Cultural Detritus, Reviews, and Commentary
Sun Ra – Oblique Parallax El Saturn IX SR 72881 (1982)
A very synth-heavy live set recorded in Detroit circa 1980-81. This is very reminiscent of Disco 3000 and Media Dreams but with more of a focus on Ra. Compared to similar recordings this is not exactly top-tier stuff, but it’s still full of good vibes (AND crazy synth noise) for the Ra fan. “Journey Stars Beyond,” which takes up all of side two, is definitely the highlight.
Sun Ra and His Solar-Myth Arkestra – The Solar-Myth Approach (Vol 1) BYG 529.340 (1971)
Like Space Is the Place and Soundtrack to the Film Space Is the Place, The Solar-Myth Approach (Vol 1) is a very broad and eclectic sampling of various musical forms Sun Ra and his Arkestra had developed up through the early 1970s. Early on there is a short space chant with “Realm of Lightning” (better known as “Outer Spaceways Incorporated”). “Seen III, Took 4” is a somewhat rare look back to the abstract experiments of the group’s early days in New York City, something akin to Cosmic Tones for Mental Therapy. “They’ll Come Back” starts with more exotic sounds and a very persistent bowed bass, but eventually transforms into “Ancient Aiethopia,” a song the band had been performing since the 1950s. The rest is mostly pretty percussion-heavy, with the soloing tending toward the difficult. The sound here is a bit lo-fi, and the performances may not quite be top-tier, but despite those potential concerns this would still make a fairly good introduction to the work of Sun Ra, especially for more adventurous souls — with the caveat that there are even better recordings out there from the group ready to be heard.
Link to an article by Shelley Chapman:
“I’m a Judge and I Think Criminal Court Is Horrifying”
What might not be clear to all readers is that Judge Chapman is a federal judge who deals only with bankruptcy cases and this article is her experience going to a state court that deals with criminal matters (among other things).
Link to a lithograph by George Maciunas:
“Fluxpost (Smiles)” (1978)
Thelonious Monk – Thelonious Monk Plays the Music of Duke Ellington Riverside RLP 12-201 (1955)
Okay, but somehow lacking. Though Clarke and Pettiford make up an A-list rhythm section, they don’t seem to bring their “A” game to this recording. People often note how Monk softened the edges of his playing during his tenure on Columbia Records, but even here on Riverside he was doing that already.
Link to an article by Lester Spence:
Sun Ra & His Arkestra – Live at Montreux El Saturn MS 87976 (1976)
A pretty good live set. This is one of the most high fidelity live recordings of the Arkestra pre-1980, and it features everything from Cecil Taylor-like piano pounding (“Of the Other Tomorrow”) to synthesizer freak-outs (“Gods of the Thunder Realm”) to afro-futurist space chants (“We Travel the Spaceways”) to big band sci-fi exotica (“Lights on a Satellite” and “El Is the Sound of Joy”) to a loose rendition of a standard (“Take the ‘A’ Train”) to plenty of songs with free soloing (“For the Sunrise,” “The House of Eternal Being” and “Prelude”). It is somewhat interchangeable with a lot of other live Arkestra recordings of the era though. Personally, because of the slightly showy, programmatic nature of these performances, I prefer the wild yet stately late 60s recording Pictures of Infinity, some of the more intense early 70s live discs like Nuits de la Fondation Maeght, Vol. 1, It’s After the End of the World: Live at the Donaueschingen and Berlin Festivals, the intimate late 70s sets like Disco 3000 and Media Dreams, the lively mid-80s live sets, Live in Nickelsdorf 1984 (and its counterpart Live at Praxis ’84), and even the coarse Egyptian sets like Live in Egypt 1 and the autumnal Live at the Hackney Empire. If that seems like a lengthy list, then the point is made. Live at Montreux is not bad at all, but faces stiff competition from so many other Sun Ra live recordings that it doesn’t merit any special attention.
The Sun Ra Arkestra – Live at Praxis ’84 Golden Years GY 5/6 (2000)
The Arkestra has more polished performances on record, as well as numerous live sets that were recorded better. Yet this collection of the three original Praxis volumes that documented a show in Greece still offers a uniquely comprehensive view of the basic template for late period Sun Ra. There were noticeably greater numbers of standards, something likely driven by a number of factors including heightened confidence from recent successes, Sun Ra’s advancing age (he was about to enter his seventies), and even overtures to changing commercial tastes (the Eighties being known for a “conservative” movement in jazz). The band was frequently recreating Fletcher Henderson recordings like “Yeah, Man!” too. These were not just performances of Henderson’s signature songs with their original arrangements, but actually live, note-for-note recitations of the old recordings in their entirety. If you dig this, note that a concert from two weeks later is available on Live in Nickelsdorf 1984 that is at least as good (maybe better).
