Thembi
Released
Sanders worked with rock-oriented producers Ed Michel and Bill Szymczyk on this multifaceted album, which features short, relatively concise and melodic tracks compared to his other early ’70s work. The blissful opening track, “Astral Traveling,” became a favorite of acid jazz DJs in the ’90s. It’s not all calm, though; “Red, Black & Green” is a squalling explosion featuring multiple overdubbed Sanderses blasting away at each other as Lonnie Liston Smith hammers the piano to splinters.