The Oracle (Cindy Blackman album)

The Oracle is an album led by drummer Cindy Blackman which was recorded in 1995 and released on the Muse label.

Reception
Jason Ankeny of Allmusic stated simply, "Blackman took time off from touring with rocker Lenny Kravitz to cut her fourth record, on which she leads a band including bassist Ron Carter, pianist Kenny Barron and Gary Bartz on alto sax".

Ted Panken, writing for The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide, called the band "an all-star unit... at the peak of their powers," and commented: "The ensemble sound bears Blackman's indelible stamp; she's refined her conception to assert idiomatic individuality in a multiplicity of contexts."

Track listing
All compositions by Cindy Blackman except where noted
 * 1) "The Oracle" – 9:31
 * 2) "Crazy He Calls Me" (Bob Russell, Carl Sigman) – 7:35
 * 3) "A.J." – 5:28
 * 4) "Beatrice" (Sam Rivers) – 6:32
 * 5) "Who Needs Forever? (Quincy Jones) – 5:28
 * 6) "Traffic" – 6:45
 * 7) "Why" – 5:21
 * 8) "Our Blues" – 7:25

Personnel

 * Cindy Blackman - drums
 * Gary Bartz - soprano saxophone, alto saxophone
 * Kenny Barron - piano
 * Ron Carter - bass