2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Disco 3000 (1978) CD & LP

The quartet of Sun Ra, John Gilmore, Michael Ray and Luqman Ali performed at Teatro Cilak in Milan on January 23, 1978, apparently at the very end of their extended stay in Italy. While their exact movements are poorly documented during this period, they were certainly back in the states on or before January 29, where the Arkestra appeared at the Famous Ballroom in Baltimore (see Campbell & Trent pp.247-250). The Teatro Cilak concert was recorded and portions were released later in the year as Disco 3000 (Saturn LP CMIJ78) and reissued by Art Yard in 2009. Prior to this, though, Art Yard released the entire Milan performance on two compact discs as The Complete Disco 3000 Concert (CD 001) in 2007. As with Media Dreams, these welcome reissues not only make available some of the rarest of all Saturn LPs, but also provide additional material that puts these weird and wonderful recordings into a wider context.

The concert opens with “Disco 3000” and, right away, you can tell the small band has really started to gel after several weeks working together. While Media Dreams is dominated by Ra’s electronica (wonderful as it is), Disco 3000 is much more of a cohesive group effort. There’s still plenty of mad-scientist keyboard extravaganzas, with the Crumar Mainman organ and cheesy rhythm box establishing an uneasy, mutant disco vamp—but here, Ali locks in comfortably with the beat and the horns are given plenty of space across its epic twenty-six minutes. About five minutes in, they suddenly launch into “Space is the Place,” but, curiously, not in the re-arrangement found on Media Dreams. After a couple of minutes of chanting, things take off again, with some absolutely killer tenor saxophone from Gilmore and hypnotic, quasi-ambient keyboard effects from Ra. It’s tempting to just say “Disco 3000” is the crowning achievement of the quartet’s brief existence and leave it at that. A classic Sun Ra track.

Not that there isn’t more great music on these discs! After a short drum solo, “Sun of the Cosmos” continues in the guided improvisation vein, including more crazed keyboard work from Sonny and another outrageous tenor solo from Gilmore, where he explores the entire range of extended techniques from altissimo screams to impossible split-tone multiphonics. Whew! Ra then moves to the piano for “Echos [sic] of the World,” a pretty ballad with Gilmore in the lead. “Geminiology” picks up the tempo with some jaunty swing and a riff-based head arrangement but Ra takes it way out: thunderous low-register tone clusters and furious parallel runs, just a total assault on the piano. Then it’s suddenly back to the cheery jazz feel for Ray’s extended solo on warm-toned trumpet. “Sky Blues” is exactly as the title suggests, a swinging blues riff, with Gilmore delivering the sermon. Lord have mercy! This is another incredible Gilmore solo, a blues history lesson: from honking, hokey gutbucket to dizzying post-bop harmonic labyrinths to the most out-there avant garde wailing—all without losing the thread of tradition and ending with an emphatic flourish. Dammmnnn.

Disc one concludes with six minutes of “Friendly Galaxy,” given an angular and dissonant rearrangement, fading out on Ray’s muted trumpet solo. Disc two then fades up some time later (the reel flip evidenced by the increased wow-and-flutter at the beginning of the track) and, after about a minute of noodling on “Friendly Galaxy,” Ra signals “Third Planet.” The two horns sound super-tight and Gilmore once again plays a mind-bendingly great tenor solo, this time accompanied only by the drums. Ali is uncharacteristically aggressive here, swinging like a mo-fo while Gilmore blows the doors down. No wonder Sonny picked this track for release on the original Disco 3000 LP! “Dance of the Cosmo Aliens” was also included on the original LP and it’s another spaced-out electronica-fest, with Gilmore and Ray putting down the horns and picking up percussion instruments. Even so, the expanded rhythm section struggles a bit trying to follow along with the crude electric drum box. Even so, Ra’s keyboard playing is otherworldly and the crowd eats it up, bursting into rapturous applause at the end.

“Spontaneous Simplicity” is given an electrified rearrangement with lots of wild keyboard effects and some blasting trumpet work from Ray, but is perhaps overlong at fourteen-some minutes. This segues into “Images,” which is given a tighter reading than on Media Dreams. While Gilmore’s solo is probably not the equal of “Twigs at Twlight,” it’s still pretty freaking awesome. Although the packaging says this includes “Over the Rainbow,” it actually appears on the following track, “When There Is No Sun,” which is given a gentle, gospelized feel, with Gilmore and Ray sweetly singing and Ra accompanying the on churchy organ. Then Sonny erupts into another electronic frenzy before slipping over to the piano for a brief sketch of “Over the Rainbow.” Finally, the concert ends with a reprise of “Space is the Place,” with Ra vamping on piano for a while before joining in on the chant. Interestingly, this rendition shares the quickened phrasing of the unique rearrangement heard on Media Dreams, but lacks the horn parts and countermelodies.
(continue reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sunday)

Although The Complete Disco 3000 Concert (recorded at The Teatro Cilak in Milan, Italy) contains all of the music found on the original LP, Art Yard also released Disco 3000 (CD 101) as a straight reissue (with alternative artwork) in 2009. I’m glad they did because it is a classic—and very strange—Sun Ra album that deserves to be heard in its original form. Moreover, listening to the entire two-hour concert is a considerable time commitment, which, in some ways, dilutes the impact of the original Disco 3000 LP in my opinion.

The first side consists of the twenty-six minute title track while side two contains “Third Planet,” “Friendly Galaxy” and “Dance of the Cosmo Aliens.” While you can my descriptions on my review of The Complete Disco 3000 Concert, what is interesting to me is how much more effective “Dance of the Cosmo Aliens” is when it is shorn from its original context, the twisted electronica bookending the album with “Disco 3000.” Or maybe my ears got tired by the time it was played, over an hour into the original concert. Hardcore fans will want both, but Disco 3000 is essential.

In typically Saturnal fashion, Michael Ray’s liner notes (penned in 2007 and contained on both Art Yard CDs) are both enlightening and confusing. “It was here,” he says, “that most of my early dues were paid.”

Sun Ra would tell me “You playing your horn alright but try my way, unless you have some sort of mental block.” “Play that apple. Remember it is round so think of 360 degrees of sound and color. It’s red which means its energy deals with the first chakra, you have to be able to play the vibration.” We rehearsed like this from early in the morning to late at night for days. It was like having someone erase your mainframe and reboot your hard drive! Sunny always said expect the unexpected. “We might have a gig on Mars one day so you got to be swinging on your horn, because they don’t party like earthlings”

(continue reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sunday)

263. [216]  Sun Ra and his Arkestra

Disco 3000

Sun Ra (Crumar Mainman, keyb, p, voc); Michael Ray (tp, voc); John Gilmore (ts, timb, voc); Luqman Ali (d, voc).

