Bennie Maupin - The Jewel In The Lotus

Webbing out of yesterday’s Marion Brown LP, the tenor player Bennie Maupin happens to have released one of my staple free jazz favs about a decade later in 1974. Bennie is a member of Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters (many other members of that band also play on this record) and both him and Herbie are Buddhist devotees. What I’ve heard is that these recording sessions would happen after long periods of all the musicians chanting together in the room. I wasn’t there, sadly, but I have had the immense pleasure of chanting Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō with both Bennie and Herbie, so lucky me. Lucky you if you’re a first time listener of this great one. Enjoy!