In the late 1960s, jazz trumpeter Eddie Gale – you may have seen him playing with the Coup during the past few years; he's on the faculty at San Jose State University – who'd recorded with Cecil Taylor and Sun Ra and cut his teeth in the fiercely creative and competitive New York jazz scene, recorded two albums for Blue Note Records. Both Eddie Gale's Ghetto Music and Black Rhythm Happening, featured spacey free jazz, lyrics dotted with astrological references, and a communal vibe – I use the word in its most '60s sense – brought by the eight-person Noble Gale Singers.

Popular culture spins the history of the late '60s toward Aretha, Stax and Motown, and clenched fists and militancy. But Gale's music, like the work of artist collectives such as the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians and AfriCOBRA in Chicago, was demanding and not so easily translated – and not just to the white world. Despair and broken dreams weren't the only things the ghetto had to offer, and if you don't believe, listen to this. The playing (particularly on Black Rhythm Happening, which featured Elvin Jones on drums and Roland Alexander on soprano sax and flute) is outstanding. And the vibe – well, all I can say is whew, the vibe is so '69-inner-peace-astrological-cosmic-love-futurist-spiritual that when I was done listening, I just lay back knowing everything was everything and the creator has a master plan.

That plan, as explained on Black Rhythm Happening, is all about Teyonda – detailed on the closing song, "Look at Teyonda" – and has to do with the soul "from the constellation of Aries, bringing with her joy, peace, and understanding." Truth be told, I've got a crippling case of ADD, and I've learned over the years to avoid songs with flutes and murky spiritual incantations. But still, the playing is terrific, and it's kind of cool to hear poet William Norwood (of the Noble Gale Singers, who provide vocals, proclamations, predictions, and background chatter) intone, "Of course it is known that units compiled make one / Within the depths of this infinite community emerges life from the different units / We know these units as constellations / Life stems from the constellations." What more can you say but "of course."