Teatro Ciak, Milano, January 23, 1978

Disco 3000
(incl Space Is the Place) (Ra) [JG voc]
unidentified title (Ra) [p; balladic ts; p; tp; theme]
Sky Blues (Ra)
Friendly Galaxy (Ra)
Dance of the Cosmo-Aliens
(incl. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child) (Ra)
Spontaneous Simplicity (Ra)

There is an 88-minute audience tape from this concert.  Date and location from Hartmut Geerken.  Tunes identified by ct.

The concert tape picks up at 9:20 into the issued version of "Disco 3000" and continues for another 26:12.  It includes material (Ra, Crumar Mainman; Gilmore, outside ts; Ray, tp; concluding applause) past the end of the drum solo that concluded the issued version.  There is a performance of "Friendly Galaxy" that runs 7:50 on the audience tape only; the 1:13 reprise was, however, included on the LP just as it appeared during the concert.  But the applause between the reprise and "Dance of the Cosmo-Aliens" was edited out of the LP release.

The unidentified title resembles "An Unbeknowneth Love" (from Media Dream) but is not the same performance, according to ct.

The title track (with the ending edited out), "Third Planet," the reprise of "Friendly Galaxy," and "Dance of the Cosmo-Aliens" were released in 1978 on Saturn CMIJ 78, Disco 3000.  This LP also circulated in the early 1980s as Saturn Gemini CMIJ 78.

"Disco 3000" was also edited much further down to 2 1/2 minutes (just Ra and Ali, no horns or vocals) by Richard Wilkinson and retitled "Disco 2100."  (However, according to Terry Adams, some copies of the single still gave the title as "Disco 3000").  It was released in this form in 1978 as Side A of a 45-rpm single, Saturn 2100 (information from Wilkinson and Peter Roberts); the matrix number was DISCO 2100-A.  (The single version was reissued in September 1996 on The Singles, Evidence 22164 [2 CDs]).

"Sky Blues" (which is the first 2:35 of a 9-minute-plus concert performance by the quartet) appeared on Side B of a 45-rpm single, Saturn 2100, released in 1978 (the matrix number was DISCO 2100-B).  On some copies, the B side is untitled.  Information on this single from Richard Wilkinson and Peter Roberts.  This track was reissued in September 1996 as part of the two-CD Saturn singles collection, Evidence 22164, simply titled The Singles.

In the first edition of this discography, "Disco 3000" was taken to be from a studio session -- one rumor had Ra recording in a Rome hotel room.  The rest of Disco 3000 was attributed to miscellaneous live concerts in Italy, and so was "Sky Blues."  The same incorrect information was included in the Evidence singles set.  ct has now established that all of Disco 3000 came from this one live concert.  The surviving audience tape (not complete!) contains nothing from The Sound Mirror or Media Dream.

from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Disco 3000 Complete Milan Concert 1978
Artyard stereo CD 001 (2007)

Disc 1
01. Disco 3000   26:16
02. Sun of The Cosmos   10:23
03. Echos of The World   6:00
04. Geminiology   7:41
05. Sky Blues   10:39
06. Friendly Galaxy   6:07

Disc 2
01. Third Planet incl, Friendly Galaxy   8:44
02. Dance of The Cosmo Aliens   11:07
03. Spontaneous Simplicity   14:09
04. Images incl, Over The Rainbow   8:35
05. When There is no Sun   13:25
06. We Travel The Spaceways   6:37

Disco 3000
Artyard stereo CD 101 (2009)

1. Disco 3000   26:19
2. Third Planet   6:24
3. Friendly Galaxy   1:17
4. Dance Of The Cosmo-Aliens   11:05

Disco 3000
Artyard Kindred Spirits LP KSAY-1 (2009)

1. Disco 3000   26:09
2. Third Planet   7:24
3. Friendly Galaxy   1:00
4. Dance Of The Cosmo-Aliens   11:05

2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Dance of Innocent Passion (1981)

Dance of Innocent Passion was recorded at the Squat Theater in New York in 1980. The title cut is another one of those gloriously uplifting tunes that Sun Ra builds from the simplest of parts, and features a soaring tenor solo from John Gilmore. "Omnisonicism" features a creepy theremin-like synth sound and could be put to good use on Halloween. "Intensity" is just a series of solo features, and the album ends with "Cosmo-Intensity," a battle between Richard Williams' bass and Ra's synth. After starting very strong, Dance of Innocent Passion loses a bit of momentum, but should still please fans. The lack of availability of many of these Saturn titles places them mostly in the province of collectors anyway.

AMG review by Sean Westergaard

Dance of Innocent Passion

331. [260]  Sun Ra

Dance of Innocent Passion

Sun Ra (org, syn); Walter Miller (tp); Michael Ray (tp); Ronnie Brown (tp); Vincent Chancey (Fr hn); Ray Draper (tuba); Marshall Allen (as, fl, ob, perc); John Gilmore (ts, timb); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d); Skeeter McFarland (eg); Taylor Richardson (eg); Richard "Radu" Williams (b); Harry Wilson (vib); Damon Choice (vib); Luqman Ali (d); Samarai Celestial [Eric Walker] (d); Atakatune (cga, perc).

Squat Theatre, NYC, 1980

Intensity (Ra)
Cosmo Energy (Ra)
Dance of Innocent Passion (Ra)
Omnisonicism (Ra)

Saturn Sun Ra 1981, Dance of Innocent Passion, was released in 1981.  Location and date courtesy of Michael Shore.  Personnel derived from Stahl's discography, with some changes.  Ray Draper was identified by Shore, as was Samarai Celestial on drums (Stahl has Reg McDonald instead).  Tommy Hunter says that Ray Draper worked with the Arkestra for about a year (Craig Haynes says that Draper was a regular at the Squat but did not tour with the band) and that Samarai was the main drummer around this time; Samarai confirmed his presence here.  Michael Shore recalls that on another occasion the brass section consisted of Michael Ray (tp); Al Evans (flg); Ray Draper (tuba) … and Bill Davis (tuba).  ct believes that the trumpet soloist on "Dance of Innocent Passion" is neither Ray nor Miller, and that the same trumpeter is present on the Brixton Fridge tape from November 1985; most likely this was Ronnie Brown.

from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Sun Ra and his Arkestra
Dance of Innocent Passion

Saturn Sun Ra 1981 - LP

A1  Dance of Innocent Passion   12:15
A2  Omnisonicism   6:28
B1  Intensity   6:17
B2  Cosmo-Energy   19:04

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I absolutely love this album.  Thanks to Peaches and Black for requesting the 2nd Chance thereby giving me a chance to spend some more time with it!

