(you've got to have) Freedom.

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Pharoah Sanders – You've Got To Have Freedom / Moon Child
Dopeness Galore – DG 2 005S, Timeless Records
Vinyl, 10", 33 ⅓ RPM, Sampler, Netherlands, 2007 (original tracks from 1987/1989)

It's true: You've got to have freedom. And Chicago will be getting more -or a whole lot less- in this week's election. We're electing a new mayor and it will either be a Black, progressive labor leader who has fought for our schools, safety and city... or we'll get the latest face of white supremacist backlash against the progress our movements have made.

Want to guess which team I'm on? Go vote for Brandon Johnson if you're in Chicago. If you can, please volunteer or donate. And join the party!

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...And since a party needs music: Today, some inspiration from the recently departed Pharoah Sanders. 

This is a 2007 10" released in Europe to promote a Best of Pharoah Sanders compilation that drew from his 1980s recordings for the Timeless Records label. This single collected two songs found a couple late 80s albums Sanders had cut for that Dutch jazz imprint. 

Both tracks are nice, but this recording of You've Got To Have Freedom is pretty unforgettable. Backed by the great Idris Muhammad on drums, Pharoah's horn snaps you to attention from the first note of this vocal-free take of his song. A melody that will stay in your head played with a power that has it on the verge of coming untethered from the rest of the music, this is part of what made Sanders so special. If you've ever doubted whether a political, or even spiritual, message can really be expressed in an instrumental piece of music, this might help.

Beautiful music. Dedicated today to the beautiful people in my beautiful city. It is not easy to choose hope, but this helps me get there.


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Tracklist
A You've Got To Have Freedom
B Moon Child

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People unite and let's all get down in FLAC (24 bit/96 kHz, download zip):

https://mega.nz/file/YO5QlbhZ#4Pig-0ht;oU-_2hjOVjmSFKWeotz6nz3WaKDJVmDd5F0

We've got to have it in MP3 (320 kbps, download or stream): https://mega.nz/folder/lHJ3VLBJ#jttVckrPh8W6Z18m0kgm2w



Comments

  1. aboynamedstewApril 1, 2023 at 6:47 PM

    thanks for the sanders! good luck to chicago in the election!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. MMApril 2, 2023 at 11:24 PM

      Thank you! Turns out there's also an important musical angle on the election that I hadn't been tracking: https://youtu.be/Rpsjx6yZmak

      Delete
  2. AnonymousJuly 9, 2023 at 1:21 AM

    Thank you so much!

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousAugust 23, 2023 at 6:19 AM

    Many thanks for this. Have not listened to any Pharoah Sanders for a while.

    Brian

    ReplyDelete

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