Ancient Africa
On Feb. 18, 1973, Abdullah Ibrahim had a busy day, recording two brilliant albums of solo piano. A pair of CD reissues (Ancient Africa and Fats Duke & The Monk) include all of the material from the LPs Sangoma and African Portraits although they change the order of the songs around quite a bit; Ancient […]
African Marketplace
Knysna Blue
After decades of self-exile, pianist/composer/bandleader Abdullah Ibrahim finally had an opportunity to return to his native South Africa in the early 1990s. This solo CD was recorded at Cape Town and has seven of his themes, all of which reflect his heritage; in addition, Ibrahim performs Thelonious Monk’s “Ask Me Now.” An excellent effort that […]
Fats, Duke & the Monk
After a decade of generally intriguing recordings, pianist Abdullah Ibrahim really found his own voice by the early ’70s. His lengthy solo set from February 18, 1973, originally released as a pair of Sackville LPs (Sangoma and African Portraits), has been reshuffled and expanded a bit upon the release of this CD and its companion […]
Desert Flowers
Recent release by pianist and bandleader Abdullah Ibrahim, combining the sweeping township jive rhythms of his native South Africa, swing and gospel piano riffs, and hard-hitting bop solos and progressions.
Mantra Mode
This was a very special recording for pianist/composer Abdullah Ibrahim because, after nearly 30 years of exile, he was back in Cape Town, South Africa performing with local musicians. The musicianship is surprisingly high and the African septet does a fine job of interpreting eight of Ibrahim’s newer folk melodies.
Good News from Africa
No Fear, No Die (S’en Fout La Mort)
Jazzbühne Berlin ’82
African Horns
