Sahara | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 1972 [1] | |||
Recorded | January 1972 | |||
Studio | Decca Recording Studio, New York City | |||
Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 47:55 | |||
Label | Milestone MSP 9039 | |||
Producer | Orrin Keepnews | |||
McCoy Tyner chronology | ||||
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Sahara is the twelfth album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his first to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in January 1972 and features performances by Tyner with saxophonist Sonny Fortune, bassist Calvin Hill, and drummer Alphonse Mouzon. The music shows African and Eastern influences and features all the musicians playing multiple instruments, with Tyner himself utilizing koto, flute, and percussion in addition to his usual piano. [2]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
DownBeat | [4] |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [5] |
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [6] |
The AllMusic review by Brian Olewnick states, "Tyner would go on to create several fine albums in the mid-'70s, but never again would he scale quite these heights. Sahara is an astonishingly good record and belongs in every jazz fan's collection". [3]
In addition to its critical praise, the album is also considered Tyner's commercial breakthrough; it sold over 100,000 copies and was nominated for two Grammys. [7]
All compositions by McCoy Tyner
Cornelius "Sonny" Fortune was an American jazz saxophonist. He played soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones, clarinet, and flute.
Alfred McCoy Tyner was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet from 1960 to 1965, and his long solo career afterwards. He was an NEA Jazz Master and five-time Grammy Award winner. Tyner has been widely imitated, and is one of the most recognizable and influential jazz pianists of all time.
Meditations is a 1966 album by John Coltrane. The album was considered the "spiritual follow-up to A Love Supreme." It features Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders as soloists, both playing tenor saxophones. This was the last Coltrane recording to feature his classic quartet lineup of himself, bassist Jimmy Garrison, drummer Elvin Jones and pianist McCoy Tyner, as both Jones and Tyner would quit the band by early 1966. Sanders, Ali, Garrison and Coltrane's wife Alice would comprise his next group.
The Believer is a jazz album by John Coltrane released in 1964 on Prestige Records, catalogue 7292. It was recorded by Rudy Van Gelder in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1957 and 1958.
Blue Spirits is an album by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard released on the Blue Note label. It would be his last studio album for Blue Note, recorded in the 1960s. It features performances by Hubbard, James Spaulding, Joe Henderson, Harold Mabern, Jr., Larry Ridley, Clifford Jarvis, Big Black, Kiane Zawadi, Hank Mobley, McCoy Tyner, Bob Cranshaw, Pete LaRoca. The CD release added tracks from a 1966 session featuring Hosea Taylor, Herbie Hancock, Reggie Workman, and Elvin Jones.
Tender Moments is the eighth album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner and his second released on the Blue Note label. It was recorded in December 1967 and features performances by Tyner with an expanded group featuring trumpeter Lee Morgan, trombonist Julian Priester, French horn player Bob Northern, tuba player Howard Johnson, alto saxophonist James Spaulding, tenor saxophonist Bennie Maupin, bassist Herbie Lewis and drummer Joe Chambers.
Asante is an album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Blue Note label. It was recorded in 1970 and features performances by Tyner with alto saxophonist Andrew White, guitarist Ted Dunbar, bassist Buster Williams, drummer Billy Hart, percussionist Mtume and vocalist "Songai" Sandra Smith appearing on two tracks.
Song for My Lady is a 1973 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his second to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in September and November 1972 and features performances by Tyner with saxophonist Sonny Fortune, bassist Calvin Hill, drummer Alphonse Mouzon with trumpeter Charles Tolliver, violinist Michael White and percussionist Mtume joining in on two tracks.
Song of the New World is a 1973 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his fourth to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in April 1973 and features performances by Tyner with a big band including saxophonist Sonny Fortune, flautist Hubert Laws, bassist Joony Booth and drummer Alphonse Mouzon along with a brass section, and a full string section on two tracks conducted by William Fischer.
Enlightenment is a live album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Milestone label. It was recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland on July 7, 1973 and features Tyner in performance with Azar Lawrence, Joony Booth and Alphonse Mouzon.
Atlantis is a live album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Milestone label. It was recorded at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco on August 31 and September 1, 1974, and features Tyner in performance with saxophonist Azar Lawrence, bassist Juini Booth, drummer Wilby Fletcher and percussionist Guilherme Franco.
A Jazz Message is a jazz album recorded by Art Blakey's Quartet in 1964. The album was Blakey's second and last album for the Impulse! label.
Focal Point is a 1976 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his tenth to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded during four days in August 1976 and features a septet fronted by three reed players who were in part multiplied through overdubs. On one track Tyner is heard picking a dulcimer backed by tablas, evoking the sound of an Indian sitar. "Parody" is a duo with Eric Gravatt on drums. The album was digitally remastered at Fantasy Studios in 1999 and re-released on Original Jazz Classics.
The Greeting is a 1978 live album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his thirteenth release on the Milestone label. It was recorded in March 1978 at the Great American Music Hall and features performances by Tyner with a sextet featuring tenor saxophonist George Adams, alto saxophonist Joe Ford, bassist Charles Fambrough, drummer Woody Theus and percussionist Guilherme Franco. Tyner’s performance of John Coltrane's "Naima" is a piano solo.
13th House is a 1981 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in October 1980 and features performances by Tyner with a big band that includes alto saxophonist Joe Ford, flautist Hubert Laws, tenor saxophonist Ricky Ford, trombonist Slide Hampton, bassist Ron Carter and trumpeters Oscar Brashear and Charles Sullivan.
The Turning Point is an album by McCoy Tyner's Big Band released on the Birdology label in 1992. It was recorded in November 1991 and features performances by Tyner's Big Band.
McCoy Tyner and the Latin All-Stars is an album by McCoy Tyner, released on the Telarc label in 1999. It was recorded in July 1998 and contains performances by Tyner with alto saxophonist Gary Bartz, trumpeter Claudio Roditi, flautist Dave Valentin, bassist Avery Sharpe, drummer Ignacio Berroa and percussionists Johnny Almendra and Giovanni Hidalgo.
Triptykon is the fourth album by Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek, recorded on 8 November 1972 and released on ECM the following year—his third for the label. The trio features rhythm section Arild Andersen and Edward Vesala.
The Essence of Mystery is the debut album by American jazz drummer Alphonse Mouzon recorded in 1972 and released in 1973 on the Blue Note label.
Elevation is a live album by American saxophonist and composer Pharoah Sanders, released in 1973 on the Impulse! label.