Albert Ayler - Prophecy

Three weeks before this trio recorded ESP-Disk's first jazz album, the epochal Spiritual Unity, it was captured "live" by Canadian poet Paul Haines (who also recorded the New York Eye and Ear soundtrack [ESP1016]). This is one of the most influential groups in jazz history, a coming together of like-minded innovators who would be considered crucial influences by succeeding generations, so there is no question of the immense value of this material. Yoked, in the CD era, to the one-sided LP Bells, made with a different band in a very different style a year later, it is perhaps best appreciated on its own.