Phil Cohran's 'African Skies' Soars Again

Phil Cohran's 1993 soundtrack for Chicago's Adler Planetarium, "African Skies," is a captivating blend of spiritual jazz and avant-garde pan-Africanism.

This lost recording, initially commissioned by the stargazer and planetarium member himself, features four musicians. It was released in a small vinyl run in 2010, quickly achieving the status of a collector's holy grail before its recent reissue.

The music evokes artists like Alice Coltrane and Dorothy Ashby with its use of harp and meditative, atmospheric mood. Ranging across diverse global sounds, the 37-minute album is rich with circular rhythms and winding melodies.

Central to the sound is Cohran's handmade Frankiphon, an electrified mbira he modified to create unique melodic rhythms. The arrangements are textured and slightly askew, with instruments like bowed bass and wordless vocals creating deep, cyclical patterns.

Lead lines are often doubled, exploring dual perspectives, as heard on the 10-minute piece "White Nile." Cohran's own trumpet solo on the track is patient and carefully phrased, hovering between blues and modal scales.