2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Solo Piano Volume 1 (1977)

Just as his reputation on he synthesizer was growing, Sun Ra began to play more piano again, and in a style that reached back further in jazz tradition than most would have suspected.  But those who had known him for years understood that his origins were in the blues, and assumed that side of his playing: "Sun Ra could play the blues for twenty four hours without repeating a phrase," they claimed.  Though many recognized him as capable of playing bombastically, and of using the piano for color, few thought of him as a major player.  But Paul Bley, one of the two or three leading pianists of free jazz, believed that Sonny was a great piano player, so great that he didn't need a band.  If anything, he felt, the band was a cover for his insecurity.  Early in 1977 Bley convinced Sonny to do a series of piano duo performances with him in New York and Europe and to record for Bley's new audio and video company, Improvising Artists.  In Europe Bley was surprised to see that once he was alone on stage, "Sonny was a ham who liked to clown and surprise the audience -- as at Lake Como, where he shocked them by playing a cake walk!"  On May 20 Sun Ra went into the studio to record Solo Piano, and played a mixture of his own compositions and some unusually conceived standards, such as a very freely played "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child," or "Yesterdays" done in a brisk stride.  On July 3 he was recorded solo (St. Louis Blues) while playing at Axis-in-Soho as part of the Newport Jazz Festival, and again there were surprises: his "St. Louis Blues" aluded to Earl Hines's famous boogie-woogie version and a cheerful little love song like "Three Little Words" got turned into a melodrama.  But there were modest experiments in keyboard resources as well, such as "Sky and Sun," which stayed almost entirely within a small range at the top of the keyboard.

from Szwed - Space Is The Place p. 342-343

Without his Intergalactic Space Research Arkestra to hide behind, Sun Ra recorded Solo Piano, Vol. 1, revealing a tender, gentle side always lingering but never entirely present in his days leading his large ensemble. Cutting a pair of standards -- the traditional "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child" and Duke Ellington's "Yesterday" -- and filling the rest of the disc out with original compositions, Ra extemporizes with a surprising mix of restraint and abandon, often sounding as if he is going to play it straight before launching into a key thrashing salvo that would ordinarily be accompanied by a burst of horns. Here, though, with the use of pedaling, Ra lets the notes drift off to space by themselves, lonely and floating in the void. Unfortunately, the production is far below par and Ra's piano sounds flat and lifeless throughout. [I guess Jesse and I will have to agree to disagree on this last point -yotte].
AMG Review  by Jesse Jarnow

 247. [203]  Sun Ra

Solo Piano Volume 1

Sun Ra (p.).

Generation Sound Studio, NYC,
May 20, 1977

Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child (trade.)
Cosmo Rhythmatic (Ra)
Yesterdays (Kern-Harbach)
Romance of Two Planets (Ra)
Irregular Galaxy (Ra)
To a Friend (Ra)

Released in 1977 on Improvising Artists Inc. 37.38.50, Solo Piano Volume 1.  Another LP release was Japanese IAI RJ-7419.  All tracks reissued in 1992 on Improvising Artists Inc. 123850 [CD].  A video on IAI V003 was previously thought to have come from this concert, but in fact is from Sun Ra's second solo session for Improvising Artists.
from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

 

Sun Ra - Solo Piano vol. 1
Generation Sound Studio, NYC, May 20, 1977
 

1. Sometimes I feel like a motherless child    7:30
2. Cosmo rhythmatic    7:15
3. Yesterdays    4:14
4. Romance of two planets    5:14
5. Irregular galaxy    5:18
6. To a friend  7:39

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Thanks to Paul W. for his CD rip of this fine album.

Sun Ra
Solo Piano volume 1
IAI 37.38.50 (1977) (LP)

1. A1 Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child   7:29
2. A2 Cosmo Rhythmatic   7:13
3. A3 Yesterdays   4:17
4. B1 Romance of Two Planets   5:16
5. B2 Irregular Galaxy   5:19
6. B3 To a Friend   7:40

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2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Live in Paris at the "Gibus" (1975)

I believe most everyone agrees that this is an absolutely amazing album - stunning performances and great sound.

 Sun Ra (organ/electric vibraphone/space instruments/synthesizer/vocals) and his Intergalactic Space Research Arkestra are captured live in October of 1973 on this essential disc.  Not only are the sides uniformly inspired, but the track list bears a few interesting diversions, including seminal examples of Ra as both a performer and unequaled arranger. The mid-tempo dreamy and languid opener, "Spontaneous Simplicity," evolves around Ra's sublime organ and electric vibe runs. He places those against an unforced and otherwise limber wash of hand percussion as well as the understated yet solid pulse of Ronnie Boykins' bass. Ra's emphatic electric organ inflections herald the introduction to what is arguably the most haunting and poignant reading of "Lights on a Satellite" readily available. The flute section -- featuring Marshall Allen (alto sax/oboe/flute/piccolo), Danny Davis (alto sax/flute/alto clarinet), Danny Ray Thompson (baritone sax/flute), James Jacson (bassoon/flute/percussion), and Eloe Omoe (bass clarinet/flute) -- reel an edgy and trance-inducing melody into their sinuous lines. The entire affair simmers just below some glistens from Ra and a sax solo by John Gilmore (tenor sax/percussion). "Ombre Monde" (aka "Shadow World") dates back to the mid-'60s and allows Allen a platform for an extended lead that is sonically spurred on by Ra's motivated electric piano. Akh Tal Ebah's trumpet aggressions also make this version stand out. The truly phenomenal cover of Jelly Roll Morton's "King Porter Stomp" is a progressive score that builds on work done by Fletcher Henderson's definitive version. The Arkestra's compact presentation is stunning and Ra's complex score makes this flawless rendering all the more improbable. The bandleader offers up a vocal cosmic greeting on "Salutations From the Universe" which is swirled in an onslaught from the full ensemble. Ra's forceful keyboards are countered by some sharp and incisive contributions from the Arkestra. This segues into the benedictory "Calling Planet Earth" chant that is free jazz madness at its most effective. June Tyson's (vocals) voice can be picked out among the participants before Ra's brief solo conclusion. Although initially only pressed as a hard-to-find French import, Live in Paris at the Gibus was issued on CD in 2003 and is a highly recommended title for inclined parties.
AMG Review by Lindsay Planer

