Albert Ayler Spirits Rejoice CD

Italian edition of 1965 album for one of the giants of free jazz. Recorded live at New York's Judson Hall in 1965. The ensemble features Ayler's brother Donald on trumpet, alto saxophonist Charles Tyler, Cal Cobbs on harpsichord, Gary Peacock and Henry Grimes on duel basses and Sunny Murray ondrums.

Personnel: Albert Ayler (tenor saxophone); Charles Tyler (alto saxophone); Donald Ayler (trumpet); Call Cobbs (harpsichord); Gary Peacock, Henry Grimes (bass instrument); Sunny Murray (drums).
Recorded live at New York's Judson Hall in 1965, Spirits Rejoice is one of Albert Ayler's wildest, noisiest albums, partly because it's one of the very few that teams him with another saxophonist, altoist Charles Tyler. It's also one of the earliest recordings to feature Ayler's brother Don playing an amateurish but expressive trumpet, and the ensemble is further expanded by using bassists Henry Grimes and Gary Peacock together on three of the five tracks; plus, the rubato "Angels" finds Ayler interacting with Call Cobbs' harpsichord in an odd, twinkling evocation of the spiritual spheres. Aside from that more spacious reflection, most of the album is given over to furious ensemble interaction and hard-blowing solos that always place in-the-moment passion above standard jazz technique. Freed up by the presence of the trumpet and alto, Ayler's playing concentrates on the rich lower register of his horn and all the honks and growls that go with it; his already thick, huge tone has rarely seemed more monolithic. Spirits Rejoice also provides an opportunity to hear the sources of Ayler's simple, traditional melodies becoming more eclectic. The nearly 12-minute title track has a pronounced New Orleans marching band feel, switching between two themes reminiscent of a hymn and a hunting bugle call, and the brief "Holy Family" is downright R&B-flavored. "Prophet" touches on a different side of Ayler's old-time march influence, with machine-gun cracks and militaristic cadences from drummer Sunny Murray driving the raggedly energetic ensemble themes. For all its apparent chaos, Spirits Rejoice is often surprisingly pre-arranged -- witness all the careening harmony passages that accompany the theme statements, and the seamless transitions of the title track. Spirits Rejoice is proof that there was an underlying logic even to Ayler's most extreme moments, and that's why it remains a tremendously inspiring recording. ~ Steve Huey
1965's SPIRITS REJOICE, a high-energy performance recorded live at New York's Judson Hall, perfectly captures Albert Ayler's signature sound of this era. Like the earlier BELLS, the album blurs the line between composition and improvisation. The various horn players imitate each other's phrases and veer off into a cacophonous celebration, only to eventually return to the melody.
Ayler used two bass players for this date, Gary Peacock and Henry Grimes, and the collaboration especially shines during "D.C." The performance also features Ayler's brother Donald (trumpet), Sunny Murray (drums), Charles Tyler (alto saxophone), and Call Cobs (harpsichord on "Angels," one of Ayler's ballads). While the fidelity of this recording is not the finest, the playing is remarkable. Songs such as "Holy Family" foreshadow the New Orleans/marching-band influence evident on ALBERT AYLER LIVE IN GREENWICH VILLAGE. If nothing else, SPIRITS REJOICE and Ayler's other records on the ESP label document his unique musical vision. We are fortunate to have them.