Birthright - 1974 - Free Spirits

Birthright

1974

Free Spirits

01. 'Nano' (11:44)

02. Do You Know Where Your Children Are?' (1:30)

03. Tangerine (For Muhammed)' (7:29)

04. Jowcol (To The Life, Memory And Spirit Of John Coltrane)' (11:02)

05. Free Spirits' (10:33)

Joe Ford - alto and soprano saxophone; electric piano on Tr. 5.

Paul Gresham - tenor saxaphone

Nasar Abadey - drums, percussion

Jim Kurzdorfer - electric and acoustic bass

Onaje Allen Gumbs - electric piano; acoustic piano Tr.4

Jimmy Manuel - acoustic piano Tr 1-3

This is a fantastic private-press spiritual jazz album coming from Buffalo, New York in 1974 on the Freelance Records imprint. Having absorbed electric Miles, Coltrane and Sanders; saxaphonists Joe Ford (alto, soprano) and Paul Gresham (tenor) came up with an organic interplay between their instruments that makes for a great album.

Joe Ford had aleady played with Ken McIntyre and the Mingus band, and went on after Birthright to play on McCoy Tyner albums like "Focal Point" and "The Greeting". Both Paul Gresham and drummer/percussionist Nasara Abadey had played with the Buffalo Philharmonic and Black Jazz's Doug Carn. After the two Birthright albums on Freelance Records, Gresham went on to release a solo album called "Every Sound We Make" as the label's third and seemingly final release, then seemed to disappear off the map. Adabey went to to a wide variety of session and live work, and has more recently formed a band called Supernova with Joe Ford, who has also established a solo career.

Keyboardist Onaje Allan Gumbs is already well known at this blog. Bassist Jim Kurzdorfer went off to more commercial pop-jazz pastures with Spyro Gyra; and pianist Jimmy Manuel is also difficult to track down after this, though he may have passed away last year.

I hope you enjoy this one as much as I have!