Karma - LP (Verve Acoustic Sounds)

Release 16/12/22
Vinyl, LP, Reissue

'The Creator Has A Master Plan' is simply one of the most wonderful moments in free jazz. With Leon Thomas' amazing vocal and a surging, hypnotically repetitive main motif, it's the pinnacle of late 1960s return-to-earth spirituality. You can get all jazz-dude complicated and try to explain it or you can just listen. Almost all of both sides are taken up with a single composition.

'The Creator Has A Master Plan' borrows the bass line and rhythmic pattern of Coltrane's 'Acknowledgement' and extends them in new directions. The piece begins with a ringing crescendo of sleigh bells, cymbals and flutes accompanying the forceful affirmation of faith by sander's tenor. From there it moves through a series of moods, some quiet and reverent, others tormented and frantic, which impress the listener with their unpretentious depth. The voice of Leon Thomas enters the sphere of sound twice with a short benediction. 'The Creator Has A Master Plan, peace and happiness for every man. The Creator makes but one demand, happiness through all the land'.

Like all Acoustic Sounds releases, production is being supervised by Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds, the world’s largest source for audiophile recordings, and will utilize the unsurpassed production craft of Quality Record Pressings. This reissue honors the late jazz legend who passed away in September at the age of 81 and concludes the series for 2022.

Tracks:
The Creator Has A Master Plan
Colors