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Albert Ayler

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Cleveland Heights, Cleveland OH, United States (1936 – 1970)

Albert Ayler (born July 13th, 1936 in Cleveland Heights, Ohio – November 1970) was the most primal of the free jazz musicians of the 1960s. He possessed a deep blistering tone—achieved by using the stiffest plastic reeds he could find on his tenor saxophone—and a broad, pathos-filled vibrato that came right out of church music. His trio and quartet records of 1964, like ‘Spiritual Unity’ and ‘The Hilversum Sessions’, show him advancing the improvisational notions of John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman into abstract realms where timbre, not harmony and melody, is the music’s backbone. His ecstatic music of 1965 and 1966, like “

Spirits Rejoice” and “

Truth Is Marching In” has been compared by critics to the sound of a Salvation Army brass band, and involved simple, march-like themes which alternated with wild group improvisations and took jazz back to its pre-Louis Armstrong roots.

Ayler remains something of a cult artist. “

Ghosts”—with its bouncy, sing-song melody (rather reminiscent of a nursery rhyme)—is probably his best known tune, and is something of a free jazz standard, having been covered by Lester Bowie, Gary Windo, Eugene Chadbourne, Joe McPhee, John Tchicai and Ken Vandermark, among others.

Saxophonist Mars Williams led a group called Witches and Devils, which was not only named after an Ayler song, but which covered several of his songs.

Peter Brötzmann’s Die Like A Dog Quartet is a group loosely dedicated to Ayler. A record called ‘Little Birds Have Fast Hearts’ references Ayler’s youthful nickname.

Tagged as:

free jazz, jazz, avant-garde, saxophone, avant-garde jazz
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Spiritual Unity
Albert Ayler
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Love Cry
Albert Ayler
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Live In Greenwich Village: The Complete Impulse…
Albert Ayler
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Spirits Rejoice
Albert Ayler
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Top Tracks

1	Spirits full track	126
2	The Wizard full track	112
3	Ghosts: First Variation full track	109
4	Ghosts full track	83
5	Spirits Rejoice full track	77
6	Angels full track	69
7	Our Prayer full track	65
8	Truth Is Marching In full track	50
9	Bells full track	49
10	Ghosts: Second Variation full track	46
11	Holy Ghost full track	30
11	Love Cry full track	30
13	Holy Family full track	23
13	Dancing Flowers full track	23
15	Music Is The Healing Force Of The Universe full track	22

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ebovaguira wrote:
Tuesday morning

too young for this

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LePlatypope wrote:
last week

Where is there a 15 minute version of Spirits?

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psychrock88 wrote:
15 days ago

so much love

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Crustclock wrote:
last month

Not good music for a headache.

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JDC1988 wrote:
last month

Hell yeah, dude.

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ag194 wrote:
last month

crazy

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Inci90 wrote:
last month

eerie*

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RyanJones wrote:
last month

The recording from Coltrane's funeral is so errie.

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Skjaldekvad wrote:
September 2009

Fantastic musician, with an amazingly interesting story.

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gamboda wrote:
July 2009

http://www.lastfm.ru/music/third+view/negative+premonition some free music from russia sibiria very intresting

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Zap-Pascal wrote:
June 2009

I all always love Spirits ... Rejoice my soul... Really intensive !

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TxusMx wrote:
June 2009

D.C. is one of the best songs I've ever heard. So intense!

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elchingolense wrote:
June 2009

Wow, this is cool stuff... very underrated as I can see.

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uvawitz wrote:
May 2009

Sunday, May 24 | 8pm Sun Ra Arkestra in celebration of Marshall Allen’s 85th birthday and the 95th anniversary of Sun Ra’s arrival on Earth Johnny Brenda's 1201 Frankford Avenue Philadelphia, PA $10 General Admission Ars Nova Workshop presents a very special performance of the Sun Ra Arkestra in celebration of the 85th birthday of Marshall Allen. Join us for complimentary Moon Pies, a special midnight toast and DJ hi-res spinning classic jazz and breaks. Archival films featuring the Arkestra and Sun Ra will be projected on two large screens throughout the evening. You don’t want to miss this!

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PiedraPeter wrote:
May 2009

the universe, the earth, the sky through your breath through your sax

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insomniacme wrote:
May 2009

!!sey

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werkan wrote:
May 2009

yes!!!

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szklane_oko wrote:
April 2009

just have seen "My name is Albert Ayler". I am in pieces now. Really.

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JoshCIVM wrote:
April 2009

Primal indeed.

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SYL2Oh wrote:
April 2009

"Comme le fantôme d'un jazzman dans la station Mir en déroute" Maurice G. Dantec

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