wayne Henderson-fronted Freedom Sounds', PEOPLE GET READY (1967).

First up is BLACK WOMAN, the maiden solo voyage of freeform jazz guitar firebrand, Sonny Sharrock. Venturing far afield from his limited role in Herbie Mann's group as an eccentric and slightly diffident tone-colorist, Sharrock here is allowed space to work with broad, bold strokes. Enlisting the help of wife Linda Sharrock on vocals and Milford Graves on drums, Sharrock lets loose barbed, jagged tone clusters and blistering licks that upend the guitar's usual secondary role in jazz contexts--echoing the complex multiphonic phrasing of reed players such as Coltrane and Ayler. The Freedom Sounds' 1967 album, PEOPLE GET READY is an entirely different animal. Featuring a nine-piece group assembled by trombonist Wayne Henderson, it's a multi-cultural musical melting pot featuring Latin and African jazz flavorings and a smattering of covers of well-known soul hits from Otis Redding and Curtis Mayfield--finding perfect consonance with the flower-power positivity of the time.

Originally released on Vortex (2014).

Originally released on Atlantic (1492).

2 LPs on 1 CD: Sonny Sharrock/BLACK WOMAN (1969)/Wayne Henderson/PEOPLE GET READY (1967).

Personnel: Sonny Sharrock (guitar); Linda Sharrock (vocals); Teddy Daniel (trumpet); Dave Burrell (piano); Norris Jones, Richard Pierce (bass); Milford Graves (drums).

PEOPLE GET READY:

Personnel: Wayne Henderson (trombone); Al Abreu (soprano & tenor saxophones);

Personnel: Sonny Sharrock (guitar); Linda Sharrock (vocals); Alexander Abreu (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Teddy Daniel (trumpet); Wayne Henderson (trombone); Dave Burrell (piano); Milford Graves, Paul Humphrey (drums); Max Garduno (bongos, bells); Gary Sharrock (bells).

Liner Note Author: B. Kym Taylor.

Recording information: A&R Studios, New York, NY; Apostolic Recording Studios, NY.

Photographer: Ray Gibson.

Arrangers: Sonny Sharrock; Wayne Henderson .

BLACK WOMAN:

WayneThe Wire (6/01, p.47) - "...BLACK WOMAN is Sharock's finest moment..."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.133) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Afrocentric magic..."