People Get Ready was the first of two albums cut for Atlantic Records by the Freedom Sounds, a nine-piece group put together by trombonist Wayne Henderson of
the Jazz Crusaders. It was cut around the same time that Henderson appeared as part of
Hugh Masekela's band at the Monterey International Pop Festival, and it comes from a similar multi-cultural, musical, multi-lingual sensibility. Henderson and his band -- including Al Abreus on tenor and soprano sax, James Benson on baritone sax and flute, Pancho Bristol on electric bass,
Harold Land at the piano, Moses Obligacion on the conga drum, Ricardo Chimelis on the timbales, Max Garduno on percussion, and
Paul Humphrey on drums -- range freely across excellent Henderson originals such as "Cucamunga," and cover "Respect," "People Get Ready," "Things Go Better" (yes, the Coca-Cola jingle, which they do wonderful things with), and "Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)." The originals, especially "Orbital Velocity" and "Cathy the Cooker," possess vast kinetic energy and the bracing quality of a concert performance, capturing for posterity the reality behind this group's reputation as a live band. ~ Bruce Eder