In 1968, Yusuf Mumin was the blistering alto saxophone voice of the Black Unity Trio, who recorded the cult privately pressed album Al-Fatihah, one of the most sought-after albums in the genre. After extensive but unsuccessful searches for additional material by the group, Journey to the Ancient finally offers more unheard music from Yusuf Mumin.
The album presented here draws from a selection of recordings preserved in Mumin’s private collection, revealing previously unheard layers of his experimental vision. Mumin performs under both his own name and, when multitracking revelatory double bass parts, the pseudonym Dan Nuby.
“The undated material is culled from Mumin’s personal archives and features him on alto, tenor, flute and, for a short opening piece in memory of Abdul Wadud, cello and vocals,” writes Pierre Crépon in his liner notes for the release. “At least two sessions are represented. Drummer William Holmes, an associate of the late Sonny Simmons, provides an excellent rhythmic counterpart.”
Born Joseph W. Phillips in 1944, Mumin became a key figure in Cleveland’s radical free jazz underground of the 1960s. Deeply influenced by spiritual and esoteric traditions, Mumin was originally drawn to “outside” playing by the sonic explorations of Yusef Lateef. Shortly after Albert Ayler’s U.S. recording debut with trumpeter Norman Howard, Howard and Mumin were co-leading a group in Cleveland. Mumin’s legacy was cemented through his collaborations with Abdul Wadud and Hasan Shahid as the Black Unity Trio.
Meticulously remastered by Colorsound Studio, the recordings that make up Journey to the Ancient illuminate previously unknown chapters in the story of one of avant-garde jazz’s true originals. The release includes a two-page insert featuring interview-based liner notes by Mumin and Crépon, offering fresh insight into the great history of the Cleveland scene.
Journey to the Ancient continues Wewantsounds’ mission to unearth the hidden treasures of such visionary jazz musicians, and it’s an honour to finally present Yusuf Mumin’s cutting-edge work for the first time after it remained unheard in the vault for decades.
