PHAROAH SANDERS "KARMA" LP RARE ORIGINAL PRESS 1969 IMPULSE A CLASSIC NICE

$

25

PHAROAH SANDERS

"KARMA" ORIGINAL PRESSING

LABEL: IMPULSE AS-9181

RELEASED: 1969

CONDITION: VINYL: EX- *** JACKET: VG++

This auction is for an original stereo copy of Pharoah Sander’s legendary album ‘Karma’ released in 1969 on the Impulse label. It is the first pressing with the shiny laminated jacket. It is in quite good condition for being 50 years old. 

‘Karma’ was a very influential jazz recording by the American tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. 

Ferrell (‘Pharoah’) Sanders was from Little Rock, Arkansas but moved from coast to coast, following the music and working various gigs. He met John Coltrane while doing sessions on the West coast. 

By 1961, he ended up in New York City. He was working in a Greenwich Village coffee shop where he encountered Sun Ra, the great cosmic bandleader, who bestowed a new moniker on the young tenor saxophonist: “Pharoah.”  

After a brief stint in Sun Ra’s Arkestra, Sanders realigned with Coltrane, recording with him on his exploratory late-career albums like Ascension, Meditations and Kulu Sé Mama. Sanders played with Coltrane until his untimely death in 1967. 

After Coltrane, there were many artists seeking to make spiritual music that encompassed the ideas, beliefs and yearnings that John established, but no one really succeeded until Sanders stepped out from the shadow of his mentor and released ‘Karma’, which bore the soul of Coltrane's musical and spiritual passion. 

The record was Sanders' first in the wake of Coltrane's passing – and it's a beautiful extended work that flows with a sense of grace, power, and majesty that's simply breathtaking – a new level of expression in spiritual jazz – and virtually the blueprint for an entire generation to come! 

His shared interest in the "cosmic" music of Coltrane's final period belies the fact that Sanders frequently plays with an unhurried sense of peace and satisfaction rarely found in his mentor's music. 

His use of space, African and Asian motifs and instruments, and simple, repetitive melodies also pointed the way for jazz, rock, and new age musicians in the '70s, while his sometimes raucous use of harsh, shrieking runs influenced many of jazz's most adventurous saxophonists. 

In my opinion this is Sander’s magnum opus, and one of the high points of the avant-garde movement. While Sanders has released many albums on many labels, nothing matches his work on the Impulse label. Jazz legend Ornette Coleman called Sanders “probably the best tenor player in the world.” at the time of this albums release, late 1969. 

While working as a sideman with Coltrane, Sanders began to develop his own style and direction. He sometimes had an aggressive tone that ripped into a chaotic passion owing as much to Coltrane as Albert Ayler. 

The band is one of Sanders' finest and includes: 

Pharoah Sanders — tenor saxophone

Lonnie Liston Smith — piano

Leon Thomas — vocal, percussion

Ron Carter, Reggie Workman & Richard Davis — bass

Billy Hart & Freddie Waits – drums

Julius Watkins — french horn

James Spaulding — flute

Nathaniel Bettis — percussion 

The musicians came from all kinds of religious backgrounds, realizing that no matter the denomination, they preached the same message of peace, love and brotherhood. The playing is simply exemplary throughout. 

There are only two tracks on Karma, the 32-plus minute "The Creator Has a Master Plan" and the six minute "Colours." 

“Creator” is probably the best known spiritual jazz composition after John Coltrane’s “Love Supreme.” The track is one of the finest and best-executed and edited jams ever caught on record. 

"Creator" comes in at 33 minutes long and wastes not a single note. Opening with a virtual rush of sound, “Creator” is in many ways a tribute to John Coltrane and particularly to John’s inimitable “Love Supreme,” which Sanders quotes during the intro. The tune then works itself into a groove that would later be known as acid jazz, working with Eastern percussion and allowing the bass to float close to the front of the mix.

A modal two-chord structure keeps the tune bouncy and meditative. Sanders carries the melody, feel, and improvisation firmly on his shoulders. 

Despite its length, the song actually achieved mainstream FM radio airplay, surely the closest the avant-garde movement came to a "hit", apart from the cult classic A Love Supreme. It is a way more tranquil and spiritual-sounding composition than anything Coltrane ever did, and the composition is by far denser in terms of instrumentation.

“Creator” is simply one of the most wonderful moments in free jazz. It's the pinnacle of late 1960s return-to-earth spirituality. 

‘Karma’s popularity allowed spiritual music to descend and infiltrate the earthly realm of pop and rock. Anybody who worked with Pharoah or was around his band felt the spiritual vibes. 

‘Karma’ was there before ‘Give Peace a Chance’ and ‘What’s Going On.’ After Karma, Marvin Gaye changed his demeanor and started wearing knit caps and grew out his beard. Taj Mahal started wearing spiritual robes, all from working on shows with Sanders. Other artists became more spiritual as well, in their writing, their playing and in their outward appearance. This album had influence on the music scene as a whole, not just in the jazz world. 