Sun Ra: Live In Paris at the “Gibus” (Atlantic—France/Universe CD)

Unlike the previous European tour (an extended sojourn which ranged widely across the continent, culminating in an impromptu trip to Egypt), the 1973 visit seems to have consisted of barely a handful of gigs in and around Paris. Also unlike the well-documented 1971 excursion, there were no high-profile radio broadcasts and very few amateur recordings survive. The tour likely began with the ill-fated Fête de l’Humanité at the end of September (possibly found on Transparency’s Lost Reel Collection Vol.5) and while Prof. Campbell mentions a 180-minute audience tape from the Nancy Jazz Festival on October 14, that’s about it (p.203) (and I haven't heard this tape). Otherwise, it seems the Arkestra settled into a multi-night stand at the famed Gibus Discotèque in Paris until their return to the states sometime in mid-to-late-October. Fortunately, the French division of Atlantic Records recorded a portion of this gig and released it as Live In Paris at the “Gibus” (Atlantic 40540) in 1975—but only in France (Id.). It remained an obscure collector’s item until 2003, when the Italian Comet label reissued it on CD on their Universe imprint in a deluxe, gatefold mini-LP package with excellent sound quality. Finally! This is one of the essential Sun Ra albums: an impeccable performance, well-recorded, documenting a crucial period in the Arkestra’s development.

It helps that the repertoire and sequencing is particularly inspired, possibly assembled by Sonny himself from several night’s recordings (he was, after all, a master of the razor blade and splicing tape). Who knows?—the liner notes are deliberately vague. The album begins with two of Ra’s most whimsically captivating compositions, both of which had been out of the setlists for a while and are now radically rearranged. “Spontaneous Simplicity” dispenses with the horn statements altogether and becomes a feature for Ra’s chiming organ and the “space-rhumba” groove is a bit looser, with Boykins leaning heavily on the riff. Suddenly, Ra goes into a frenetic double-time feel but the rhythm section keeps right with him to the end. An interesting re-imagining of this piece. The beautiful and tranquil “Lights On a Satellite” which follows is intricately through-composed, from the flute and trumpet harmonizations right down to the arco bass pedals and pitter-pattering percussion figures—and it is taken at a glacially slow tempo. The Arkestra sounds a little restrained but they deliver a note-perfect performance of this chamber-jazz masterpiece, one of my very favorite Sun Ra compositions.

A deft edit (indicative of Sun Ra’s hand) puts us smack in the middle of “The Shadow World” (mysteriously re-titled “Ombre Monde #2”), with Danny Ray Thompson’s baritone sax riffing just tailing off. John Gilmore comes in with another spine-tingling tenor solo, made all the more intense by Sun Ra’s insistently busy organ figuration. Kwami Hadi then solos on trumpet, easily holding his own against the rumbling thunderclouds and lightning flashes of electric organ but Sonny finally takes over with an apocalyptic fury before another surgically precise edit dramatically brings the track to an end. Wow! It would be nice to have the whole thing, but this is a powerfully edited fragment that stands alone as a coherent piece of music. Whether constructed by Ra or unknown French engineers, this is a bravura bit of record making.

(Continue reading at NuVoid: Sun Ra Sunday Album Review)

211. [185]  Sun Ra and his Intergalactic Research Arkestra

Live at the Gibus

Sun Ra (p, org, e-vib, space instruments, Mini-Moog syn, voc); Akh Tal Ebah (tp, flg); Kwame Hadi (tp, flg); Marshall Allen (as, fl, ob, picc, perc); Danny Davis (as, fl, acl); John Gilmore (ts, d); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d); Eloe Omoe (bcl, fl, perc); Ronnie Boykins (b); Alzo Wright (clo, vla, perc); Thomas Hunter (d); Odun [Russell Branch] (perc, cga); Roger Aralamon Hazoumé (perc, balafon, dance); Shahib (perc, cga); Math Samba (perc, dance); June Tyson (voc, dance); Space Ethnic Voices: Judith Holton, Cheryl Banks, Ruth Wright (voc, dance).

The Gibus, Paris, October 1973

Spontaneous Simplicity (RA)
Lights on a Satellite (Ra)
Ombre Monde #2 [The Shadow World] (Ra)
King Porter Stomp (Morton)
Salutation from the Universe (Ra) [Mini-Moog only]
Calling Planet Earth (Ra) [ens voc]

All tracks on Atlantic 40540, Live at the Gibus, which was released in 1975 in France only (release date from Geerken and Hefele).  Information from the jacket.
from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Sun Ra L'Intergalactic Research Arkestra
Live in Paris at the "Gibus"
Universe UV 079 (1975) LP

1. A1 Spontaneous Simplicity   4:02

2. A2 Lights on a Satellite   5:30

3. A3 Ombre Monde #2   12:13

4. B1 King Porter Stomp   2:53

5. B2 Salutations from the Universe   14:50

6. B3 Calling Planet Earth   1:30

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Sun Ra L'Intergalactic Research Arkestra

Live in Paris at the "Gibus"

(Atlantic—France/Universe CD)

 

 1. Spontaneous Simplicity     4:05 

2. Lights On A Satellite     5:32 

3. Ombre Monde #2     12:18 

4. King Porter Stomp     2:53 

5. Salutations From The Universe     14:55 

6. Calling Planet Earth     1:29

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2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Out Beyond the Kingdom Of (1974)

By 1974, the Impulse! deal was starting to bear fruit, with almost a dozen LPs coming out during the course of the year, including several reissues from the old Saturn catalog. In addition, the Saturn label had been resurrected and new releases were being pressed in tiny editions for sale at gigs and at select record stores. Given the fact that all this product was suddenly flooding the marketplace, it is not surprising very few new recordings were made during the year. Much like 1973, 1974 is rather sparsely documented (relatively speaking), but most of what’s there is worth a listen.

