Sun Ra and his Intergalaxtic Arkestra's Second Star to the Right: Salute to Walt Disney goes way beyond novelty. Novelties are hardly this entertaining or enduring. Ra got into a Disney phase around 1989 when asked to interpret "Pink Elephants on Parade" from Dumbo for a pop tribute album to Disney called Stay Awake. Ra was so taken with Disney's music and images that he started to play shows dedicated exclusively to the man. When performing this material, the Arkestra went so far as to wear the patented Mouseketeer ears and had a dancer dressed in a Dumbo costume! The chosen compositions run the gamut from the more obscure to themes every kid of all ages could sing along with: "I'm Wishing," "Second Star to the Right," the eerie "The Forest of no Return," and "Someday My Prince Will Come." The titles sound as if Ra could have written them himself. The arrangements are in the same swing manner as his Fletcher Henderson tributes. June Tyson's vocals bring a romantic appeal, while bassoonist and percussionist James Jacson does his best Louis Armstrong impression, leading the sing along on "Zip a Dee Doo Dah." This may not be an essential disc for the Sun Ra novice, but if you wonder what it would have been like hanging out at Sun Ra's commune in Philadelphia watching Dumbo with the rest of the Arkestra (a favorite Ra practice in his later years!), get this immediately. As a footnote, this joyous Leo release is from an audience tape, and while the fidelity is good, audiophiles should be advised that it does have muddy moments.
AMG Review by
614. [407] Sun Ra and his Intergalaxtic Arkestra
Other Thoughts /
Second Star to the Right (Salute to Walt Disney) /
Stardust from Tomorrow
Sun Ra (p, syn, voc); Michael Ray (tp, voc); Tyrone Hill (tb, voc); Julian Priester (tb); Noël Scott (as, fl, acrobatics, voc); Marshall Allen (as, fl, cl, perc); John Gilmore (ts, cl, timb, voc); Eloe Omoe (as, bcl, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d, voc); Bruce Edwards (eg); Arthur Joonie Booth (eb); Earl "Buster" Smith (d); Elson Nascimento (surdo grande, perc); June Tyson (voc, vln).
ZUW Disc 0001, Other Thoughts, is a bootleg CD of Austrian origin, released in 1993. It is based on an audience tape made by one Herbert Zaussinger, edited to include only the Walt Disney tunes from this concert.
The same audience tape (with extensively cleaned-up sound) was used for a release in October 1995 on Leo CD LR 230, Second Star to the Right (Salute to Walt Disney). This is a legitimate release in that royalties are being paid to Sun Ra's estate, but the Arkestra was not consulted nor paid for the release. The rest of the music from the complete concert was released by Leo in March 1997 as LR 235/236 [CD], Stardust from Tomorrow. Because of poor relations between Leo Records and the Arkestra, the two "Untitleds" were not identified. Untitled I was an improvisation; Untitled II appears to have been a Ra composition.
Judging from the announcements that follows it, "Heigh Ho! Heigh Ho!" was the end of the first set, and "Whistle While You Work" was an encore after the first set. The two CDs of Stardust from Tomorrow seem to correspond to the two sets of the show, but the order of the Disney and non-Disney tunes in the first set is unknown.
The date was mistakenly given as April 24 in the first edition of this discography. Personnel from the ZUW CD leaflet, with corrections by ct and Hartmut Geerken; the corrected personnel list is included on the Leo releases. the name of the Arkestra (with Sunny's late-1960s spelling "Intergalaxtic") was supplied by Hartmut Geerken.
from Campbell / Trent The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.
Other Thoughts /
Second Star to the Right (Salute to Walt Disney) /
Stardust from Tomorrow
Sun Ra (p, syn, voc); Michael Ray (tp, voc); Tyrone Hill (tb, voc); Julian Priester (tb); Noël Scott (as, fl, acrobatics, voc); Marshall Allen (as, fl, cl, perc); John Gilmore (ts, cl, timb, voc); Eloe Omoe (as, bcl, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d, voc); Bruce Edwards (eg); Arthur Joonie Booth (eb); Earl "Buster" Smith (d); Elson Nascimento (surdo grande, perc); June Tyson (voc, vln).
