Sounds of Liberation

Sounds Of Liberation was a band – and a social movement – formed in 1970 out of the Germantown & Mt Airy neighborhoods of Philadelphia. The band consisted of seven members: Khan Jamal (vibraphone), Byard Lancaster (alto saxophone), Billy Mills (bass), Dwight James (drums), Monnette Sudler (guitar), Omar Hill (percussion), William Brister (percussionist, aka Rashid Salim).

Originally conceived and formed by Khan Jamal, the arrival of Byard Lancaster in 1971 helped shift their focus and efforts into a higher gear. Jamal and Lancaster would work together in different configurations throughout the decade.

Sounds of Liberation were at the forefront of avant-garde Black expression in the early 1970s, putting action behind their creative endeavors. They were as much of a community force as a band, and because of that there was a strong desire by the entire group to work with a range of different populations, from school children to inmates. They continued to do so throughout the mid-1970s.

The group issued one self-released album, New Horizons – alternately titled The Sounds Of Liberation in later pressings – in 1972, on their Dogtown label. [It was reissued earlier this decade to a great deal of fanfare amongst jazz fans, by Porter Records.]