| Pharoah | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1977 | |||
| Recorded | August and September 1976 | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 40:20 | |||
| Label | India Navigation | |||
| Producer | India Navigation Company | |||
| Pharoah Sanders chronology | ||||
| ||||
Pharoah is an album by the saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, recorded in 1976 and released on the India Navigation label. [1] The album was reissued in 2023, along with two live performances of "Harvest Time".
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [3] |
| Pitchfork | 8.9/10 [4] |
| The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide | [5] |
In a review for AllMusic, John Bush acknowledged that "the playing is excellent", but stated that Sanders was "beginning to drift into watery new age muzak." He concluded: "Clearly, Pharoah Sanders was losing his way a full ten years after the death of John Coltrane." [2]
A writer for The Jazz Spot called the album "one of the most underrated records of the artist's career", and noted that the three tracks "denote an enormous originality and honesty". He commented: "Its diversity is complemented with a regular and uniform quality throughout the recording." [6]
A 2023 review of the reissue by Pitchfork was given the site's "Best New Reissue" distinction, with Mark Richardson writing that it "captures a feeling of unearthly magic" as "the modest recording is perfect for the music, framing a peculiar mood and atmosphere that's lusty and joyous one moment and haunting and meditative the next". [4]
All compositions by Pharoah Sanders.
| Chart (2023) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [7] | 54 |
| UK Album Downloads (OCC) [8] | 41 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC) [9] | 38 |
Pharoah Sanders was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", Sanders played a prominent role in the development of free jazz and spiritual jazz through his work as a member of John Coltrane's groups in the mid-1960s, and later through his solo work. He released over thirty albums as a leader and collaborated extensively with vocalist Leon Thomas and pianist Alice Coltrane, among many others. Fellow saxophonist Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world".
Deaf Dumb Blind (Summun Bukmun Umyun) is an album by the American jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. It was recorded at A & R Studios in New York City on July 1, 1970, and released on Impulse! Records in the same year. The album's title is bilingual: "Summun Bukmun Umyun" is Arabic for "Deaf Dumb Blind".
Black Unity is a composition and album by jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, recorded and released in late 1971. The whole album consists of a single thirty-seven-minute track, which was described by critic Joe S. Harrington as "an exercise in sustained harmonic groove that cannot be beaten" when he listed it at #38 on his Top 100 Albums. The compact disc reissue of 1997 unites the two parts as a single track, timed at 37:21.
Karma is a jazz recording by the American tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, released in May 1969 on the Impulse! label, with catalog number AS 9181. A pioneering work of the spiritual jazz style, it has become Sanders' most popular and critically acclaimed album.
Tauhid is a jazz album by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. It was the second album released under his name, and his first album on the Impulse! label. It was recorded on November 15, 1966 at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, four days after the concert heard on the John Coltrane album Offering: Live at Temple University, and was released in 1967, after the death of Coltrane, with whom Sanders had played since 1965. Tauhid was reissued in 2017 on Anthology Recordings. The album marks guitarist Sonny Sharrock's first appearance on a record, as well as one of pianist Dave Burrell's earliest recordings.
Jewels of Thought is an album by the American jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. It was recorded at Plaza Sound Studios in New York City on October 20, 1969, and was released on Impulse! Records in the same year. The 1998 reissue merged "Sun In Aquarius" into one 27-minute-long track.
Elevation is a live album by American saxophonist and composer Pharoah Sanders, released in 1973 on the Impulse! label.
Love in Us All is an album by American saxophonist and composer Pharoah Sanders released on the Impulse! label.
Offering: Live at Temple University is a live album by John Coltrane recorded in 1966 and released posthumously by Resonance Records on September 23, 2014, Coltrane's 88th birthday. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Album Notes and was well-received by critics. Proceeds from the album benefit the John Coltrane Home.
Izipho Zam (My Gifts) is the third album led by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders recorded in 1969 but not released on the Strata-East label until 1973. It features Sanders with a large ensemble.
Journey to the One is a double album led by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, recorded in 1979 and released on the Theresa label.
Pharoah Sanders Live... is a live album by American saxophonist and composer Pharoah Sanders released on the Theresa label.
Africa is an album led by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders recorded in 1987 and released on the Dutch Timeless label.
A Prayer Before Dawn is an album led by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders recorded in 1987 and released on the Theresa label that year.
Live in Paris (1975) is an LP album by American free jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders recorded live at the Grand Auditorium, Studio 104 of Maison de la Radio, Paris, France on November 17, 1975 and released in 2020 on the Transversales Disques label. It features recordings of Sanders performing with a quartet featuring pianist Danny Mixon, bassist Calvin Hill, and drummer Greg Bandy. The album fills in a chronological gap between Sanders' final Impulse! albums and Pharoah, recorded in 1976 for India Navigation.
Promises is a 2021 studio album by the British electronic musician Floating Points, the American jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra. It was released on 26 March 2021 through the New York label Luaka Bop. It consists of a single 46-minute composition noted for its "dreamlike" quality. The album has received acclaim from music critics, and was shortlisted for the 2021 Mercury Prize. Promises was the final album Sanders released before his death in 2022.
A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle is a live album by American saxophonist John Coltrane, released on October 22, 2021, through Impulse! Records. It was recorded on October 2, 1965, at the Seattle jazz club The Penthouse, by saxophonist Joe Brazil. The tapes were found five years after Brazil's death in October 2008 by the saxophonist Steve Griggs. It is one of only two recorded live performances of Coltrane's 1965 album A Love Supreme, the other being a July 1965 recording from the Jazz à Juan jazz festival in Juan-les-Pins, Antibes, France, which was released in 2002 as part of the deluxe edition of A Love Supreme.
Wisdom Through Music is an album by saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. It was recorded in New York City and Los Angeles, California, and was released in 1973 by Impulse! Records. On the album, Sanders is joined by flutist James Branch, pianist Joe Bonner, bassist Cecil McBee, drummer Norman Connors, and percussionists Badal Roy, James Mtume, and Lawrence Killian. The recording was produced by Lee Young, the younger brother of saxophonist Lester Young.
Carnegie Hall '71 is a live album by Alice Coltrane. It was recorded at Carnegie Hall in New York City on February 21, 1971, and was released in 2018 by the Hi Hat label. On the album, Coltrane appears on piano and harp, and is joined by saxophonists Pharoah Sanders and Archie Shepp, bassists Jimmy Garrison and Cecil McBee, and drummers Ed Blackwell and Clifford Jarvis.
Now Is the Time: Live at the Knitting Factory is a live album by bassist Alex Blake. It was recorded on December 6, 1999, at the Knitting Factory in New York City, and was released in 2000 by Bubble Core Music. On the album, Blake is joined by guest artist Pharoah Sanders on tenor saxophone, along with a group featuring alto saxophonist Chris Hunter, pianist John Hicks, drummer Victor Jones, and percussionist Neil Clark.
