Pharoah Sanders is a leading figure in the world of jazz and one of the last living legends with connections to players like Sun Ra and John Coltrane. His tenor saxophone playing has earned him royal status amongst free jazz players, critics and collectors. Sanders recorded his debut album for ESP in 1964, but it wasn't until he started playing with Coltrane that he would fully unleash the fury of his saxophone on the world of free jazz. The records Sanders played on for Coltrane laid the foundation of what was to come for both the world of free jazz and for Pharoah as a musician. After Coltrane's tragic death Sanders would record further with Alice Coltrane, John's widow, on the album Karma (1969), which is universally accepted as Sanders' masterpiece. Along with Alice and singer Leon Thomas, Sanders helped to create the genre of spiritual jazz.

On 1987's Africa, Sanders plays with an all-star line-up consisting of Idris Muhammad, John Hicks and Curtis Lundy. Muhammad brings his trademark tight sense of timekeeping, but with a looseness that we love – and Lundy's warm soulful bass does more than enough to give the set a sound bottom - all this while Hick's free lyrical piano works nicely with Sander's spiritual horn. The brilliant Africa sessions featured the quartet at their best...soulful but also searching for a strong groove at the same time. The music here is less ornamented than on most of Sanders' studio recordings, where sextets, septets or larger lineups had been the norm, but this brilliant effort here remains every bit as compelling. Pharoah and his crew play with the utmost sensitivity and give a demonstration that shows us the full extent of their skills.

To celebrate the legacy of Wim Wigt's Timeless Records, Music On Vinyl is releasing a 45th anniversary jazz series. The series features albums that are part of the Timeless Records legacy and will be released throughout 2021/2022. This 180g vinyl 2LP reissue of Africa features a pair of bonus tracks plus liner notes by Kevin Whitehead.