In Feburary, shortly before Sonny’s sixtieth birthday, the Arkestra travelled to Mexico for an extended tour at the invitation of the Ministry of Culture—an invitation which dated back to the Fête de l’Humanité fiasco in September 1973, where Sun Ra’s music quelled a near riot and allowed for a triumphant performance of Ballet Folklórico de Mexico. While the musicians were given “plush accommodations,” by the grateful Mexican government, the musician’s union protested and prohibited them from performing—as musicians. The Actors Union interceded and the shows went on as “Sun Ra and His Cosmo Drama.” Szwed writes: “Sun Ra told the band that an earthquake would even the score, and later it was said that the Union’s office building had been leveled [in 1985]” (p.338). The Arkestra stayed in Mexico two or three months, playing two concerts at the Pallacio de Bellas Artes, a two-week stand at the Teatro Hidalgo, as well as concerts at Chapultepec Park (“where they played on a little island while people rowed around them in boats”) (Id.), the University of Mexico, and in front of the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacán. The Arkestra also appeared on TV in Mexico City on Siempre en Domingo, “a variety show rather like Ed Sullivan’s” (Campbell & Trent, p.206). According to Francisco “Ali” Mora, a Mexican drummer who joined the band during the tour, concert tapes probably exist (Id.) but no recordings have surfaced to date.

On June 16, the Arkestra performed at Hunter College in New York City and the concert was recorded, possibly by the college itself (the sound quality is remarkably good). Portions were compiled by Ra for release as Out Beyond The Kingdom Of (Saturn 61674) later in the year (although some copies are titled Discipline 99) (Id.). The first thing you notice is the school has provided Sonny with a decent grand piano, and he relishes in the opportunity to tickle the ivories. “Discipline 99” is given a stately, confident reading by the band and features a long piano solo, alternating pretty harmonies with flurries of dissonant tone clusters. The following medley of old standards (an impossibly romantic ballad, “How Am I To Know?” and the up-tempo, “(Keep Your) Sunnyside Up”) allows Ra to show off his inimitable, inside/outside comping skills behind John Gilmore’s big-hearted, languorously swinging tenor solos. “How Am I To Know?” is a thing of rare beauty and the presence of Ronnie Boykins on bass and Clifford Jarvis on trap drums gives new life and humor to the old-fashioned rhythms of “(Keep Your) Sunnyside Up.” Good stuff!—and a harbinger of things to come: a mini-set of jazz standards would increasingly become a fixture of the Arkestra’s live sets as the ‘70s rolled on.

Side two shifts gears, with an emphasis on space chants and ensemble freak-outs and is, frankly, a lot less interesting to my jaded ears. But to be fair, this record must be considered in context, as a historical artifact. An obsessive collector in the year 2011 will have heard these routines many times before, but in 1974, live recordings were scarce. Sonny was shrewdly filling the gap, documenting the Arkestra’s current show for eager fans. Considered in that light, Out Beyond The Kingdom Of was exactly what it needed to be: a souvenir you could take home with you from the Cosmo Drama. As such, side two is fun, with June Tyson and Ankh Tal Ebah at their soulful, hortatory best and Boykins and Jarvis keep things grooving nicely. The highlight is “Cosmos Synthesis,” a wild group improvisation for horns and free-bashing rhythm section which stays heavy longer than usual. But Sun Ra himself is inaudible for most of the side until the very end of “Journey To Saturn,” when some spooky organ chords fade up and fade down.

(continue reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sunday)

215. [188]  Sun Ra and his Outer Space Arkestra

Out Beyond the Kingdom Of

Sun Ra (p, org, Mini-Moog syn, recitation); Akh Tal Ebah (tp, flg, mell, voc); Kwame Hadi (tp, perc); Marshall Allen (as, fl, picc, ob, perc); Dany Davis (as, fl, acl, perc); John Gilmore (ts, perc, voc); Danny Ray Thompson (brs, fl, libf, perc); Pat Patrick (bars, eb); James Jacson (bsn, Inf-d, voc); Ronnie Boykins (b); Clifford Jarvis (d); unidentified (d); June Tyson (voc, dance).

Hunter College, NYC, June 16, 1974

1st set:
unidentified improvisation [freakout ens; d]    audience tape 1
Outer Space (Is Such a Pleasant Place) (Ra)
[JT voc]
Astro Black (Ra) [JT voc]
Tapestry from an Asteroid (Ra) [JT voc]
untitled improvisation [freakout ens; Allen, as]
Discipline 27 (Ra)
untitled improvisation [syn; ens]
Enlightenment (Dotson-Ra) [JG, JT voc]
Love in Outer Space (Ra)
The Satellites Are Spinning (Ra) [JT, ATE, ens voc]
The Shadow World (Ra) [inc]

2nd set:
Solar Ship (Ra)                   
unidentified title [Gilmore, ts,
with p accompaniment; inc]
What Planet Is This? (Ra) [SR, ATE, ens voc]
Discipline 27-II (Ra) [dirge tempo] /
I Roam the Cosmos (Ra) [SR, JT, ens voc]
If You're the Truth, You're a Bad Truth (Ra) /
Right Road, Wrong Direction (Ra) /
Take Me to Your Leader (Ra) /
This Is Not Life (Ra) /
I Use Planets for Stepping Stones (Ra) /
Where'd You Come From? (Ra) /
Immeasurable (Ra) [SR, JT, ens voc] /
Out Beyond the Kingdom Of (Ra)
[SR, JT, ATE declamation;
incl. You've Lost Your Right and
It's After the End of the World]
Cosmos Synthesis (Ra) /
Outer Space Employment Agency (Ra)
[SR, JT, ATE voc] /
Why Go to the Moon? (Ra) [SR, ATE, JT voc] /
Neptune (Ra) [JT, ens voc; inc]
Journey to Saturn (Ra) [JT, ens voc]
Rocket Number Nine (Ra) [ens voc] /
Second Stop is Jupiter (Ra) [ens voc]
Angels and Demons at Play (Boykins-Allen)
[inc]
How Am I to Know? (King-Parker)
(Keep Your) Sunnyside Up (DeSylva-Brown)
unidentified title (Ra)
[bars riff; p; ts; Hadi, tp]
Sun Ra and his Band from Outer Space (Ra)
[ens voc]
closing announcement       

Saturn LP 61674, Out Beyond the Kingdom Of, was released on the Philadelphia label in 1974.  Some copies are titled Discipline 99.  Location courtesy of Glenn Jones.

At least three different Saturn labels were used on Out Beyond the Kingdom Of.  There is a Purplish Chicago Saturn label with a 1974 copyright date; these were sold in a generic "Acropolis" cover (Peter Roberts).  There is a  photocopied Chicago label (black on white) with typed-in titles; on this label, "Outer Space Employment Agency" has been truncated to "Outer Space Em."  These recycled Chicago labels are probably of Philadelphia origin!  In later years the prevailing label was a yellow Philadelphia with titles typed in a script typeface (see Geerken and Hefele's book for photos of the second and third labels).

