Pharoah Sanders "You Got To Have Freedom" (1980)
From his 1980 album "Journey To The One"
Sanders was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, under the name Farrell Sanders. He began his professional career playing tenor saxophone in Oakland, California. Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world." Emerging from John Coltrane's groups of the mid-60s Sanders is known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound." Albert Ayler famously said "Trane was the Father, Pharoah was the Son, I was the Holy Ghost."
Sanders moved to New York City in 1961 after playing with rhythm and blues bands. He received his nickname "Pharoah" from Sun Ra, with whom Sanders performed. He came to prominence playing with John Coltrane's band starting in 1965, as Coltrane began adopting the avant-garde jazz of Albert Ayler, Ra and Cecil Taylor. Sanders first performed on Coltrane's Ascension (recorded in June 1965), then famously on their dual-tenor recording Meditations (recorded in November 1965). After this Sanders joined Coltrane's final quintet, usually performing very lengthy, dissonant solos. Coltrane's later style was strongly influenced by Sanders.
After Coltrane..
Although Sanders' voice developed differently from Coltrane, Sanders was strongly influenced by their collaboration together. Spiritual elements such as the chanting in Om would later show up in many of Sanders' own works. Sanders would also go on to produce much free jazz, modified from Coltrane's solo-centric conception. In 1968 he participated in Michael Mantler and Carla Bley's JCOA: Jazz Composer's Orchestra Association album Communications, featuring Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry, Larry Coryell and Gato Barbieri. This solo has been referenced by John Zorn and others, as the most intense and inspiring free tenor solo ever put to tape.
In the 1970s, Sanders pursued his own recordings and continued to work with the likes of Alice Coltrane on her Journey In Satchidananda album. Most of Sanders' best-selling work was made in the late 60's and early 70s for Impulse Records, including the 30-minute wave-on-wave of free jazz "The Creator has a Master Plan" from the album Karma. This featured Sanders key musical partner, pianist Lonnie Liston Smith, who worked with Sanders from 1969-1971. Other members of his groups in this period include bassist Cecil McBee and vocalist Leon Thomas, on albums such as Jewels of Thought, Izipho Zam, Deaf Dumb Blind and Thembi.
"You Got To Have Freedom"
Saxophone [Tenor] - Pharoah Sanders
Flugelhorn - Eddie Henderson
Bass - Ray Drummond
Drums - Idris Muhammad
Flugelhorn - Eddie Henderson
Piano - John Hicks
Vocals - Bobby McFerrin , Donna (Dee Dee) Dickerson* , Ngoh Spencer , Vicki Randle
Written By - Pharoah Sanders
Producer - Pharoah Sanders
Producer [Assistant] - Allen Pittman
