One of the true titans of Jazz has passed.
I’m sure others can summarise his career far better than I can, but I’ve always loved this groove
RIP Pharoah Sanders
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Musings on the byways of popular culture
A very good friend put me onto the genius of Pharoah Sanders, another sad loss.
As Albert Ayler said “Trane was the Father, Pharoah was the Son, I am the Holy Ghost”
A great man. What a life!
He had such a warm, blissful tone and a natural musicality that even when he was far out with the likes of Coltrane he was a joy to listen to. Last year’s Promises with Floating Points and the LSO is superb. The Live In Paris 1975, discovered and released in 2020 is equally fabulous. The man exudes love. I wish I’d met him.
My mate Gerry Kenny did meet him at least once. The last time was when Pharoah Sanders played a club in Manchester. Gerry (R.I.P.) spoke very highly of him. They can now join each other jammin` out on the Astral Realm.
It is worth catching the last hour or so of Gilles Peterson’s BBC6 Music show today on iPlayer, he pays tribute to him. His death was also mentioned on the BBC6 Music news. How times have changed.
Here is a version of his classic The Creator Has A Master Plan (I won’t post the 32 minute version from his Karma album).
Saw him very late in his life, sat down a lot but had a v good band when he got up to solo the solos were majestic.
I would appreciate some recommendations from the cognoscenti.
If you don’t have Alice Coltrane’s “Journey in Satchidananda”, on which Sanders plays soprano sax, I’d say that’s absolutely essential.
Yes it is indeed, as is ‘Ptah The El Daoud’.
I totally agree, it is superb.
There was a ferocious passionate Pharoah and a blissful loving one. Karma is generally regarded as his masterpiece. Live At The East is wild. Ed Kelly & Friend, the friend being Pharoah, straddles both types of Pharoah, as does Journey To The One. Rejoice is more mellow and Welcome To Love is a collection of standards similar to Coltrane’s Ballads. His last two releases are excellent: Promises with Floating Points and Live In Paris, 1975.
The version of The Creator Has A Master Plan on Karma is about 15 minutes too long, and that’s pretty well all there is to Karma. Pharoah Sanders Anthology You’ve Got To Have Freedom has most of his stuff that you would want and is a very good starting point. I don’t know how easy it is to find though.
‘Karma’ is an essential recording to have.
Floating Points is excellent and finished in my end of year best of. His sound is so pure.
Apparently christened ‘Pharoah’ by Sun Ra.
Thanks folks
Very sad indeed, but not unexpected after witnessing his final live appearance at the “We Out Here” festival in the wilds of Cambridgeshire a few weeks ago.
It was a highly charged emotional farewell to the great man – with several thousand people crowded into a natural amphitheatre for the late-night highlight of the four-day fest. He was very frail, wheeled on stage and carried to his chair – playing only a few notes, talking quietly and occasionally raising a hand to acknowledge the crowd while his son did the heavy lifting with his Pharoah-style playing. But it just didn’t matter. He was like some ancient deity and there was such an adoring atmosphere just his mere presence was enough.
His band deftly worked through “The Creator” and I think “Love is Everywhere” – with people singing along – and then half an hour later he left the stage. In a way it was tragic to see but ultimately a triumph – pretty sure he must have enjoyed it, a proud father with his son by his side playing in front of a large and loving crowd.
I previously saw him back in the mid-80s when he was at the peak of his powers – playing a powerhouse set at the Crucible in Sheffield of all places. He had a stellar band – Idris Muhammad on drums, bassist Curtis Lundy and the magnificent John Hicks on piano – and worked his way through his “Africa” set, which incidentally has recently been re-released. It’s a more straight-ahead style than his spiritual stuff on Impulse, but no less impressive. I recall a wondrous version of Coltrane’s “Naima” but primarily the set’s opener – a storming version of “You’ve got to have Freedom” – which remains my favourite Pharoah performance.