There is a 95-minute audience tape that includes most of the first set, then (as we now realize) jumps to the end of the second set.  This is referred to as "tape 1" above.  A second audience tape ("tape 2"; this one is 105 minutes long and was obviously taped by a different person) was brought to our attention by Roy Morris after the first edition was published.  It reveals that "Angels and Demons at Play" through "Sun Ra and his Band from Outer Space" come from the end of the second set, not the first set.

"Solar Ship" was the introduction to the second set (it includes the emcee announcing the band's reappearance), but, as it appears only on the Saturn release, our placement of the untitled number and "Discipline 99" immediately after it, at the beginning of the second set, is somewhat conjectural.  They could have been from the end of the first set.  By contrast, the long sequence that begins with "What Planet Is This?" and "Discipline 27-II" is material that was almost always used at the beginning of a set.

Tape 2 shows that "Cosmos Synthesis" was edited on the Saturn release.  Both tapes reveal that "(Keep Your) Sunnyside Up" was faded at the end of John Gilmore's solo (solos by Kwame Hadi, Pat Patrick, Ra on piano, and Ronnie Boykins, plus the final ensemble, were cut, probably because Hadi was off-mike during his solo).  We previously identified the baritone sax soloist on this number as Charles Davis, but the electric bass line on "Angels and Demons" would indicate Pat Patrick.  A long, bowed bass solo on "Discipline 27" is the work of Ronnie Boykins, and Danny Thompson can be heard on the Neptunian libflecto during "The Shadow World."  A second trap drummer is audible on "Angels and Demons."  All unissued titles identified by rlc and ct; personnel rlc and ct.

"Angels and Demons at Play" (an arrangement called "Pre-Egyptian March" at several other points in the first edition) was incorrectly identified in the first edition as "Watusi."  Thanks to Ahmed Abdullah for correcting us.

from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Sun Ra and his Outer Space Arkestra
Out Beyond the Kingdom Of
(Discipline 99)
Saturn 61674 (1974)

1. Discipline 99   12:12
2. How Am I to Know? - Sunnyside Up   9:35
3. Solar Ship   1:50
4. Out Beyond the Kingdom Of ...   4:32
5. Cosmos Synthesis   5:40
6. Outer Space Employment Agency   4:27
7. Journey to Saturn   10:26

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Mega

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Many Thanks to Paul W for sharing his rip of this rare album.

2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Song of the Stargazers (1979?)

Song of the Stargazers (Saturn 487 or sometimes 6161) was released in 1979 and is mostly a hodgepodge of various live recordings from the nineteen-seventies. But one track was obviously recorded much earlier, probably in 1967 or 1968, according to Prof. Campbell. Performed in a large, reverberant space in front of a sizable and enthusiastic audience, “Cosmo Dance” is an interesting quasi-modal composition featuring some evocative flute and oboe. Clacking wooden sticks set up a simple, repetitious rhythm with Boykins's bass and Pat Patrick’s “space lute” plucking out a droning three-note groove. Low horns and bowed bass enter with convulsively heaving whole-note fourths while flute and oboe and bass clarinet dance a medieval round. Flute and then oboe embark on expansive, Middle-Eastern sounding solos over the clacking sticks and throbbing bass/space lute, the audience bursting into spirited applause after each. Finally, the low horn/bowed bass whole-note fourths return, repeating several times before ending to more justifiably hearty ovation. Ra himself is not heard playing on this track, but the murky sound quality makes it hard to clearly make out who is doing what. Campbell says Marshall Allen is playing both flute and oboe, but that is impossible since both instruments are heard simultaneously during the ensemble section. So, is it Danny Davis on flute? It certainly sounds like him. There is also some talking barely audible throughout – is that Sun Ra lecturing the crowd or just random audience noise? In any event, this is a beautiful, prototypical Sun Ra composition of the period, perfectly realized by his Arkestra.
from NuVoid's Sun Ra Sunday (July 26, 2009)


135. [229d]  Sun Ra and his Arkestra

Song of the Stargazers

Marshall Allen (fl, ob); Robert Cummings (bcl); Pat Patrick (space lute); Ronnie Boykins (b); poss. John Gilmore (perc); unidentified (perc).

Live, 1967 or 1968

Cosmo Dance (Ra)

This is a late 1960s number; the bass clarinetist is not Eloe Omoe!  Personnel identified by rlc and Larry Nai.

Saturn LP 487, Song of the Stargazers, was the last new Saturn release on the Chicago label.  It was issued before 1981, most likely in 1979.  Some copies bear the serial number 6161 (NMY).  Mark Webber calls it a "mystery album."

289. [229]  Sun R and his Arkestra

Song of the Stargazers

Sun Ra (p, syn, org); prob. Michael Ray (tp); unidentified (tp); Craig Harris (tb); Tyrone Hill (tb -1); poss Vincent Chancey (Fr hn); Marshall Allen (as, fl, ob, picc, perc); Danny Davis (as, perc); John Gilmore (ts, perc); Eloe Omoe (bcl); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, perc); James Jacson (bsn, Inf-d); Damon Choice (vib); prob. Dale Williams (eg); poss. Luqman Ali [Edward Skinner] (d); unidentified (d); unidentified (cga); unidentified (sticks).

Live, 1979

The Others in Their World (Ra)
Galactic Synthesis (Ra) -1

…The only known copies of the LP are in Europe: "Maybe Saturn produced it in a very limited edition and they sold it while touring through Europe" (Geerken).  And all known copies are defective; Julien Vein says that the LP may have been mastered on only one stereo channel.

These particular items seem to be from the same live concert, and are similar in sound and conception to the free improvisations on the Soundscape sessions from November 1979.

The first discographical listing came from Tilman Stahl, who apparently took the misleading title "The Others in Their World" (which is not the 1960 composition) and the serial number 6161 to indicate that the album was recorded in Chicago in 1961!  Geerken and Hefele place the album in the late '60s and claim a 1970 release date.  The label, however, is a rather tattered El Saturn that was characteristic of the last Chicago pressings in the late 1970s.

290. [229a]  Sun Ra and his Arkestra

Song of the Star Gazers

Sun Ra (p.)

Studio recording, unknown date

Somewhere Out (Ra)

This rather unusual solo piano piece could have been recorded anywhere between the mid-1960s and the late 1970s.  No further information is available.

