In the Spirit (Joe McPhee album)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]

Allmusic reviewer Steve Loewy states "An important contribution to the discography of the spiritual, McPhee gives it a new perspective, but one that is entirely respectful of the tradition. Performed gracefully and tastefully, the group tastes free form without losing sight of the melodies".[2] On All About Jazz, Derek Taylor wrote "In a career stamped by a continuous string of transcendent recordings this is one of McPhee's best to date, a vital testament that lovingly embraces the indelible tradition of spirituals and expertly applies them to the setting of creative improvisation".[3] In JazzTimes, Harvey Pekar suggested "Maybe one more extroverted track would have helped the CD, which sometimes gets too subdued, but it's a fine effort nevertheless".[4]

1. "Deep River" (Traditional) – 9:32
2. "People Get Ready" (Curtis Mayfield) – 12:01
3. "God Bless the Child" (Billie Holiday, Arthur Herzog, Jr.) – 11:44
4. "Birmingham Sunday/Come Sunday" (Joe McPhee/Duke Ellington) – 14:19
5. "Astral Spirits" (Joe McPhee) – 8:32
6. "Just a Closer Walk With Thee" (Traditional) – 7:23

• Joe McPhee – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone
• Joe Giardullo – flute, bass clarinet, clarinet, soprano saxophone
• Michael Bisio, Dominic Duval – bass