Sun Ra - The Antique Blacks (1974)

On August 9, 1974, Richard M. Nixon resigned as President of the United States. I imagine this extraordinary event was on Sun Ra’s mind when, a week later, he assembled a small Arkestra for a live radio broadcast at Temple University in Philadelphia on August 17. While not making any direct references to Nixon, Ra took the opportunity to sermonize at length and he felt strongly enough about the performance to edit the recording for an LP entitled, The Antique Blacks, released on his own Saturn label later in the year (Saturn 81774). Ra clearly felt he had to get his message out. In actuality, this record was pressed in vanishingly small editions, sometimes re-titled, Interplanetary Concepts or There Is A Change In The Air and with various covers, including a generic “Acropolis” sleeve (see Campbell & Trent, pp.212-213). Like the mystical texts in his personal library, The Antique Blacks was probably made available to only initiates or persons Ra felt could decode his deeper, spiritual meanings. The ever-resourceful Art Yard label has reissued the album on CD [and LP! -yotte] with a bonus track recorded at the same session—but beware: Ra’s philosophizing is as inscrutable as ever, making this a strange and difficult listen for the casual fan. Keep in mind: it was a different era.

The record starts out easy enough with “Song No.1,” a gently rollicking space groove propelled by burbling percussion (including Clifford Jarvis on trap drums and Atakatune on congas) and Sonny’s reedy Rocksichord comping. This is one of my favorite “genres” of Sun Ra’s music (think “Love In Outer Space”) and this is particularly fine example. John Gilmore is up first with a terse but beautifully melodic tenor sax solo: starting with burnished low-register figures and then flying into the highest registers, he gracefully returns to earth with a variation on the theme he’d extemporaneously established. Yes, it’s another brilliant Gilmore solo! Ra is up next and then—what’s this?—who’s playing the screaming electric guitar? That’s a good question. The liner notes to the Art Yard CD say it’s the mysterious “Sly” while Campbell & Trent insist it’s a 15-year-old Dale Williams (p.313). Whoever it is plays with a rocked-out, psychedelicized abandon which works well enough in this setting, despite a severe intonation problem. Then Akh Tal Ebah enters with one of his smeared, expressionistic trumpet solos. Kwame Hadi is absent at this session, giving Ebah a rare opportunity to stretch out. While Ebah doesn’t hit every note with refined precision (like Hadi), his melodic ideas are unique and interesting. Gilmore enters with a tasteful counter-melody and, after some more buzzy comping from Ra, the “Song No.1” comes to an end. Very nice.

Much of the rest of the album appears to be taken from a long, continuous piece, but chopped up and re-arranged for release. Ra outlines a simple ascending bassline in waltz-time then pauses to make his declamations, the Arkestra periodically entering with pulsating space chords, ensemble freakouts or out-jazz solos. Gilmore is joined by Marshall Allen and Davis for a full-blown saxophone battle on “There Is a Change in the Air” and Williams/Sly sounds a little like Sonny Sharrock with his gonzo, metallic attack. On “The Ridiculous ‘I’ and the Cosmos Me,” Gilmore delivers one of his trademarked a cappella blowouts and James Jacson takes a positively ripping solo on the otherwise unwieldy bassoon. For the most part, Ra sticks to Rocksichording incongruous harmonies and skittering runs, except at the end where we get some spaceship synthesizer. But, most of the time, Sonny is preaching it, hot and heavy. 

(continue reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sundays)

218. [190]  Sun Ra

Sun Ra (Rocksichord, Mini-Moog syn, declamation); Akh Tal Ebah (tp, voc); Marshall Allen (as); Danny Davis (as); John Gilmore (ts, voc, perc); prob. James Jacson (bsn, Inf-d); Dale Williams (eg); Clifford Jarvis (d); poss. Atakatune (cga).

Radio Broadcast, Philadelphia,
August 17, 1974

Saturn LP 81774, The Antique Blacks, was issued in 1974 on the Philadelphia label.  It has also been titled Interplanetary Concepts and There is Change in the Air.  Thanks to Mark Webber for the track listing for this rare album.  Personnel identified by rlc.  John Gilmore said that an electric guitarist whose name he remembered as Sly was in the Arkestra around this time, and the guitarist was so identified in the first edition.  However, Dale Williams says that he made this record -- when he was 15 years old!  Williams gives a Philadelphia radio station (probably the Temple University station) as the location.

The Antique Blacks has been sold in various covers, including a generic "Acropolis" sleeve (Peter Roberts).

from The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed.  Campbell/Trent

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The Antique Blacks (1974)
Art Yard 180g LP rip (2010)

1. Song No. 1   8:47
2. There is Change in the Air   10:50
3. The Antique Blacks   3:38
4. This Song is Dedicated to Nature's God   3:52
5. The Ridiculous "I" and the Cosmos Me   4:38
6. Would I For All That Were   2:51
7. Space is the Place   8:06

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8. You Thought You Could Build A World Without Us   9:11

(Bonus track from CD Reissue)

(download Bonus Track)

Space Is The Place

Sun Ra - United World in Outer Space (1975)

