The seventh album by spiritual jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, Thembi was released in 1971. Recorded with two different ensembles, the album marked a departure from the slowly developing, side-long, mantra-like grooves Sanders had been pursuing for most of his solo career, and instead offers an intriguingly wide range of relatively concise ideas, making it something of an anomaly in Sanders' prime period. A//Music reviewer Steve Huey gave it a rating of four out of five stars. This would be the last time Sanders recorded with his regular collaborator, pianist and composer Lonnie Liston Smith, who began his experimentation with electric keyboards on this LP. Also featured are violinist Michael White, bassist Cecil McBee, and percussionists Chief Bey, Majid Shabbaz, and Nat Bettis.