Nothing much to lose by giving it a try, around $20, I took the plunge.Īnonymous manufacture, digital transfer to vinyl, cheap cover. What I could find easily enough on vinyl was a grey ” unofficial issue”- an unlicensed copy.
After sampling a few You-tubes I felt I could get into this album, began looking for a decent original vinyl copy. Alice’s harp, and occasionally piano, is set in a powerful two-tenor combination overall, and a very accessible combination of worldly and other-worldly music. Henderson’s voice, hard tone and stock-phrases, are immediately recognisable, post-bop continuity, contrasting tenor style to Pharoah, who is in his element, delivering his saxophone spiritual exorcism on cue.
It was the presence of Joe Henderson that caught my attention, a surprise name in this setting, although Henderson recorded again with Alice in 1974 on his super-rare Milestone title Elements (generously subtitled “featuring Alice Coltrane”)
King super 20 alto saxophone plus#
The second issue of Ptah, The El Daoud added a cover sticker t o remind buyers that Pharoah Sanders was a feature of the album, plus in smaller font, “and Joe Henderson”, like an afterthought. Not a bad agenda.Īlice was a frequent collaborator with Pharoah Sanders, sharing a similar transcendental outlook. The Woodstock generation chanting “Om” to change the world, in search of enlightenment, bliss, harmony, and peace, music as the healing force. Why would you change your name to something that is even harder to spell than onomatopoeia, the spelling-bee tie-breaker. Initially perhaps in the shadow of John, Alice became drawn to Eastern Mysticism, hanging out with the Swamis at the Ashrams, adopting the name Turiyasangitananda, which mystifies me.
It is musically a very powerful performance, on a whole new wavelength. The opening march of Ptah is terrific, and it envelopes you as it unwinds. Holy post-Coltrane Impulse spirituality! Alice Coltrane is new to my turntable, and I admit being put off by the harp and other-worldly mysticism, but having taken the plunge, I have no reservations, this album is fabulous, perhaps recent encounters with Pharoah Sanders have tempered my sensibilities. From the purifying catharsis of the first moments of the title track to the last moments of “Mantra,” with its disjointed piano dance and passionate ribbons of tenor cast out into the universe, the album resonates with beauty, clarity, and emotion.” Ptah, The El Daoud is a truly great album, and listeners who surrender themselves to it emerge on the other side of its 46 minutes transformed. “Alice was a strong composer and performer in her own right, with a unique ability to impregnate her music with spirituality and gentleness without losing its edges or depth. Ptah The El Daoud stands out, with I think the best Impulse cover, and remarkably for a spiritual jazz album, made Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time (entry 446) Barneke – sound engineer of whom little else is known, also credited on another Alice Coltrane title.Ĭoltrane Home, Dix Hills, Long Island, 1964-73Īlice recorded half a dozen titles for Impulse, before moving to Warner Bros, and later concentrated on spiritual guidance matters. Joe Henderson, tenor sax, alto flute Pharoah Sanders, tenor sax, alto flute, bells Alice Coltrane, piano, harp Ron Carter, bass Ben Riley, drums Chuck Stewart, photographer, occasional bells produced by Ed Michel, design by The Institute For Better Vision (love that name, but little else of substance ) recorded at The Studio, Coltrane Home, Dix Hills, Long Island, January 26, 1970, engineering credits Wallace Barneke – W.L. With mysticism, things have to have to be mysterious, it’s part of the attraction. S election 2 – the close: Mantra (Alice Coltrane) Įgyptology Class, ptah attention! Who’s Ptah? The ancient Egyptian god of creation, usually depicted as a man with green skin, holding an ornamented staff, symbolic of sovereignty. Selection 1 – the opening: Ptah, The El Daoud (Alice Coltrane) Exceptional circumstances, it’s a Vinyl Emergency. Warning! LJC hits rock-bottom with an “unlicensed copy” from digital sources.
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