It is dedicated to his South-African wife Nomathemba "Thembi" ("love, faith and hope" in Xhosa), as noted on the back sleeve of the original album.

Sanders plays tenor and soprano saxophones, alto flute, koto, balafon, various percussion instruments, and a cow horn on the album.

Also featured on the album are violinist Michael White, bassist Cecil McBee, and percussionists Chief Bey, Majid Shabbaz, and Nat Bettis.

"Thembi", "Astral Travelling" and "Morning Prayer" were included on the two-disc compilation You've Got to Have Freedom, on Soul Brother Records.

AllMusic gave Thembi four out of five stars, with reviewer Steve Huey describing it as offering "an intriguingly wide range of relatively concise ideas, making it something of an anomaly in Sanders' prime period.… Some fans may gripe that Thembi isn't conceptually unified or intense enough, but it's rare to have this many different sides of Sanders coexisting in one place, and that's what makes the album such an interesting listen.