Khepera (album)

Recorded in March 1998, the album was produced by Weston and Brian Bacchus.[7][8] Min Xiao-Fen played the gong and pipa on two tracks.[9] Talib Kibwe played alto sax and flute; Benny Powell played trombone.[10][11] Melba Liston help to arrange the music.[12] Weston played many songs at a 6/8 time.[13]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[14]
Birmingham Post	[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[15]
Los Angeles Times	[16]
MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide	[11]
The Sydney Morning Herald	[17]

JazzTimes praised Weston's "uncanny ability to re-craft, to maintain freshness in melodies and rhythms he has investigated frequently, such as the familiar 'Niger Mambo'."[9] The Washington Post noted that "an Ellingtonian elegance marks the massed horns of the swinging 'Portrait of Cheikh Anta Diop'."[18] The Sydney Morning Herald stated that "the music has a breadth and density of emotion, spirituality, colour and creativity that push it towards masterpiece stature."[17]

The Globe and Mail concluded that "Min's performances aren't quite curios, but they're not a lot more either, one a sweet but inconclusive pipa-piano duet and the other a nonet piece in which she makes only a buzzy cameo appearance."[19] The Los Angeles Times applauded the "particularly effective linkage" of Powell and Pharoah Sanders.[16] The National Post deemed Khepera "a fiendishly clever romp through African rhythms, Chinese melodies and '60s jazz tonalities."[20]

AllMusic called the album "a powerful, even visionary piece of work for any musician," writing that Sanders is "in thrilling form throughout much of the album."[14]