Tigger2's Music Madness Sun Ra: Sun Song FACTORY SEALED LP

Format: Sealed LP
Country: U.S.A. Record Company & Release Number: Delmark: DS-411
Original release date: 1967
Bar Code: NONE Condition of the cover: Mint
Condition of the record: Sealed - Assumed Mint Shipping Weight: 1 pounds, 2 ounces
My inventory number: 208111B Notes: No year is listed on the cover, but my best guess is 1967 since the review on the back of the cover is dated 5-22-67.

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Songs

Brainville Call for All Demons Transitions Possession Street Named Hell Lullaby for Realville Future Swing a Little Taste New Horizons Fall off the Log Sun Song

Credits

Sylvia Abernathy: Cover Design

Robert Barry: Drums, Bells Al Brandtner: Design Richard Evans: Bass, Drums Stephen Fassett: Editing John Gilmore: Percussion, Sax (Tenor), Blocks Wilburn Green: Bass (Electric), Guitar (Bass), Tambourine James Herndon: Timbales, Bells, Tympani [Timpani] Jim Herndon: Percussion, Tympani [Timpani] Arthur Hoyle: Trumpet, Bells Randy Kling: Mastering Robert G. Koester: Executive Producer Pat Patrick: Sax (Baritone), Bells Julian Priester: Trombone, Chimes Sun Ra: Organ, Piano, Piano (Electric), Performer James Scales: Sax (Alto) Dave Young: Trumpet David Young: Trumpet, Bells

Album Review

Review by Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide

Originally issued as Jazz By Sun Ra in 1956, Sun Song was the first long-player to feature the enigmatic bandleader. However, his various bands -- or "Arkestras" as Ra proclaimed them -- had been issuing 78 and 45 rpms since the mid '50s. This recording initiated a much larger audience to the multifarious and otherwise logical post-bop rhythms of one of jazz's most notorious and equally respected figures. The sides which comprise Sun Song were recorded on July 12, 1956 by Tom Wilson, who would go on to produce such rock luminaries as Frank Zappa, Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, and the Velvet Underground, among others. Wilson's use of Chicago's premier Universal Recording Studio accounts for the amazing crispness and attention to nuance omnipresent throughout the disc. Ra's highly arithmetical approach to bop was initially discounted by noted jazz critic Nat Hentoff as "repetitious" with phrases which were "built merely on riffs with little development." In retrospect, however, it is obvious there is much more going on here. Among the musical innovations woven into compositions, such as the up-tempo "Brainville" and "Transition," are advanced time signatures coupled with harmonic scales based on Ra's mathematical equations. The intricate harmonies and complicated arrangements on "Possession" and "Sun Song" are inspiring in their deceptive simplicity. Text originally featured in a booklet accompanying Jazz By Sun Ra is reproduced in the CD liner notes booklet. This is noteworthy as one of the rare occasions upon which he sought to explain not only his influences, but his methods of composition and modes of execution as well. This may well be the most accessible work in Sun Ra's massive catalogue. It is likewise one of the most beautiful.

Biography

Sun Ra biography by Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

Of all the jazz musicians, Sun Ra was probably the most controversial. He did not make it easy for people to take him seriously, for he surrounded his adventurous music with costumes and mythology that both looked backward toward ancient Egypt and forward into science fiction. In addition, Ra documented his music in very erratic fashion on his Saturn label, generally not listing recording dates and giving inaccurate personnel information, so one could not really tell how advanced some of his innovations were. It has taken a lot of time to sort it all out (although Robert L. Campbell's Sun Ra discography has done a miraculous job). In addition, while there were times when Sun Ra's aggregation performed brilliantly, on other occasions they were badly out of tune and showcasing absurd vocals. Near the end of his life, Ra was featuring plate twirlers and fire eaters in his colorful show as a sort of Ed Sullivan for the 1980s.

But despite all of the trappings, Sun Ra was a major innovator. Born Herman Sonny Blount in Birmingham, AL (although he claimed he was from another planet), Ra led his own band for the first time in 1934. He freelanced at a variety of jobs in the Midwest, working as a pianist/arranger with Fletcher Henderson in 1946-1947. He appeared on some obscure records as early as 1948, but really got started around 1953. Leading a big band (which he called the Arkestra) in Chicago, Ra started off playing advanced bop, but early on was open to the influences of other cultures, experimenting with primitive electric keyboards, and playing free long before the avant-garde got established.

After moving to New York in 1961, Ra performed some of his most advanced work. In 1970, he relocated his group to Philadelphia, and in later years alternated free improvisations and mystical group chants with eccentric versions of swing tunes, sounding like a spaced-out Fletcher Henderson orchestra. Many of his most important sidemen were with him on and off for decades (most notably John Gilmore on tenor, altoist Marshall Allen, and baritonist Pat Patrick). Ra, who recorded for more than a dozen labels, has been well served by Evidence's extensive repackaging of many of his Saturn dates, which have at last been outfitted with correct dates and personnel details. In the late '90s, other labels began reissuing albums from Sun Ra's vast catalog, an effort that will surely continue for years to come.

This record came from a record store called "Phantasmagoria" which was located in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Phantasmagoria went out of business in 1978. I purchased most of their unsold inventory some years later when I owned "Music Madness" - a new & used record store in Catasauqua. Phantasmagoria used round colored stickers to indicate the price of the albums. They had a sign on the wall with the color sticker combinations for the customers to use so they knew the price of the albums. Most of the albums still have these stickers on them, and in some rare cases, the stickers are written on. Some of the records have prices on them. This is the price you would have paid for the record in 1978 if you would have bought it at Phantasmagoria. Please don't confuse these prices with their current value. All sealed albums are being sold as collector's items and cannot be returned due to manufacturer's defects. It may be almost impossible to replace many of the sealed albums that I am selling. All pictures are of the exact item being sold. The pictures always supersede any written description of this item. I always leave feedback before your item ships. Please consider leaving feedback for me after you have had a chance to inspect and enjoy your purchase. Please avoid questions on the last day of the auction. I might not have enough time to give you an answer before the auction ends. All album reviews, credits and artist biographies are from AllMusic Guide. If you haven't been to their web site, you have to check it out. It's one of the most comprehensive music references on the internet. In some cases, credits may include reissue (CD) information. Obviously any credits referenced to CDs do not apply to this album release. Shipping and pick-up

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