Sonny Sharrock - Ask the Ages

"But Miles, you don't play guitar."

"Fuck you!" [Slams down phone]

Not the only Miles anecdote I've heard that ends with that verb and a phone hang-up. And this is just stuff I heard about in personal conversations.

Why is this album so hard to find for less than crazy money?!?! And not on iTunes/eMusic/Amazon.co.uk :(

it's v. v. out of print. i stumbled across a copy for like 12 bucks in a used shop in a college town one time.

I just sold this on ebay for $7.

It's $6 on Amazon.com/MP3....

I just sold this on ebay for $7.

On CD? It's selling on Amazon for nearly $100 used and about $50 for a good condition used copy.

MP3s aren't available on Amazon.co.uk, though. I suppose I can wait until I'm in the States again to buy it then!

damn, i am totally going to sell my cd of this

hey cool, i didn't realize ask the ages had it's own thread. one of my all-time favorites, and certainly the most accessible and (i think) impressive sharrock album. may be a kind of heresy, but i love "who does she hope to be", so simple and lyrical, a real surprise given the band's exploratory tendencies. i tried to make the case during the 90s poll that it's one of the decade's underappreciated classics, but there were few takers, iirc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jks0N05l4OY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpBGhnCkhu0&feature=related

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmBFD5h9jR0&feature=related

On CD? It's selling on Amazon for nearly $100 used and about $50 for a good condition used copy.
Yeah, cd. Prices on Amazon never reflect the actual market.

xpost to contenderizer: Why would that be heretical? "Who Does She Hope to Be?" is gorgeous.

not muscular/skronky enough. kidding, really.

xxp I've sold similar free jazz cds on ebay before and the difference between a $5 sale and a $30 sale is luck. There aren't enough people searching for this stuff.

I bought this at Barnes & Noble for $9 in 2002.

I got $40 for mine in Oct '05, but I was selling my CDs just ahead of the bottom falling out of the used CD market.

oh hey, most of the time this is my favorite jazz record

we should recommend this one to ilxor

and lj, but i think he already knows it from that 90s thread

My MP3 player's not that huge so every so often I have to clear space. This one never leaves.

someone buy my cd for 50$

no way is this alb better than 'black woman'

i've been trying to find a copy of this for a long time too but thanks to this thread i just went fuck it and got it 'elsewhere'. first listen and it's certainly a different beast than "black woman" but a beast nonetheless

o hey, "someone's" selling this on discogs for ONLY 20$!

man, i love this album so much. got mine for $6 in 2005 when i found one in the record store where i worked, and begged my boss to sell it to me for mad cheap. thanks sandy!

btw if anyone wants to help me start a campaign to press this shit on vinyl, im in.

*enlists*

all we need is a screenprinter and a kickstarter

i got screenprinting gear, but v low tech like speedball yo. would proably want someone who knows what they're doing. dunno nothing about having vinyl printed or rights acquisition. or are we talking about an "import"? webs of mystery. you know anyone who's pressed vinyl?

we should recommend this one to ilxor

ha, cool -- don't recall if it's been brought up in that thread or not. i know sharrock in general's come up. i can't find a damn thing by him in the local shops but i'll def keep an eye out!

this is my fav. jazz record too fwiw

I got deeply into this album about 6 mo. before he died. At the time, I was in music school and lived with a bunch of jazz majors -- most of whom were suspect of free practitioners like Sharrock and Sanders tho probably only outright hostile to the latter due to his propensity to revert to pig-squealing noise in lieu of chord substitutions or modality even.

My memory of Ask the Ages was strong tunes and arrangements, great Pharaoh solos, but that Charnette seemed maybe a little out of his league. Listening again for the first time in, er, ages, I'm not hearing any problems with Charnette and loving the tunes. Whoever called the title track from Here Come the Warm Jets on "Once Upon a Time" is spot on.

Also dug out Last Exit for the first time in eons. Despite the ridiculous press releases touting them as drunken marauders pillaging towns across Europe, I've always loved most of these records. Not sure the ever topped "Line of Fire" from Cassette Recordings -- 20 minutes that captures the best of each member: Brotzmann in full ale-swilling blare, Shannon Jackson rolling and grooving, Sharrock doing his thing supported by Laswell, whose playing on these records is better than anything he did. He just fit in perfectly between Sharrock's chordal stabs and Shannon Jackson's grooves.

still sounds like one of the flat-out best america albums of the 90s, with little competition

