I just can't get enough of the music created on the Black Fire label during its run in latter half of the 1970s. This particular album credited to Lon Moshe (who was part of James Plunky Branch's bands Juju and Oneness of Juju). The tunes on Love is Where the Spirit Lies are very spiritual kozmigroov jams that are certainly influenced by early Juju (just check those first two Strata East albums), but also draw upon the sound and vision of such cats as Sun Ra, Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, early to mid 1970s Don Cherry, and early Mtume. Fans of those artists or of the Strata East label will probably groove on this one.Just a word of warning: the sound files are ones I found via p2p networks a few years ago and the last track is badly messed up (if this were the good old days of analog sound media, I'd swear that half of that particular track had been accidentally taped over). The rest of the album should play just fine. Who knows, perhaps I will have incited someone to hook us up with a better version. Like a lot of the albums from the Black Fire back catalogue, this one goes in and out of print. I've just never had the good fortune to have the coin when it has been commercially available. Some day perhaps.
Personnel:
Lon Moshe - Vibraphone, Marimba
Eka Ete Jackie Lewis - Vocals
Robin Bolling - Vocals
Ngoma Hill - Poetry, Violin
Ras Mel Melvin Glover - Guitar
Nathanel Nat Lee - Acoustic Piano
Timothy A. Hall - Piano
Calvin Craddock - Bass
Tommy Spencer - 6 String Fender Bass
Reggie Brisbaine Jr. - Drums
Ndikho Xaba - Percussion, Conga, Bells
Marvin Daniels - Flugelhorn, Trumpet, Shekere
Ben Wilson - Vibraphone
Tracks:
1. Prayer for Saude
2. Love is Where the Spirit Lies
3. The Hutch
4. Doin' the Carvin' for Thabo
5. Survival Raga #9
6. Low Ghost
7. Ballad for Bobby Hutcherson
Recorded June 3, 1976 and September 14, 1977 at Arrest Recording Studio, Washington DC. Released on Black Fire, catalogue # BF 19804.
Download Love is Where the Spirit Lies
