Sun Ra recommendations
Jason Michael
episode of Saturday Night Live a week or two ago and was intrigued enough to
explore his discography. I wonder what you people consider to be his best
album(s).
Thanks!
Jason
jasonmichael NOSPAM @ REMOVE canada.com
G B
news:mjx%e.3346$l03.6...@news20.bellglobal.com...
> The subject pretty much says it all. I saw Sun Ra on a rerun of a 1978
> episode of Saturday Night Live a week or two ago and was intrigued enough
> to explore his discography. I wonder what you people consider to be his
> best album(s).
> Thanks!
A question that I'm not really qualified to answer (especially since I've
heard very little of his post-60s music, and due to the massive size of his
catalogue), but you can split up his pre-1970 recordings into two phases:
Chicago (mid 50s-early 60s): music that makes the transition from quirky and
"advanced" big band music to very forward looking experiments that
anticipate a lot of the early 60s avant-garde, as well as "jazz-world music
fusion". Also some wacky chanting. If you like Charles Mingus and early
60s Coltrane & Ornette Coleman, this should be right up your alley. On one
track ("Rocket #9", I think this is from the album Sun Ra Visits Planet
Earth), John Gilmore's solo is a very obvious predecessor to "Chasin' the
Trane". Albums I really like: "Jazz in Silhouette", "Interstellar Low
Ways", "Visits Planet Earth". (The last two are available on a single CD.)
New York (early 60s-early 70s?, not sure when the Arkestra moved to Philly):
pretty early during this period the Arkestra moves to a much wilder, free
jazz style. If you don't like Cecil Taylor's Blue Note albums or Coltrane's
recordings with Pharoah Sanders, you might find these to be tough going.
(Or you might not.) The two best that I've heard are The Magic City
(Evidence) and Heliocentric Worlds, Vol. 1 (ESP), both from 1965. The
latter contains mostly shorter pieces, ranging from 4-8 minutes. So you get
the full-blown 1965 Arkestra in bite-sized portions. The former album
contains the lengthy title track, which begins with an eerie collective
improvisation for Sun Ra's keyboards, Ronnie Boykins's bass, the drummer
(forget who this is) and Marshall Allen's piccolo and ends with a wild
multi-horn blowout. One of my favorite Sun Ra tracks. Also of note is the
album Atlantis, which includes a lengthy (+20 minutes) and intense
improvisation on a cheesy-sounding electric organ.
As always when this subject comes up, I recommend looking at Ed Rhodes's
recommendations:
TODD TAMANEND CLARK
> I saw Sun Ra on a rerun of a 1978 episode of Saturday
> Night Live a week or two ago and was intrigued enough
> to explore his discography. I wonder what you people
> consider to be his best album(s).
FROM THE 1950s:
Sun Song (1956)
Jazz In Silhouette (1959)
FROM THE 1960s:
Other Planes Of There (1964)
The Magic City (1965)
The Heliocentric Worlds Of Sun Ra: Volume One (1965)
The Heliocentric Worlds Of Sun Ra: Volume Two (1966)
Nothing Is (1967)
Atlantis (1968)
FROM THE 1970s:
Black Myth/Out In Space (1970)
Astro Black (1972)
Cymbals/Crystal Spears (1973)
Pathways To Unknown Worlds/Friendly Love (1973)
Lanquidity (1978)
Disco 3000 (1978)
FROM THE 1980s:
Strange Celestial Road (1987)
Blue Delight (1988)
Somewhere Else (1988)
Purple Night (1989)
- - - -
TODD TAMANEND CLARK
Poet/Composer/Multi-Instrumentalist/Cultural Historian
Owls In Obsidian (CD: Instrumental, 2000)
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ttc
Staff, Mask, Rattle (2-CD: Instrumental, 2002)
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ttc2
Monongahela Riverrun (CD: Instrumental, 2004)
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ttc3
Nova Psychedelia (2-CD: Vocal, 2005)
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ttc4
Jason Michael
"TODD TAMANEND CLARK" <tama...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1129128319.3...@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
Thanks Todd. Lots to look into there!