Impulse Records
2006
The Impulse Story
About This Album
Albert Ayler was a lightning rod for criticism both from within the music community and from without. His free-thinking approach made him a bane for jazz traditionalists, and his incorporation of popular American musical styles like soul, R&B, and even rock made him a sellout to the free jazz crowd. His volume in The Impulse Story series -- one of ten individual artist titles to accompany both the book The House That Trane Built: The Impulse Story by Ashley Kahn and the four-CD label history set of the same name from Universal, is in many ways the very evidence of both points on the scale. There are ten cuts on this set, and the first three -- "Holy Ghost," "Truth Is Marching In," and "Angels" -- come from the celebrated Live in Greenwich Village: The Complete Impulse Recordings double-disc set. They offer the best recorded evidence up to that point -- 1965 and 1966 -- of Ayler's use of gospel music and marching rhythms in his free jazz approach. All are lengthy pieces with three different lineups. There are two shorter tunes from Love Cry, recorded and issued in 1967 -- including a lovely short version of "Bells." The lineup was bassist Alan Silva, Don Ayler on trumpet, and drummer Milford Graves.
Track List (try tracks 4,5,7,8,9 and 10)

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