291. [229b]  Sun Ra and his Arkestra

Song of the Stargazers

Sun Ra (p.); unidentified (eg); unidentified (b); unidentified (perc).

Live, mid-1970s

Distant Stars (Ra)

This fragment from a live concert has a mid-1970s feel to it.  There is no connection with the 1960 or 1961 composition called "Distant Stars."

292. [229c]  Sun Ra and his Arkestra

Song of the Stargazers

poss. Atakatune [Stanley Morgan] (perc, voc); poss. Odun [Russell Branch] (perc, voc); poss. Chiea (perc, voc -1).

Studio recording, prob. 1970s

Duo (Ra)
Seven Points (Ra) -1 [ens voc]

These two numbers feature the same percussionists, playing in a manner that is unusual for Arkestra members.  On "Seven Points" they contribute some vocalizing as well.  "Seven Points" as a title is reminiscent of "The Place of Five Points," which was recorded in 1979.  If the percussionists are in fact Atakatune, Odun, and Chiea, a recording date in 1972 or 1973 is most likely.
from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Duo

Sun Ra and his Arkestra
Song of the Stargazers
Saturn 487 or 6161 (unknown year, poss. 1979 - 1980)

1. The Others In Their World   10:14
2. Somewhere Out   4:40
3. Distant Stars   1:01
4. Duo   3:04
5. Seven Points   4:49
6. Cosmo Dance   6:31
7. Galactic Synthesis   9:52

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FF

0r

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FF 

2nd Chance: Sun Ra - St. Louis Blues (Solo Piano vol. 2) (1978)

In 1977 Sun Ra recorded two LPs of solo piano for the enterprising Improvising Artists label.  Of the two, I prefer Solo Piano Volume 2, St Louis Blues IAI373858, reissued on CD.  It is a live recording - a videotape release of the performance has also been available from IAI.  There is real purpose to the music here, from 'Ohosnisixaeht' (the recording venue spelt backwards!), to the closing 'Thoughts On Thoth'.
from Chris Trent's 'Another Shade of Blue'

 On July 3, 1977, Sun Ra shared a bill with Paul Bley at Axis-In-Soho as part of the Newport in New York Festival, which was recorded by Bley’s Improvising Artists label. A portion of Sun Ra’s set was released on LP in 1978 as St. Louis Blues: Solo Piano, Volume 2 (IAI 37.38.58) and reissued on CD in 1993 (IAI 123858) (Campbell & Trent pp.236-237). If Solo Piano, Volume 1 was an introspective studio album, Sun Ra is in an expansive, playful mood in front of a live audience. As Szwed points out in his biography, “Bley was surprised to see that once he was alone on stage, ‘Sonny was a ham who liked to clown and surprise the audience’” (Szwed p.343) and there is a bit of that to be found here.

Ra’s passagework is startlingly virtuosic, displaying an astonishing independence of fingers and hands and extreme sensitivity of touch, although it sometimes comes across a bit empty and showy. “Ohosnisixaeht” is a rhapsodic blues with impressively fleet soloing, but the music wanders rather than gets anywhere. W.C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues” is better, updated with a complex, polytonal arrangement. The simple “Three Little Words,” a 1930s showtune by Harry Ruby and Bert Kalmar is given an over-the-top reinterpretation that borders on corny, full of melodramatic glissandos and skittering block chords but always returning to that sweet, sweet swing. Side one closes with a short, romantic rendition of “Honeysuckle Rose” that alternates between rubato schmaltz and breezy ragtime.

B1  Sky and Sun

Side two is more interesting, containing three originals that show off Sun Ra’s compositional skills as well as his brilliant keyboard work. “Sky and Sun” is onomatopoeic: drifting chords represent the sky and twinkling figures in the uppermost register represent the sun. This track is really quite evocative and it sounds he could do this sort of stuff all day long. Ra summons up an entire Arkestra on “I Am We Are,” from rumbling bass notes, scraping “strange strings” and  exquisitely voiced harmonies to outrageous, free-jazz scree, with moments of two-fisted aggression a la Cecil Taylor—a tour de force and probably the best thing on the album. “Thoughts On Thoth” ends the album with a slow space groove, articulated with remarkably fluid right-hand flourishes. It’s a brilliant display, but feels a little perfunctory to me.  
Continue Reading at Sun Ra Sundays

Just as his reputation on he synthesizer was growing, Sun Ra began to play more piano again, and in a style that reached back further in jazz tradition than most would have suspected.  But those who had known him for years understood that his origins were in the blues, and assumed that side of his playing: "Sun Ra could play the blues for twenty four hours without repeating a phrase," they claimed.  Though many recognized him as capable of playing bombastically, and of using the piano for color, few thought of him as a major player.  But Paul Bley, one of the two or three leading pianists of free jazz, believed that Sonny was a great piano player, so great that he didn't need a band.  If anything, he felt, the band was a cover for his insecurity.  Early in 1977 Bley convinced Sonny to do a series of piano duo performances with him in New York and Europe and to record for Bley's new audio and video company, Improvising Artists.  In Europe Bley was surprised to see that once he was alone on stage, "Sonny was a ham who liked to clown and surprise the audience -- as at Lake Como, where he shocked them by playing a cake walk!"  On May 20 Sun Ra went into the studio to record Solo Piano, and played a mixture of his own compositions and some unusually conceived standards, such as a very freely played "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child," or "Yesterdays" done in a brisk stride.  On July 3 he was recorded solo (St. Louis Blues) while playing at Axis-in-Soho as part of the Newport Jazz Festival, and again there were surprises: his "St. Louis Blues" aluded to Earl Hines's famous boogie-woogie version and a cheerful little love song like "Three Little Words" got turned into a melodrama.  But there were modest experiments in keyboard resources as well, such as "Sky and Sun," which stayed almost entirely within a small range at the top of the keyboard.

from Szwed - Space Is The Place p. 342-343

248. [204] Sun Ra

Sun Ra (p.).

The Axis-in-SoHo, NYC, July 3, 1977

Ohosinisixaeht (Ra)
Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child
(trad.)
St. Louis Blues (Handy)
Three Little Words (Kalmar-Ruby)
Honeysuckle Rose (Waller-Razaf)
Sky and Sun (Ra)
I Am We Are I (Ra)
Thoughts on Thoth (Ra)

First Released in 1978 on Improvising Artists Inc. 37.38.58, St. Louis Blues: Solo Piano. All tracks reissued in 1993 on Improvising Artists Inc. 123858 [CD].