^ add n to x

Spotify has Ask The Ages, also Pharoah's much earlier Tauhid, where Mr. SS is the beep-beep roadrunner, goading the leader's sunrise-on-the-Nile song into a water buffalo bellow (if the Nile didn't have such critters before, it does now). He's also the team provocateur on the first two tracks of Pharoah's Ipzopho Zam, then, on the 28 minute-and change title track, comes up with what I think of an African-Caribbean riff--rippling, tensile, succinct--which turns out to be his iteration, or maybe invention, of the group theme (gliding and boiling through sunburst saxes, lattices of percussion, bass, keys, Leon Thomas yodeling in tongues, but also in tune, and not too much, honest!). Spotify doesn't have that one, but they have a bunch of others Sharrock played on, incl ones they list, and others here (with a few more in Allmusic, like a couple more Herbie Mann albums)
http://www.sonnysharrock.com/info.asp?pgs=discography

He's also the team provocateur on the first two tracks--emphasis on "team" here: mostly discreet, sometimes sneaky--listen on headphones.

Last Exit's stuff really holds up, especially the live albums—Iron Path, their only studio record, is a little tame. When I interviewed Laswell a year or two ago, I briefly brought up the idea of assembling a Last Exit box, and he said it could definitely be done, and that there were plenty of other unreleased recordings, but that it would be very labor intensive to find and organize the tapes. I think if I ever launched a Kickstarter project, that would be it—a massive Last Exit box with as much unreleased stuff as could be unearthed.

Yeah man--still a lot of incredible Sharrock here and there in the Interweb universes---recently heard Pharoah with Sonny and the dual-drummer combo in Japan: robust vocal intro (not Leon-style yodeling)maybe Sonny, who was a singer way before starting over as a guitarist. It's wordless at first then, "My mother's son/My father's son", and onto the guitar (sounds like another guitar behind his solo; Nicky S., perhaps?), sax, bass drums--9 minutes rolling like 3.

http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=469038
this was upped to Dime a couple of weeks ago. I couldn't work out how to find this thread and post to it at the time,Has search engine actually started working again, just did this today with google.

Lovely set with 3 of the 4 players from the lp but Pheroaan AkLaff on drums instead of Elvin Jones.
Very good set, a bit less droney than the lp, more upbeat not so old -timey. Extended versions of several of the lp tracks plus a 17 minute plus upper and Lower Egypt

Whoa would love to hear that! I'm not on DAD unfortunately.

http://bigozine2.com/roio/?p=3370

I was hoping the tread-revive was due to an impending vinyl reissue.

I've been listening to ATA in the car this week. It's beautiful. I really didn't dig it when I got it in the late 90's during my first furtive forays into free jazz because it sounded tame to me compared to Tauhid or Izipho Zam or whatever shreddin' Sonny I'd heard at that point. It sounded like a Santana record to me back then, which was a bad thing (I've since come around on Santana, too) and I traded it away. I picked it up again on the cheap a year or so back and now it sounds perfect to my old ass. Dude left us too soon!

have also been listening to this a lot the last 2-3 weeks, coincidentally. Great record, tho I think of it less as "free jazz", than an extension of mid 60s Impulse/Coltrane quartet sound. Will have to check out that live set.

an extension of mid 60s Impulse/Coltrane quartet sound

I'm seeing that Hive Mind Records is doing a vinyl reissue - double LP, 45rpm, edition of 500. I feel like I'll look forward to this and then look forward to paying exorbitant prices to a flipper. Still, sounds pretty cool.

Kinda surprised I never once popped into this thread over the years just to say 'masterpiece.'

i have it on cassette, sounds great. will happily dub it for you if you’d like xp

and yeah. masterpiece.

The Quietus also has a Linda profile, not paywalled:
https://thequietus.com/interviews/strange-world-of/linda-sharrock-strange-world-interview-history/

Another part of the great Sonny-Pharoah trilogy, counting on in thee wake of Ask The Ages and Sanders' Tauhid---as with that one, Shacrock's not on every track here, but leaves his marks:

https://img.broadtime.com/Photo/418467289799:800

Pharoah Sanders
Izipho Zam (My Gifts)

DETAILS
Event: RECORD STORE DAY 2025
Release Date: 4/12/2025
Format: LP
Label: Strata East / Mack Avenue
Quantity: 1500
Release type: RSD Exclusive Release

MORE INFO

Pharoah Sanders' Izipho Zam (My Gifts) is a groundbreaking jazz masterpiece. Recorded in 1969, two years after John Coltrane's passing, and released in 1973 on Strata-East, the album features a 13-member ensemble, including Sonny Sharrock, Lonnie Liston Smith, Cecil McBee, and Leon Thomas. Blending Eastern influences with expansive jazz, Sanders’ genius is highlighted with "Prince of Peace," showcasing Thomas' unique vocals, and the 28-minute title track, offering an exploration of dissonance and harmony with West African percussion and meditative chants.