Jazzatelier, Ulrichsberg,
Austria, April 29, 1989
Austria, April 29, 1989
1st set:
Mystery Intro (Ra)
Untitled I (Ra)
Blue Lou (Sampson)
Prelude in A Major (Chopin)
Untitled II (Ra)
The Forest of No Return (Bruns-Leven) [ens voc]
Someday My Prince Will Come (Churchill-Morey) [JT, MR voc]
Frisco Fog (Carr-Roberts)
Wishing Well [I'm Wishing] (Morey-Churchill) [Sr, JT, ens voc]
Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah (Gilbert-Wrubel) [JJ, TH, MR, NS, SR voc]
Second Star to the Right (Cahn-Fain) [SR, MR voc]
Heigh Ho! Heigh Ho! (Morey-Churchill) [TH, MR, NS voc]
2nd set:
Discipline 27-II (Ra) /
I'll Wait for You (Ra) /
Angel Race (Ra) [SR, ens voc]
Queer Notions (Hawkins)
Back Alley Blues (Ra)
Prelude to a Kiss (Ellington)
Stardust from Tomorrow (Ra) [JT voc]
Yeah Man! (Sissle-Henderson)
We Travel the Spaceways (Ra)
Space Chants Medley:
Outer Spaceways Inc. (Ra) /
Rocket No. 9 Take Off for the Planet Venus (Ra) /
Second Stop is Jupiter (Ra) /
Pluto [Too] (Ra) /
[Planet] Saturn (Ra) /
Saturn Rings (Ra) [SR, ens voc]
encore:
Whistle While You Work (Morey-Churchill) [TH, MR, JJ, SR voc]
BONUS!! Pink Elephants on Parade from the movie, Dumbo.
ZUW Disc 0001, Other Thoughts, is a bootleg CD of Austrian origin, released in 1993. It is based on an audience tape made by one Herbert Zaussinger, edited to include only the Walt Disney tunes from this concert.
The same audience tape (with extensively cleaned-up sound) was used for a release in October 1995 on Leo CD LR 230, Second Star to the Right (Salute to Walt Disney). This is a legitimate release in that royalties are being paid to Sun Ra's estate, but the Arkestra was not consulted nor paid for the release. The rest of the music from the complete concert was released by Leo in March 1997 as LR 235/236 [CD], Stardust from Tomorrow. Because of poor relations between Leo Records and the Arkestra, the two "Untitleds" were not identified. Untitled I was an improvisation; Untitled II appears to have been a Ra composition.
Judging from the announcements that follows it, "Heigh Ho! Heigh Ho!" was the end of the first set, and "Whistle While You Work" was an encore after the first set. The two CDs of Stardust from Tomorrow seem to correspond to the two sets of the show, but the order of the Disney and non-Disney tunes in the first set is unknown.
The date was mistakenly given as April 24 in the first edition of this discography. Personnel from the ZUW CD leaflet, with corrections by ct and Hartmut Geerken; the corrected personnel list is included on the Leo releases. the name of the Arkestra (with Sunny's late-1960s spelling "Intergalaxtic") was supplied by Hartmut Geerken.
from Campbell / Trent The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.
Sun Ra and his Intergalaxtic Arkestra
Second Star to the Right: Salute to Walt Disney
Leo Records LR 230 [CD] 1995
1. The Forest of No Return 5:39
2. Someday My Prince Will Come 7:53
3. Frisco Fog 3:20
4. I'm Wishing 10:18
5. Zip a Dee Doo Dah 7:28
6. Second Star to the Right 9:58
7. High Ho! High Ho! 9:06
8. Whistle While You Work 10:33
Second Star to the Right: Salute to Walt Disney
Leo Records LR 230 [CD] 1995
1. The Forest of No Return 5:39
2. Someday My Prince Will Come 7:53
3. Frisco Fog 3:20
4. I'm Wishing 10:18
5. Zip a Dee Doo Dah 7:28
6. Second Star to the Right 9:58
7. High Ho! High Ho! 9:06
8. Whistle While You Work 10:33
NEW LINKS!
this is a wonderful treat! thanks, yotte!
ReplyDeleteI-)
I love Sun Ra, thanks.
ReplyDeleteNo work :-(
ReplyDeleteDo now :-)
DeleteYay! This is a real treat, linky worky, this is a good Day. Thank you kindly yotte!!
ReplyDeletedo you not hear the silence there?
the arrow points to pointlessness
Is this a Planet of Life??
cheers,
mmk