The Spiritual

by The Art Ensemble of Chicago

Overview

Originally a double LP, this stunning 1974 album, THE SPIRITUAL, finds the Art Ensemble of Chicago at their artistic height. Reduced to an unusual drummerless quartet for this session (reedsmen Joseph Jarman and Roscoe Mitchell, horn player Lester Bowie and bassist/banjo player Malachi Favors all double on various types of percussion), the group explores one of the main stems of jazz, New Orleans gospel and second-line music, without sacrificing its freer sounds. Indeed, without a traditional drummer, the group is free to play at its most unrestrained, unfettered by conventions of tempo. Yet somehow, there's a basic earthiness to this music, especially on the magnificent title track and the mysteriously beautiful "That the Evening Sky Fell Through the Glass Wall and We Stood Alone Somewhere?," which keeps the Art Ensemble grounded. Listening to THE SPIRITUAL is an experience akin to reading Ishmael Reed's vividly ironic lampoon of Western culture, MUMBO JUMBO.

Product Details

Release Date:	04/05/2024
Label:	Org Music
UPC:	0711574946013
Rank:	27973

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Art Ensemble of Chicago   Primary Artist
Lester Bowie   Horn,Drums,Trumpet,Flugelhorn
Roscoe Mitchell   Saxophone
J.P Dupuy   Recorder
Malachi Favors   Bass,Banjo,Percussion,Fender Jazz Bass
Patrice Quef   Recorder
Famoudou Don Moye   Drums
Joseph Jarman   Sax (Alto),Multi Instruments

Technical Credits

Chris Whent   Producer
Lester Bowie   Composer
Roscoe Mitchell   Composer
J.P Dupuy   Engineer
Alan Bates   Producer
Joseph Jarman   Composer
Leni Sinclair   Photography
Malcolm Walker   Design
John B. Litweiler   Annotation
Rick Simenson   Layout Design