Kulu Sé Mama

Personnel: John Coltrane (tenor saxophone, jingle bells, percussion); Frank Butler (vocals, drums, percussion); Juno Lewis (vocals, hand drums, conch shell, percussion); Pharoah Sanders (tenor saxophone, kalimba, percussion); Donald Rafael Garrett (bass clarinet, bass, percussion); McCoy Tyner (piano); Jimmy Garrison (bass); Elvin Jones (drums).
Producers: John Coltrane, Bob Thiele.
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on June 10 & 16, 1965 and at Western Recorders, Los Angeles, California on October 14, 1965.
KULU SE MAMA is a somewhat neglected LP recorded by John Coltrane in 1965 during a key transitional stage in his career. Two of the album's three lengthy tracks ("Vigil" and "Welcome") feature the legendary saxophonist with his classic quartet (including bassist Jimmy Garrison, drummer Elvin Jones, and pianist McCoy Tyner). And these pieces have the open, exploratory, modal feel familiar to fans of Coltrane's A LOVE SUPREME period. "Kulu Se Mama" itself features an expanded line-up that includes saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, drummer Frank Butler, bassist and bass clarinetist Donald Garrett, and percussionist/singer Juno Lewis (who wrote the piece), with an African feel that includes layered polyrhythms and chanted vocals.