For the first time ever, this seminal work from the legendary saxophonist will be available on CD and digital platforms, as well as on 180-gram vinyl. Pressed at Record Technology Inc. (RTI) and mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio with audio transferred directly from the original analog tapes, the vinyl edition comes in high-quality, glossy tip-on gatefold jackets. It also includes new liner notes by Harmony Holiday and never-before-seen photos, making this release a must-have for jazz enthusiasts and collectors alike.

Tracklist
Prince of Peace
Balance
Izipho Zam

oh awesome. US or UK RSD?

Didn't know there was one in UK, sorry---US is April 12---also should have linked for more info:
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/18612?utm_source=Klaviyo&utm_medium=campaign&_kx=XgsSpWeUdLyZqQ3-Zjbyg-F45rlmHHY21Ke2akZ93wc.VgBDnP

fwiw, if you want the CD and/or don't wanna bother with the RSD stuff, you can order it from their bandcamp site now:

https://pharoahsanders.bandcamp.com/album/izipho-zam-my-gifts

Yeah,and I see now that one track's streaming freely (like some from previous releases). Gotta wait 'til April for it to ship (or $10 digital to download), while RSD is April 12,

Oh yah, here tis----forthcoming reissues may or may not have better audio, but this gives the idea---brace yourself:

http://www.google.com/search?q=pharoah+sanders+izipho+zam&client=firefox-b-1-e&sca_esv=9c78e69b3b66f49f&ei=PIHxZ4qtGIqCp84PzerBqAo&gs_ssp=eJzj4tbP1TcwNMqzzDGrMGD0kirISCzKT8xQKE7MS0ktKlbIrMosyMhXqErMBQALtg3Y&oq=Pharoh+Sanders+&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiD1BoYXJvaCBTYW5kZXJzICoCCAEyCxAAGIAEGJECGIoFMgsQLhiABBiRAhiKBTILEC4YgAQYkQIYigUyCxAuGIAEGJECGIoFMgcQLhiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQLhiABBgKMgcQLhiABBgKSLbSAVD9LViIsgFwBngAkAEAmAHJFqABrU6qAQc3LTEuMi4yuAEByAEA-AEBmAIKoAKzO8ICDhAAGIAEGLADGIYDGIoFwgIIEAAYsAMY7wXCAgsQABiABBiwAxiiBMICDhAuGIAEGJECGLEDGIoFwgIGEAAYFhgemAMA4gMFEgExIECIBgGQBgaSBwc2LjctMy4xoAfPYbIHBTctMy4xuAe4OQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:14f6ab59,vid:Zd5aHgAzdqc,st:0

That goes to post of title track, and then to full alb---trying to go directly to full:

http://www.google.com/search?q=pharoah+sanders+izipho+zam&client=firefox-b-1-e&sca_esv=9c78e69b3b66f49f&ei=PIHxZ4qtGIqCp84PzerBqAo&gs_ssp=eJzj4tbP1TcwNMqzzDGrMGD0kirISCzKT8xQKE7MS0ktKlbIrMosyMhXqErMBQALtg3Y&oq=Pharoh+Sanders+&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiD1BoYXJvaCBTYW5kZXJzICoCCAEyCxAAGIAEGJECGIoFMgsQLhiABBiRAhiKBTILEC4YgAQYkQIYigUyCxAuGIAEGJECGIoFMgcQLhiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQABiABBgKMgcQLhiABBgKMgcQLhiABBgKSLbSAVD9LViIsgFwBngAkAEAmAHJFqABrU6qAQc3LTEuMi4yuAEByAEA-AEBmAIKoAKzO8ICDhAAGIAEGLADGIYDGIoFwgIIEAAYsAMY7wXCAgsQABiABBiwAxiiBMICDhAuGIAEGJECGLEDGIoFwgIGEAAYFhgemAMA4gMFEgExIECIBgGQBgaSBwc2LjctMy4xoAfPYbIHBTctMy4xuAe4OQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:14f6ab59,vid:Zd5aHgAzdqc,st:0

I've pretty much given up on finding a reasonably priced CD copy of Ask the Ages, so I was going to spring for the "Reloaded" M.O.P. on bandcamp, but (aside from the godawful cover art) I've read some comments really blasting the mix. Anyone heard this version?

https://modreloaded.bandcamp.com/album/ask-the-ages

Apparently the Messthetics have interpreted this album live once or twice, I had no idea:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiASj9sI7r0

Brendan is a legend and everything, but I do not like that. Better than trying to do Elvin, I guess, but maybe better still to not do it (even though the themes are great).