Albert Ayler Trio - Spiritual Unity (1964) [320kbps]

Spiritual Unity is an album by the American jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler, with bassist Gary Peacock and percussionist Sunny Murray. It was recorded for the ESP-Disk label and was a key free jazz recording which brought Ayler to international attention as it was so "shockingly different". It features two versions of Ayler's most famous composition, "Ghosts".

The critic Ekkehard Jost wrote that "Ayler's negation of fixed pitches finds a counterpart in Peacock's and Murray's negation of the beat. In no group of this time is so little heard of a steady beat [...] The absolute rhythmic freedom frequently leads to action on three independent rhythmic planes." Maintaining these qualities required deep group interaction. Ayler himself said of the record, "We weren't playing, we were listening to each other". The Penguin Guide to Jazz selected this album as part of its suggested "Core Collection" and awarded it a "crown".

Tracklist:

1. "Ghosts: First variation" – 5:12
2. "The Wizard" – 7:20
3. "Spirits" – 6:46
4. "Ghosts: Second variation" – 10:01