Castles of Ghana

by John Carter

Castles of Ghana cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1986
  • Label: Gramavision
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 48:30
  • Community rating: 4.04/5 from 5 ratings

Artists on this release: John Carter

Album Notes & Community Reviews

The masterful clarinetist assembled an incredible avant-garde octet to perform this deeply ambitious, suite-like conceptual work. The complex, highly structured post-bop compositions are interwoven with furious free-jazz improvisation, serving as a powerful musical meditation on the African diaspora and the horrors of the slave trade.

Genres

Descriptors: improvisation, rhythmic, complex, acoustic, avant-garde, atmospheric

Tracklist

  1. Castles of Ghana (13:23)
  2. Evening Prayer (6:11)
  3. Conversations (5:50)
  4. The Fallen Prince (6:10)
  5. Theme of Desperation (4:53)
  6. Capture (11:19)
  7. Postlude (0:40)

Credits

  • Marty Ehrlich - bass clarinet, bells, gong
  • Bobby Bradford - cornet
  • Richard Davis - double bass [acoustic bass]
  • Andrew Cyrille - drums, percussion
  • John Carter Jr. - research
  • Benny Powell - trombone
  • Baikida Carroll - trumpet, vocals
  • Terry Jenoure - violin, vocals

More from John Carter: full discography