Shabaka & The Ancestors - Wisdom Of Elders (2016) [Official Digital Download]

8 men in a studio in Johannesburg; one tenor sax, one alto sax, one trumpet. One on vocals, one on ivory, one bass, one on percussion and one the drums. 800 million voices. 700 years. Millions of bones cracking under the weight of 22 false free years. Innumerable tiny sparks. One uncontrollable blaze.

Wisdom of the Elders was recorded in Johannesburg in 2015 on one of many trips Shabaka Hutchings took there to immerse himself in the country's rich musical heritage. The album is a psalm in nine parts. An episodic unfurling of a sonic journey across the Atlantic.

Tradition shapes your work. For saxophonist and bandleader Shabaka Hutchings, that's something he's long understood. After years spent in the orbit of London's jazz circuit, he examines and reimagines his influences with a dexterity that's unique. The album is a document of sessions combining Hutchings with a group of South African jazz musicians he's long admired. His connection to the group was Mandla Mlangeni (bandleader of the Amandla Freedom Ensemble), whom he'd flown there to play with over the past few years. Recorded across just one day, the group drew on their South African lineage – heroes like Zim Ngquwana and Bheki Mseleku – to bring their own slant to the American jazz lineage being reconfigured in Hutchings' compositions themselves.

Tracklist:

01 - Mzwandile
02 - Joyous
03 - The Observer
04 - The Sea
05 - The Observed
06 - Natty
07 - OBS
08 - Give Thanks
09 - Nguni

Musicians:
Shabaka Hutchings - Tenor Sax
Mthunzi Mvubu - Alto Sax
Mandla Mlangeni - Trumpet
Siyabonga Mthembu - Vocals
Nduduzo Makhathini - Rhodes, Piano
Ariel Zomonsky - Bass
Gontse Makhene - Percussion
Tumi Mogorosi - Drums


Thanks to the Original customer!