One of the most exciting, swinging and idiosyncratic jazz artists has to be Sun Ra, who played music as if literally coming from another planet. While born and weaned in the Swing Era, Ra created his own musical worldview, cementing his place in jazz with his classic Space Is The Place album in 1972. This pair of concerts from Chicago’s Showcase from 1976-77 has him with is Arkestta that included signature sidemen like Jhn Gilmore/ts, Marshall Allen/as-fl, along with a wide range of percussionists along with Ra himself at piano and keyboards.
And can we talk about the keyboards? The eerie and “otherworldly” tones that Ra gets from this thing ranges from Hendrixy guitar to Walt Disney’s Haunted Mansion. The 1976 gig is akin to Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, with textured sounds and lunar landings on “Calling Planet Earth & The Shadow World” with the leader splashing the ivories with more noodles than a Korean Soup Kitchen on “Theme of The Stargazers”. The vocal team which included Wisteria, Cheryl Banks Smith and June Tyson chant and clap like a gospel meeting from Mars on “EbaH Speaks In Cosmic Tongue” and “Greetings From The 21st Century.” From 1977, Gilmore bops around the intergalactic keys on “Synthesis Approach” and gets into some deep South shufflin’ blues on a boogie-ing ”Moonship Journey”. The rhythm team of Luqman Ali/dr and Richard Williams go into overdrive on a mercurial “Velvet” and Allen’s flute hovers like a cirrus cloud on “New Beginning”
The accompanying booklet includes notes from Allen, and artists that are indebted to Ra, such as David Murray, Matthew Shipp and Jack DeJohnette. One giant leap for mankind!