Franklin Kiermyer Thembi CD

Personnel includes: Pharoah Sanders (tenor & soprano saxophones, alto flute, fife, bailophone, brass bell, bells, maracas, cow horn, percussion); Michael White (violin, percussion); Lonnie Liston Smith (bailophone, piano, electric piano, claves, ring cymbals, percussion, background vocals); Cecil McBee (bass, finger cymbals, percussion, sound effects); Clifford Jarvis (drums, maracas, bells, percussion); Roy Haynes (drums); Chief Bey, Majid Shabazz, Anthony Wiles, Nat Bettis (percussion); James Jordon (ring cymbals).
Producers: Ed Michel, Bill Szymczyk.
Reissue producer: Michael Cuscuna.
Recorded at The Record Plant, Los Angeles, California on November 25, 1970 and The Record Plant, New York City on January 12, 1971.
Digitally remastered by Erick Labson at MCA Music Media Studios.
This is part of Impulse's The New Thing series.
Personnel: Pharoah Sanders (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, percussion); Michael White (violin, percussion); Lonnie Liston Smith (piano, electric piano, keyboards, claves, percussion); Lonnie Liston White (piano, electric piano); Anthony Wiles, Majid Shabazz, Nat Bettis, James Bey (drums, percussion); Clifford Jarvis, Roy Haynes (drums); James Jordan, Cecil McBee (cymbals, percussion).
Recording information: Record Plant, Los Angeles, CA (11/25/1970/01/12/1971); Record Plant, New York, NY (11/25/1970/01/12/1971).
Photographer: Philip Melnick.
Unknown Contributor Role: Pharoah Sanders.
Recorded with two different ensembles, Thembi was a departure from the slowly developing, side-long, mantra-like grooves Pharoah Sanders had been pursuing for most of his solo career. It's musically all over the map but, even if it lacks the same consistency of mood as many of Sanders' previous albums, it does offer an intriguingly wide range of relatively concise ideas, making it something of an anomaly in Sanders' prime period. Over the six selections, Sanders romps through a tremendous variety of instruments, including tenor, soprano, alto flute, fifes, the African bailophone, assorted small percussion, and even a cow horn. Perhaps because he's preoccupied elsewhere, there's relatively little of his trademark tenor screaming, limited mostly to the thunderous cacophony of "Red, Black & Green" and portions of "Morning Prayer." The compositions, too, try all sorts of different things. Keyboardist/pianist Lonnie Liston Smith's "Astral Traveling" is a shimmering, pastoral piece centered around his electric piano textures; "Love" is an intense, five-minute bass solo by Cecil McBee; and "Morning Prayer" and "Bailophone Dance" (which are segued together) add an expanded percussion section devoted exclusively to African instruments. If there's a unifying factor, it's the classic title track, which combines the softer lyricism of Sanders' soprano and Michael White's violin with the polyrhythmic grooves of the most Africanized material (not to mention a catchy bass riff). Some fans may gripe that Thembi isn't conceptually unified or intense enough, but it's rare to have this many different sides of Sanders coexisting in one place, and that's what makes the album such an interesting listen. ~ Steve Huey
Brimming with innovation, positivity and a pervasive sense of wonder, THEMBI may become your favorite Sanders album. These tracks represent a landmark confluence of many elements: Avant-Garde chaos, static harmony and a cultural revaluation of West African instrumentation, to name a few. Omnipresent, of course, is the unmistakable tempest of Pharoah blowing his tenor out to sea. It's 1971, and this is a simultaneous celebration of the past and future of jazz set to the jingling bells of a Sunday afternoon be-in. THEMBI floats to a start with the ethereal Fender Rhodes musing of "Astral Traveling," courtesy of Lonnie Liston Smith. Though Sanders has described the melody as an impromptu thread for the changes, his plaintive long tones are as charged as ever with wisdom. In the lower register is Ce