A gig at the Smiling Dog Saloon in Cleveland, OH on January 30, 1975 was broadcast by WMMS-FM and preserved on this sixty-minute recording but the band sounds a bit ragged, exhausted, perhaps, by the long-distance travel and inclement weather. Sadly, they never quite seem to get warmed up. But somewhere along the way, Sonny has picked up a hotshot bass-player, whose identity is unknown (see Campbell & Trent p.218). Whoever it is, he provides an unusually funky bottom-end to the proceedings. The Arkestra had to make do without a bassist at many shows during this period (particularly after the final departure of the inimitable Ronnie Boykins in mid-1974) making the rhythm section sound thin and incomplete, so the presence of the bass is always a welcome addition during this period (even if it isn’t the best show ever). Audio quality is pretty good (especially compared to other “bootlegs” we’ve been listening to recently) suffering more from careless microphone placement and poor balance than subsequent generational loss (my copy indicates the original broadcast was recorded to reel-to-reel, with only one cassette generation prior to being converted to digital). For better or worse, our anonymous bassist is certainly mixed front and center throughout!

After an introduction from the resident DJ, Ra fingers a dissonant organ chord before launching into “Astro Nation.” Loud electric bass anchors the groove and though he tends to overplay, he never loses the beat. The whole band joins in on the weirdly assymetrical chant , clapping and singing as they traipse around the nightclub with vocalist/dancer Eddie Thomas (a/k/a Thomas Thaddeus) adding some soulful yelps and moans. But it goes on for far too long without anything happening, ending with a desultory space chord. I’m sure it was a visual spectacle if nothing else. Sonny teases “Love In Outer Space” before changing his mind and queuing up “Enlightenment” in a new, rhythmically clipped vocal arrangement, ending a cappella. Sort of interesting, but nothing special. Then “Love In Outer Space” follows, propelled by Ra’s BBQ organ comping. Curiously, the theme is never played and after a few minutes, Ra drops out completely, leaving spacey African percussion and handclaps. Eventually, the organ vamp returns, accompanied by some bleating horns, but it ends inconclusively.

“Theme of the Stargazers” and “The Satellites Are Spinning” are presented as a brisk medley and is nicely sung by the band—but the audience doesn’t quite know what to make of it. When it ends, there’s total silence, not even a smattering of applause! Undeterred, Sonny brings up the pulsing drone of “Friendly Galaxy No.2” joined by the electric bass and, later, by pealing trumpets. The mellifluous flutes are woefully off-mic but a ringing vibraphone is crystal clear (presumably Damon Choice). But then Sonny steps up to pontificate, riffing on “I Am The Brother The Wind” and “I, Pharoah.” Here we go again! The unbalanced recording combined with an uncharacteristically subdued performance is disappointing: rather than hypnotic, it is merely boring. Oh well. Next up is a long keyboard solo which also seems to be less than totally inspired. It’s the usual spaceship synthesizer noises and dissonant organ clusters and the fact that the tape repeatedly fades up and down (and cuts in and out) doesn’t really help matters very much. However, after about seven minutes, Sonny speeds up the cheesy “rhythm machine” on his organ and plays along briefly, a hint of Disco 3000 to come!

(Continue reading at NuVoid's Sun Ra Sundays)

225. [194c]  Sun Ra and his Intergalactic Myth Science Arkestra

Sun Ra (org, syn, p, voc); Kwame Hadi (tp); Akh Tal Ebah (tp, voc); Marshall Allen (as, fl, perc); Danny Davis (as, fl, perc); John Gilmore (ts, timb, voc); Eloe Omoe (bcl, fl, perc); Danny Ray Thompson (bars, fl, perc); James Jacson (bsn, fl, Inf-d); unidentified (vib); unidentified (b, eb); unidentified (d); prob. Atakatune (cga); prob. Odun (cga); June Tyson (voc, dance); Eddie Thomas [Thomas Thaddeus] (voc, dance, perc).

Smiling Dog Saloon, Cleveland, OH,
January 30, 1975

There was a 60-minute broadcast of this concert over WMMS-FM.  All information from ct.  According to Jack Lefton, the arrangement of "Sophisticated Lady" (slow, featuring a vocal by Sun Ra reproving wicked women) is not known from any other concert tapes.
from The Earthly Recordings 2nd ed. Campbell/Trent

January 30, 1975

United World in Outer Space (180g LP rip)
(Vinyl Lovers 2009)

1. Astro Nation (of the United World in Outer Space)   11:00
2. Enlightenment   2:10
3. Friendly Galaxy 2 (I, Pharaoh)   12:49

4. Theme of the Stargazers / The Satellites are Spinning   2:28
5. Synthesizer Solo   8:29
6. Sophisticated Lady   14:10

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Live in Cleveland
(Golden Years of Jazz [Leo Records] CD (2009)

1. Astro Nation (Of The United World In Outer Space)   11:02
2. Enlightenment   2:13
3. Love In Outer Space   9:30 (not included on LP)
4. Theme Of The Stargazers - The Satellites are Spinning   2:33
5. Friendly Galaxy 2 - I Am The Brother Of The Wind - I Pharaoh   12:49
6. Synthesizer Solo   8:34
7. Sophisticated Lady   14:09

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