There is no stigma in not knowing the solo work of Jothan Callins: it consists only of this one record, finally recovered and reissued 50 years later. Comparatively little is known about the circumstances of this spiritual experience in form of a record; we also have only a handful of information about Callins. Born in 1942 in Birmingham, Alabama – the center of segregation and white racism in the U.S. – he was a self-taught player of trumpet AND the double bass. This made him a popular session musician: he played for B.B. King as well as Stevie Wonder. Meanwhile, he is best known for his four-year stint in the spaceship called Sun Ra Arkestra. He played with Sun Ra, who was also from Birmingham, until his death in May 1993. And then there is this record: »Winds Of Change«. Not to be confused with the whistling by the Scorpions. No, here the finest spiritual jazz is played. Better: celebrated! Deep in his work on the trumpet, Callins brought on board Cecil McBee, one of the most renowned double bassists of the post-Bob era. This recording from New York City, where Jothan Callins was teaching at the time, is of course also a testament to the fact that enormous treasures of jazz history are still hidden. And need to be unearthed.
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