albert ayler - spirits rejoice

live recording of ayler's large septet configuration, featuring brother donald, charles tyler, sunny murray and both henry grimes and gary peacock on bass. compared to the bare trio of spiritual unity this nearly big band of two bass players and a strong horn section allows ayler's expressive vision depth from the joyous to the agressive in ayler's 5 original compositions.

september 23, 1965 at judson hall, new york by david hancock

ultimately, however, what we have with spirits rejoice is essentially a lament on the plight and deliverance of the oppressed and downtrodden. when you’ve been pushed down and kicked in the teeth for so long, you are left with only two viable options: fight back or embrace your oppressors with love, and spirits rejoice is an emblem/tableau about choosing love in the face of pain, abuse, and hate. it’s a beacon of what could be, and what should be, no matter what the trappings of our environment are – and that, my friends, is ultimately why this precious little album means so goddamn much to me. it’s a constant reminder to choose life no matter how dire your circumstances are. i mean, i have little doubt that ayler’s life was no picnic. he was an african-american living in a volatile time. plus, he was a penniless musician, his nigh obscurity punctuated by the fact that he died at the age of 34. furthermore, suspicious circumstances surround his death. his body was found floating in the hudson river, and nobody to this day knows how his body got there or what he died of. perhaps the pain in his life finally got to him. everybody has their breaking point, and a man can only take so much wretchedness before he breaks down for good. and poor ol’ ayler was undoubtedly up to his ears in agony. but despite all his troubles, i believe ayler had a lotta love in his heart; spirits rejoice articulates this love — love for people, love for god, love for life – deeper and more eloquently than any other album i’ve ever heard in my life.



personnel:

albert ayler - tenor saxophone
donald ayler - trumpet
charles tyler - alto saxophone
sunny murray - drums
call cobbs - harpsichord
henry grimes - bass
gary peacock - bass

tracklisting:
01 spirits rejoice (11:39)
02 holy family (2:12)
03 d.c. (7:59)
04 angels (5:28)
05 prophet (5:34)


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