I was mesmerized the first time I heard Sonny Sharrock's album Ask The Ages. His distorted guitar chords and near feedback solos were nothing I had heard before. Joined by legends Pharoah Sanders on sax and Elvin Jones on drums, the album is a big ball of free jazz that is both cohesive and adventurous.
Once Upon A Time is the final track on the album. It begins with a minute of drums, before a faint bass line comes in, followed soon after at 1:13 by the shocking arrival of Sonny's scraped guitar chords. Jones continues to bang away freely, while Sanders echoes the chords as distant guitar notes are heard in the background.
At 2:17, Sonny plays a catchy pattern of distorted notes that appear throughout the rest of the piece, with slight variations. Everyone else continues to do their thing, painting a beautifully hypnotic landscape that still has me transfixed to this day.
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