Spiritual Jazz History – Reflecting On The East with Juju’s James “Plunky” Branch.

The exterior of The East, late 1970s.

Juju/Oneness of Juju’s Plunky Branch in front of the historical home of The East, 2019.

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Juju’s Live At The East 1973 is part of our definitive reissues of five classic albums from the Black Fire collective. These 5 records are presented individually and as part of an obi-wrapped set that offers a value priced set of the albums. Limited edition, one time pressing.

Here, watch a short film documenting Juju/Oneness of Juju’s founder and saxophonist James “Plunky” Branch returning to the historical home of the legendary Brooklyn jazz venue and cultural center The East alongside Now-Again’s Eothen Alapatt in early 2019. This piece was filmed and edited by Josh Tyson-Fermin

In this piece, Plunky reflects on The East, its importance and legacy, and the cauldron of music now called “Spiritual Jazz.”.

Now-Again issued Juju’s Live At The East 1973 in conjunction with Vinyl Me, Please in 2019. It’s out now and is part of our Black Fire 5LP Set. It is one of only three jazz albums, alongside Pharoah Sanders’ Live At The East and Mtume’s Land of the Blacks, recorded at the venue.

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Experience Unlimited’s “Free Yourself,” and a deep dive into the legendary Black Fire catalog

Free Yourself, a Now-Again x Vinyl Me, Please release, was the latter’s May 2019 Record of the Month.

We are also offering limited runs of four key Juju/Oneness of Juju titles with Vinyl Me, Please, including a previously unreleased album recorded at the legendary Brooklyn jazz venue The East.

All albums were lacquered by legendary engineer Bernie Grundman from the original master tapes.

Each album comes with an oversized 12″ x 12″ 12 page full color booklet detailing the story of each album and the Black Fire collective and showcasing dozens of unpublished photos. A variation of each of these albums will see public issue via Now-Again over the course of 2020.

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ORDER » Juju – Live At The East MORE

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