IAI V003 is a 40-minute video issued by Improvising Artists, which differs from the LP/CD (replacing "Ohosnisixaeht" with "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child") and has other minor editing differences from the LP and CD, but is basically a document of the same concert.  "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child" is a different performance from the one that was made at the previous session.  IAI V003 was available in the late 1970s through early 1980s and was restored to circulation in the 1990s (thanks to Michael Denton for information about the two IAI videos).  The video has also been available from Mastersession (MSN 5017).

This concert was part of the Newport in New York Festival; according to Allan Chase, Sun Ra appeared on a bill with Paul Bley.  According to Fred Conrad, the concert ended with "When There Is No Sun," on which Ra was joined by June Tyson (voc) and John Gilmore (voc).  It is not known whether this piece was recorded.

from Campbell/Trent The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Sun Ra
St. Louis Blues - Solo Piano (1978)
Improvising Artists Records
IAI 37.38.58 (1978)

1. A1 Ohosnisixaeht   6:06
2. A2 St. Louis Blues   5:17
3. A3 Three Little Words   5:49
4. A4 Honeysuckle Rose   3:30
5. B1 Sky and Sun   6:18
6. B2 I Am We Are I   6:25
7. B3 Thoughts on Thoth   6:41

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St. Louis Blues (Solo Piano vol. 2) CD
IAI 123858-2 (1993)

Ohosnisixaeht     6:09

St. Louis Blues     5:19

Three Little Words    5:56

Honeysuckle Rose    3:44

Sky And Sun    6:20

I Am We Are I    6:27
Thoughts On Thoth    6:41

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RS
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or

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2nd Chance: Sun Ra - Universe in Blue (1972)

The Universe in Blue is a fantastic set. The title cut is just a slow blues soloing showcase with Sun Ra's "intergalactic space organ," trumpet (not sure who), John Gilmore's tenor sax, and back to Ra. June Tyson takes center stage for "Blackman", giving a particularly impassioned performance. "In a Blue Mood" (just Ra and Luqman Ali on drums) and "Another Shade of Blue" are just back-to-the-basics blues form for more soloing. Ra sticks to organ for the entire date, and it's just wonderful to hear what the Arkestra does with such a "simple" form. This is a fairly rare, fairly inside date, and fans of Ra and Gilmore's playing will be especially pleased. 

AMG // Sean Westergaard

Released as Saturn ESR 5000 IGB in 1972 (in mono), Universe in Blue was recorded live somewhere on the west coast presumably around August, 1971. However, the greatly reduced Arkestra suggests that it could have been recorded “somewhere on the road” in mid-1972, as they straggled across the country on their way back to Philadelphia for good (see Campbell & Trent pp.172-173). To further confuse the matter, “The Good Doctor” at ESP-disk’ provides a firm date of August 17, 1971 but insists the venue is Slug’s Saloon in New York City (see below). Who knows? In any event, behind the striking, psychedelicized album cover awaits a tasty selection of smoky, blues-based compositions, dominated by Ra’s patented “space-age barbeque” organ.

Sun Ra leads the way on the somnambulant title track, a dreamy, slowly smoldering blues, demonstrating his mastery of the tradition while summoning up swelling and percussive Hammond-like sounds from the otherwise cheesy Farfisa organ. After a blissful five minutes, Kwami Hadi enters on trumpet, only to be rudely cut off by the tape running out. Ouch! Some amount of music is missing, with part two picking up with the rhythm section reaching a low boil, with a sparse horn section offering swinging punctuation to Hadi’s bravura trumpet statements. John Gilmore then takes over with his soulful growl for a chorus or two on tenor sax before Ra returns with a brief, understated solo on organ to end. “Blackman” sets up a moderately rocking groove for June Tyson, who evokes a time when “Pharaoh was sitting on his throne, when the Blackman ruled this land.” Over and over she implores, her voice cracking with emotion, “I hope you understand!” When I hear her sing, I think I do understand.

“In a Blue Mood” is another slow burner featuring more fingerlickin’ good organ from Mr. Ra. Campbell & Trent suggest Alzo Wright is playing cello on this gig (p.172), but I can’t hear him at all. In this instance, Sonny is playing a wandering walking bass with his left hand, soloing all the while with his right. This is a truly superb solo performance by Sun Ra. “Another Shade of Blue” concludes the album with a mid-tempo swing number led by Gilmore’s indomitable tenor. Sonny shifts gears seemingly at random with unexpected key modulations while ad libbed horn riffs pop in and out. Unfazed, Gilmore just keeps things cooking -- and good lord, twelve minutes later, he’s still wailing away like a madman as the track fades out. Dang! Yes folks, it’s yet another incredible John Gilmore solo – what more can I say? It must be heard to be believed.

Continue Reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sundays

179. [167] Sun Ra and his Blue Universe Arkestra

Universe in Blue

Sun Ra (intergalactic space [Farfisa] org); Kwame Hadi (tp); Akh Tal Ebah (tp); Marshall Allen (as, ob, picc, fl); Danny Davis (as, acl); John Gilmore (ts); Pat Patrick (bars); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, fl); Eloe Omoe (bcl, picc); Alzo Wright (clo); Lex Humphries (d); June Tyson (voc).

Probably live in Californiac. August 1971

Universe in Blue Part I (Ra)
Universe in Blue Part II (Ra)
Blackman (Ra) [JT voc]
In a Blue Mood (Ra)
Another Shade of Blue (Ra)

Saturn LP200, Universe in Blue, was released in 1972.  The matrix number is ESR 5000 IGB.  It was recorded live on the road somewhere.  Most likely it was made on the West Coast in late summer of 1971, when only part of the Arkestra remained in the Bay Area.  (A 1972 date after the Arkestra left Oakland in May remains a possibility.)  Personnel from Saturn jacket.  The two parts of "Universe in Blue" come from a single performance, with an interruption when the tape ran out.

from Campbell / Trent  The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.

Sun Ra and his Blue Universe Arkestra
Universe in Blue (1972)
Saturn ESR 200 (2012 180g reissue)

1. A1 Universe in Blue part I   5:00
2. A2 Universe in Blue part II   8:24
3. B1 Black Man   2:27
4. B2 In a Blue Mood   7:21
5. B3 Another Shade of Blue   11:43

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If you love this, be sure to check out the August 17, 1971 "I Roam The Cosmos" collection culled from Michael D. Anderson's ESP-Disk radio show.