A similar theme manifested itself on 1976’s ‘Get Down Everybody (It’s Time For World Peace)’, a positive plea for global harmony married to dance floor funk. Other highlights on the new collection showcase the meditative side of Smith’s music, exemplified by the ethereal and otherworldly ‘Meditations’ and ‘In Search Of Truth’ with its exotic mysticism.

Lonnie’s next 3 jobs were perhaps the most important stepping stones in his career. He got the call from Pharaoh Sanders in 1968 and made his mark in one of the most visible ensembles of the day.

Credits (14)

After graduating from Armstrong High School, Lonnie entered Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, where he majored in music education and earned his B.S. degree. While attending Morgan State University, Lonnie became a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and also a member of the music fraternity, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. The Creator Has a Master Plan”, “Summum, Bukmun, Umyun”, and “Jewels of Thought” were essential to the band’s sound. Argentinean, saxophonist, Gato Barbieri, heard Lonnie performing with Pharaoh and asked Lonnie to record with him and Lonnie recorded the following CDs with Gato: Why was the 1970s such a pivotal time? “Everyone was experimenting. There was a bookstore in New York called Wisner’s that you would walk into and see John Coltrane or Sun Ra studying texts on religions and philosophies,” Smith says. “I wrote Expansions because I was studying spirituality and I realised that everyone wants the same thing: peace, love and harmony. I wanted to put that into the feel of the music itself.”

Smith recorded ‘Astral Traveling’ with his own band, the Cosmic Echoes, for Flying Dutchman. With its dreamy keyboard passages it’s a key song in Smith’s repertoire and reflects his interest in gaining knowledge and wisdom by exploring religion, philosophy and spirituality. He was heavily influenced by Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders in that respect and although he desired to articulate a similar spiritual message in his music his sound was much more accessible than that made by those two musicians. “I was trying to keep it all enlightening,” reflected Smith. “I was trying to make people think but at the same time because people love rhythm I wanted to make music they could dance to. I put the two combinations together and it made sense.” Lonnie Liston Smith Jr. (born December 28, 1940) [1] is an American jazz, soul, and funk musician who played with such jazz artists as Pharoah Sanders and Miles Davis before forming Lonnie Liston Smith and the Cosmic Echoes, recording a number of albums widely regarded as classics in the fusion, smooth jazz and acid jazz genres. A. Does this really need a review I ask myself. Countless heads and others alike know it but what about the newbs wondering what that funky flute tune is called? This is it.In 1974, Producer, Bob Thiele, signed Lonnie to a solo recording contract. “Astral Traveling” and “Cosmic Funk” were Lonnie’s first 2 CDs. However, it was his album (CD) , “Expansions” that broke Lonnie into the major leagues as a worldwide leader. The CD was a breath of fresh air in 1975 as it combined solid Jazz playing with creative crossover elements that did not dilute the music. While many of Lonnie’s contemporaries were making records that were artistically bankrupt, (fusion music at this time had become big business), his CDs retained warmth and fire. He recorded several more albums in this vein, including “Visions of a New World” and “Renaissance” before he was approached by CBS. Lonnie continued to make good records for them as well, “Loveland”, “Exotic Mysteries”, “Song for the Children” and “Love Is The Answer”. Following this stint, Smith moved to Pharoah Sanders' ensemble early in 1968, [1] a group Sanders had set up on the death of John Coltrane the previous year. Fiercely improvisational, Sanders pushed the band creatively to the boundaries of free jazz, recording three of Sanders' finest recordings: Karma ( Impulse, 1969), Jewels of Thought ( Impulse, 1970) and Thembi (Impulse, 1971), together with 1969 recording sessions not released until 1973 as Izipho Zam ( Strata East, 1973). It is at this point that Smith began experimenting with electric keyboards: