Two stone classic LPs from 1964: Witches And Devils aka Spirits — with terrific playing by Sunny Murray and Henry Grimes, plus Norman Howard and Earle Henderson — and Vibrations aka Ghosts, with Murray and Gary Peacock from the Spiritual Unity session the same year, plus Don Cherry hard-wired straight into the mains.
Surrealists go on about ‘convulsive beauty’. Surely this is it, no frills.
Way too spiritual and too jazz to pass for Spiritual Jazz.
Smartly presented, with re-mastered sound, excellent notes, and royalties going to the Ayler estate.

‘Verve By Request.’

Crucial live and radio recordings with Don Cherry, Sonny Murray and Gary Peacock.

The first time out for recordings in Munich and Helsinki — featuring beautifully succinct renditions of the tunes — plus the Rotterdam concert included in the Holy Ghost box set, all rendered here in the improved quality of sound which is Ezz-Thetics’ raison d’être.

With Don Cherry, Gary Peacock, and Sunny Murray.
Twenty-one recordings — including the Ghosts LP — from September and November 1964, in the wake of Spiritual Unity; live at Club Montmartre in Copenhagen, Denmark, and at a radio station in Hilversum, Netherlands.
Fierce, ecstatic, awe-inspiring music.

Her debut as leader, a year after John’s death, with Pharoah Sanders, Jimmy Garrison, Ben Riley and Rashied Ali steeply conjuring an ecstatic blend of JC and Bud Powell, blues, gospel and free jazz, trained unflinchingly on Nature and Truth, witches and devils, the Mystical and the Divine.
Tremendous music — deeply rooted, rawly searching, still thrillingly uplifting.
‘Verve By Request.’

On harp and piano — with Pharoah Sanders (soprano sax), Vishnu Wood (oud), Rashied Ali (drums), Cecil McBee (bass), Charlie Haden (bass), Majid Shabazz (bells, tambourine), Tulsi (tamboura).
Transcendent jazz from 1970; full fathom five deep but compellingly accessible. Our favourite of all her records, and over the decades our first recommendation as an introduction to her work.
According to AC’s sleeve note, ‘Anyone listening to this selection should try to envision himself floating on an ocean of Satchinandaji’s love, which is literally carrying countless devotees across the vicissitudes and stormy blasts of life to the other shore.’

Stone classic Alice. Turiya And Ramakrishna is a gorgeous piano blues; otherwise she is joined by Joe Henderson and Pharoah Sanders, Ron Carter and Ben Riley.

Trying out new ideas (including Stravinsky) after leaving Impulse! in 1975, by turns deploying Wurlitzer, Rhodes and harp, and Charlie Haden and Ben Riley, percussionists, and an orchestra.