Ask the Ages
Sonny Sharrock · 1991
44 min · 6 tracks · funk
Explorative jazz guitar intertwines with ethereal vocals, creating a meditative soundscape that transcends traditional genre boundaries.
Top tracks — play these first
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Promises Kept — The opening track sets a reflective tone, featuring intricate guitar work that showcases Sharrock's improvisational prowess and establishes the album's thematic depth.
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Who Does She Hope to Be? — This track blends soulful melodies with complex rhythms, highlighting Sharrock's ability to fuse emotion with technical skill while featuring evocative vocal contributions.
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Many Mansions — A standout piece that encapsulates the album’s spiritual journey, it features dynamic shifts in tempo and mood, emphasizing Sharrock's innovative guitar techniques.
Elevation
Our rating, out of 100 — and why.
AI-generated from five scored dimensions. An opinion, not a measurement.
The album blends innovative guitar work with ethereal vocals, creating a unique sound that rewards repeated listens.
What we noticed
- The album features extended improvisational sections where the guitar and vocals interact in a call-and-response manner, creating a fluid dialogue.
- Each track varies significantly in tempo and mood, with some pieces featuring sparse instrumentation while others build to dense, layered soundscapes.
- The final track concludes with a gradual fade-out, leaving an open-ended feeling that invites reflection.
- Composition 25% of the score
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8/10
- Craft 20% of the score
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7/10
- Durability 25% of the score
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8/10
- Distinctiveness 18% of the score
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8/10
- Sequencing 12% of the score
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6/10
the writing — melody, harmony, structure, lyrics
production, performance, arrangement
whether it rewards returning to it
whether it sounds like itself
running order, pacing, length
Significant within its genre. Reported but not counted — how far a record travelled describes its reception rather than the record, and a newer release has had less time to travel than an older one.
Moments worth listening for
Where the writing does something specific.
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Who Does She Hope to Be?
A section where the song shifts from introspective questioning to a more affirming tone, addressing themes of identity and aspiration directly.
This transition signifies a moment of empowerment, contrasting uncertainty with hope, reflecting the complexities of self-discovery.
Tracklist
Best experienced from track one — press play and let it unfold.
- 1 Promises Kept 9:44
- 2 Who Does She Hope to Be? 4:41
- 3 Little Rock 6:35
- 4 As We Used to Sing 7:32
- 5 Many Mansions 9:31
- 6 Once Upon a Time 6:30
Reference: Wikipedia · MusicBrainz · Wikidata
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