The other song on the album, "Colors," is a shorter and more structured piece that features some solid and well-executed chops. Ron Carter takes over the duties on bass. 

Sanders’ playing could be smooth and ‘traditional’ but he also developed a lot of odd techniques over the years to build his distinctive sound, including split-reed techniques, overblowing, and multiphonics, which give a screeching sound. He also had an inherent knowledge of Eastern breathing and modal techniques. 

Favoring overblowing, shrieks and other extended techniques like harmonics, biting the reed and yelling through the bell of the horn, Sanders pushed beyond the barriers of jazz towards unfettered sound, no longer beholden to chord changes and scales. 

Sanders faced some criticism from the jazz world for his style and technique but the music was very real, honest, sacred and had a certain tone about it, mystical and just beautiful. 

Pharoah Sanders is a living legend but Kamasi Washington seems to be the popular Sax player and artist who is picking up and carrying the torch of free jazz to today’s fans. 

For those who are unfamiliar with spiritual jazz or Pharaoh Sanders, or are intrigued by the newer jazz artists like Kamasi, ‘Karma’ is probably one of the best entry points to a world of limitless musical possibilities. Karma is a record that deserves to be heard by any serious jazz fan. 

The music on this album pays homage to life, happiness and transcendence. It is warm and compassionate, yet beautiful, challenging and unique. 

One of the great albums of all time. It soothes and challenges you at the same time. It takes you on a journey to a new place, in your mind and in your soul. If you listen to it late at night with headphones, you might feel you are reaching heaven or a higher place of spiritual enlightenment. This album will take you on a spiritual journey.

Condition is quite good for a 50 year old album. Cover has some scuffs and a few areas of water damage. Inner gatefold has water marks as well, but not too bad. See close up pictures. Nice spine, no seam splits. Original Impulse inner sleeve. Overall a nice copy for such a rare record.

The vinyl is in Excellent condition. I took great care of my records then and today. I almost never grade vinyl as EX, but this one is close. No obvious scuffs, scratches or defects. Clean and shiny. I’m sure you’ll be pleased. Normal MINOR wear from play but nothing distracting. Records are much better than the jacket, which isn’t that bad either. I would definitely grab this up for my collection if I didn’t recently get an upgrade.

A legendary but obscure release. In time, it will go down as one of the best jazz records ever.  Definitely a classic in every sense of the word.

Looks, plays and sounds great. It’s been properly stored in my personal collection for years. I’m sure you’ll be more than happy with this rare record. Overall, a great copy and one of the better condition ones I've seen lately. 

I’m retired and downsizing and letting go some gems from nearly 50 years of record collecting. Check out the many other fantastic 45s and 33s on my page!

Shipping cost within the lower 48 states is only $6.00 via USPS first class. I will be glad to ship international for whatever the exact cost to do so is. We can talk after the auction is over and work out the details. I do NOT gouge on my shipping charges. It costs what it costs.

If you would like insurance, or anything faster than first class, please let me know and I can arrange it for you. I’ll work with you to make sure you’re happy! 

All LP's come with generic white paper inner sleeves and simple poly-bags, unless otherwise noted or pictured. I do try to match up proper, appropriate generic company sleeves with my 45’s and LP's and I’ll gladly include them if I have them. As mentioned, this one does have the original Impulse inner sleeve.

All items are packaged with sturdy cardboard mailers and filler pads. I take pride in my packaging and shipping and pack my records as if I were sending them to myself. I refuse to use cheap flimsy packaging material when sending my records. I treat them as if they were my own and mail them the same way.

All records have been cleaned and played by me. I visually inspect all records under bright light, personally clean them and then play them on a modern high-end turntable to get a true picture of condition. I'm a 0ne-man operation, this is a hobby, not my job. I do this for fun. I do this because I love music, love collecting vinyl and want others to share in that same experience. I take my time listening, researching, grading, listing and packaging. I will NOT sell any record that I personally would not want in my collection.

I’ve been told by other vinyl collecting friends that I under-grade the condition of my records. I see no harm in that. If that VG+ record comes and it’s nicer that you thought, great! We’ve all been burned by that EX- record purchase only to get it and it looks like it was cleaned with sandpaper and played with a rusty nail. My goal is to avoid that ever happening to me or you ever again. My grading is fair and honest and I will ALWAYS refund you for anything you’re not happy with. I have had nearly 3,000 happy and satisfied EBay customers over the years and I have been buying/selling on ebay for over 15 years, so please bid with confidence!

All orders are processed and shipped within 2 business days of receipt. We package and ship our vinyl records with the greatest care, using extra-thick packaging to ensure that your rare and collectible vinyl records arrive in pristine condition.

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